Five-Pavilion Bridge

The Five-Pavilion Bridge, also called the Lotus Bridge, is a beautiful covered stone arch footbridge. It stands in the Slender West Lake National Park in Hanjiang District, Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China. The bridge is very special and is known as one of the Four Bridges in Misty Rain.

During the Qing Dynasty, the bridge was part of the 24 Views of Yangzhou, a group of famous sights that many people visited to enjoy. Today, the Five-Pavilion Bridge is a well-known landmark in the city of Yangzhou. It is a place where people can walk, enjoy the view, and learn about the history of the area.

Names

The bridge is known as the "Five-Pavilion Bridge". Another name for it is the "Lotus Bridge" or "Lotus Blossom Bridge". This name comes from the bridge’s original Chinese name. It might be named after the Lotus Blossom Dyke nearby or because the pavilions look like the petals of a lotus flower.

History

The Five-Pavilion Bridge was built in 1757 to connect homes on the north side of the lake to the Temple of the Lotus Mind on the south side. Local salt merchants paid for it to welcome the Qianlong Emperor during his visit. The bridge was inspired by a famous bridge in Beijing and was praised as one of China’s most beautiful bridges.

During fights in 1853, the bridge was damaged and some parts were destroyed. It was fixed later, but by 1929, only three of its five pavilions were still standing. The bridge was repaired many times over the years. In 2006, it was officially listed as an important cultural treasure of China.

Structure

The Five-Pavilion Bridge is 55.3 meters long and stands on 12 granite bases. It has 15 arches in three different styles, with the largest one spanning 7 meters. The main pavilion in the center connects to four smaller pavilions at each corner through covered walkways. These pavilions have scarlet pillars and are topped with imperial yellow tiles.