Recently, after about 8 months of renovation and upgrading, Zhaozhou Bridge, the “First Stone Arch Bridge in China” located in Zhao County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province, opened to the public with a new look.

The renovated and upgraded Zhaozhou Bridge Scenic Spot is mainly in the style of Sui culture, with a new pavement area of 5,056.5 square meters, new sculptures, pavilions, corridors, bell and drum towers, stage, global tourism panorama and landscape guide, etc. The theme of Sui culture is implanted in every corner of the park, allowing tourists to feel the strong cultural atmosphere of the thousand-year-old bridge.

Liang Yong, librarian of the Hebei Provincial Government Culture and History Research Institute: China is the origin of human arch bridges, and there are as many as one million stone arch bridges built in the past dynasties. Zhaozhou Bridge is known as the first stone arch bridge in China. It was built in the Sui Dynasty and was designed and built by Li Chun, a craftsman. The first person who brought Zhaozhou Bridge to the world was Mr. Liang Sicheng.

After the completion of Zhaozhou Bridge, there have been many large arch bridges imitating Zhaozhou Bridge in China. The construction technology of large open-shouldered stone arch bridges has taken root in China. Chinese stone arch bridge construction technology has also spread to India, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and other countries. Many ancient bridges in these countries were influenced by China's Zhaozhou Bridge.Editor/Ma Xue