Chinese Bridges

Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing, 2008. First Edition. Quarto in Brown boards, white titles to front and spine; 272 pp: color illustrations, map; 32 cm Fine, a handsome copy. Hardcover. ISBN: 9780804838849, 9780804849685

Bridges, the least known and understood of China's many wonders, are one of its most striking and resilient feats of architectural prowess. Chinese Bridges brings together a thorough look at these marvels from one of the world's leading experts on Chinese culture and historical geography, Ronald G. Knapp. While many consider bridges to be merely utilitarian, the bridges of China move beyond that stereotype, as many are undeniably dramatic, even majestic and daring. Chinese Bridges illustrates in detail 20 well-preserved ancient bridges, along with descriptions and essays on the distinctive architectural elements shared by the various designs. For the first time in an English-language book, Chinese Bridges records scores of newly discovered bridges across China's vast landscape, illustrated with over 400 color photographs, as well as woodblock prints, historic images, paintings and line drawingsContents: Part I. China's ancient bridge building traditions. Part II. Chinese bridges as living architecture. Part III. China's fine heritage bridges: Bridges of the Forbidden City, Beijing; Sea Palace bridges, Beijing; "Garden of Gardens" bridges, Beijing; Lugou bridge, Wanping, Beijing; Zhaozhou Bridge, Zhaoxian, Hebei; Dulin Bridge and Shan Bridge, Cangzhou, Hebei; Jingxing Bridge, Cangyan Mountains, Hebei; Baling Bridge, Weiyuan, Gansu; Hongjun Bridge, Qinglinkou, Sichuan; Jiemei Bridges, Anxian, Sichuan; Anlan Suspension Bridge, Dujiangyan, Guanxian, and Sichuan; Bridges in the lower Yangzi watertowns, Jiangsu, Shanghai, and Zhejiang; Suzhou and Hangzhou garden bridges, Jiangsu and Zhejiang; Wuting Bridge, Yangzhou, Jiangsu; Baodai Bridge, Suzhou, Jiangsu; Huizhou covered bridges, Anhui and Jiangxi; Caihong Bridge, Wuyuan, Jiangxi; Bei'an Bridge, Shexian, Anhui; Megalithic stone beam bridges, Quanzhou, Fujian; Covered wooden bridges, Southern Zhejiang and Northern Fujian; Dong "wind-and-rain" bridges, Sanjiang, Guangxi. | **Somewhat heavy or large item. Additional shipping fees may be needed for expedited, priority, or international orders. Please inquire**