Lugou Bridge (Lugu Bridge)

Japanese: 蘆溝橋 - ろこうきょう（英語表記）Lú gōu qiáo

This bridge spans the Lugou River (Sangqian River) in the southwestern suburbs of Beijing, China. Construction began in 1189 (the 29th year of the Dading era) as a key route to Zhongdu in the Jin Dynasty, and was completed in 1192 (the 3rd year of the Ming Chang era). Since then, it has undergone numerous repairs during the Ming and Qing dynasties. The 266.5m-long stone bridge consists of 11 arches, and features excellent stone carvings such as the Huabiao (flower-covered bridges) on both sides and the large and small lion reliefs on the railings. Poets throughout history have praised it for its "wow rain, stretching a thousand feet high" and "the blue dragon stands to the north, the clouds flying low." Marco Polo also wrote about it in his book The Travels of Marco Polo as "a beautiful stone bridge in Kambalik (the Dadu of the Yuan Dynasty, or Beijing)."

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

中国，北京市南西郊の蘆溝河(桑乾河)に架かる橋。金の中都に至る要道として1189年(大定29)に建設が始まり92年(明昌3)に完成した。以来，明･清時代にたび重なる修理を経ている。全長266.5m，11本のアーチからなる石橋で，両岸に各一対立つ華表（かひよう）や欄干（らんかん）の大小の獅子浮彫などの石彫がすぐれ，歴代の詩人たちによって〈卧虹千尺〉〈蒼竜北峙飛雲低〉とうたわれた。またマルコ･ポーロは〈カンバリク(元の大都すなわち北京)の美しい石橋〉とその著《東方見聞録》に記録している。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

<<: Marco Polo Bridge Incident

>>: Rocket launch site - Rocket launch site