Pujindu Site

火 火

5/5

Outstanding

The site of Yujindu is located in the west of Xixiang Village, Zhangzhou Town, Yongji City, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province. It is an important site with rich historical relics and the first large-scale ferry site excavated in China. It is one of the three ancient ferry crossings in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, connecting Hedong and Guanzhong. According to the "Spring and Autumn Zuo Chuan", in 541 BC, Qin Gongzi Xian built a pontoon bridge here, and opened the river before the construction of the bridge in Jindu. Since then, Qin Zhao Xiang Wang, Han Gaozu, Han Wudi, and Yuan Wendi have all built a pontoon bridge here. Twelve years in Kaiyuan (AD 724), Tang Xuanzong's Ministry of the Army Shang Shu Zhang said that he presided over the transformation of the Yujin Bridge, using iron cattle and iron chains to strengthen the bridge, so that it was more stable. The transformation cost about 1,100 tons of iron, accounting for the total annual output of the country's iron. At the time of Jinyuan, the pontoon bridge was destroyed in the fire, and only iron cattle were left. The Ming Dynasty used iron cattle to rebuild the pontoon bridge many times, until the Qing Dynasty due to the Yellow River diversion, the Jindu gradually abandoned. In 1989, the Jindu site unearthed Tang Kaiyuan iron cattle four, iron man four, iron mountain two, iron pillar four, seven star iron pillar group and Ming Dynasty shore revet stone embankment. The iron cattle are beautifully shaped, weighing about 55 tons to 75 tons, divided into two groups of north and south, arranged in eight shapes. The archaeological discoveries of the Jindu site have great value for studying the political, economic, military, cultural and bridge history, smelting and casting technology, and the changes of the Yellow River in the Tang Dynasty. From 1999 to 2005, the State Administration of Cultural Relics approved and implemented the project for the protection of the Yujindu site, raising the unearthed cultural relics in their original location by12.2 meters to avoid erosion by the Yellow River flood. The Yujindu site has now been built as a ruins park, including the entrance area of the scenic spot, the ferry site area, the imitation Tang floating bridge area, the cultural relics exhibition area, etc. Visitors can enjoy the cultural relics such as the iron cattle and iron people of the Tang Dynasty and learn about the historical style of the ancient Yellow River ferry. The Jindu site is not only the crystallization of the wisdom of ancient working people, but also an important physical data for studying the ancient bridge engineering, smelting technology and the changes of the Yellow River in China.