This morning (June 6), the 578-year-old Yongtong Bridge was reopened after two years of repair, and the public can feel the ancient charm of the old bridge. Chaoyang District will do a good job in the activation and utilization of the cultural relics of Yongtong Bridge, promote the implementation of projects such as "Yongtong Bridge Museum", and create a Yongtong Bridge theme trail, so that citizens and tourists can immerse themselves in the canal culture and unlock more new experiences and scenes of cultural tourism consumption.
Yongtong Bridge after the repair/Photographed by reporters
Stone lion on the bridge / photographed by reporters
Yongtong Bridge, also known as Bali Bridge, was built in 1446 and is an ancient bridge across the Grand Canal in Beijing, and became a national key cultural relics protection unit in 2013. In recent years, due to its age and the large load of traffic functions, Yongtong Bridge has had problems such as stone damage and dislocation, and has also lost its former brilliance.
Today, the renovated Yongtong Bridge is revitalized again, the bridge deck is flat and wide, and the 32 pairs of stone lions on the railing are of different shapes, which are vivid and interesting, and complement each other with the Yongtong New Bridge. "Some of the stone lions in the past have been damaged, and the bridge deck is also potholed, which is very dazzling after the repair, showing the thousand-year-old history of the Chinese nation." "Now it's new, and now the bridge is beautiful and spectacular." Surrounding citizens said.
In 2021, Chaoyang District launched the Yongtong Bridge Repair Project/Beijing News
Chaoyang District started the Yongtong Bridge repair project in 2021 and completed it in 2023. During the renovation process, the engineers used small equipment and traditional tools to gradually planing the structure under the asphalt of the bridge deck in millimeters to minimize the disturbance to the cultural relics.
At the same time, the cleared stones will be used on the Yongtong Bridge again to restore the historical features of the ancient bridge. Yu Wenwen, deputy director of the Chaoyang District Bureau of Culture and Tourism, said that some of these stones were attached to the asphalt at that time, and some were buried on both sides of the approach bridge.
The original strip of stone was restored to the bridge deck / photographed by reporters
VR Bridge View/Yongtong Bridge Digital Space
Yongtong Bridge Digital Space/Photo by reporters
The revitalization and utilization of Yongtong Bridge will better realize the inheritance and protection of history and culture. In the digital space of Yongtong Bridge, it can realize "restoring the grand scenery of the ancient bridge", "VR viewing the bridge" and so on. In addition, Chaoyang District will take the canal water culture as the core, and the ancient cultural relics and bridges as the axis, and actively promote the implementation of cultural projects such as the "Yongtong Bridge Museum". Introduce more characteristic formats and integrate more new scenes of cultural tourism consumption, so that tourists can experience the culture of the Grand Canal and realize the beautiful vision of "cultural tourism and business, Chaoyang Yongtong".
Yu Wenwen said that on the south side of the bridge, a digital immersive experience boat of the Grand Canal was arranged, and exhibition boards were created at both ends of the approach bridge in accordance with the museum's standards. Of the 32 pairs of stone lions on the bridge, 12 pairs were selected for secondary processing of cultural and creative activities, laying the foundation for subsequent activation and utilization. In the next step, Yongtong Bridge will be built into a cultural, commercial and tourism complex integrating cultural exhibitions, pedestrian transportation, long bridge landscape, and commercial markets.
The Grand Canal Digital Immersive Experience Boat/Reporter Shooting
Reporter Su Wan Editor Zhu Yanting Chief Editor Cheng Yan