Lixian Du’an Bridge

Lixian Du’an Bridge

Lixian Du’an Bridge is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Du’an Bridge is located to the east of Liyang Town in Lixian County. The bridge is a stone arch structure built over the Dan River, with its origins dating back to the Yongzheng era. In the 49th year of the Qianlong reign (1784), local gentry such as Peng Zongliang proposed constructing a stone bridge, but it was never completed due to repeated destruction by floods. Later, in the 24th year of the Jiaqing reign (1819), Doolai, the state administrator, and An Peilian, the state magistrate, built a stone arch bridge on the original site, which was completed the following year. To commemorate the two officials, Doolai and An Peilian, the local people named the stone arch bridge Du’an Bridge.

The Du’an Bridge is 198 meters long in total (including the approach spans), 8.7 meters wide, and has 11 arches. The central stone arch spans approximately 15 meters and is about 10 meters high, while the spans and heights of the side arches gradually decrease toward both ends. The stone piers are boat-shaped and taper inward stepwise from bottom to top, forming a trapezoidal pointed shape. Originally, there were stone guardrails along both sides of the bridge deck, with a pavilion built in the middle and one stone archway at each end. In 1935, when He Long led troops to attack Lixian County, one of the bridge arches was blown up to block the enemy’s retreat. The bridge was restored to its original design in 1950. With its grand and rustic scale, distinctive architectural style, and high artistic value, the bridge is an outstanding example of traditional engineering.

On October 7, 2019, Du’an Bridge was included in the eighth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Further Reading:

· Eighth Batch of Hunan Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units