Whether you are from Hanoi or just a tourist from all over the world, everyone has probably once visited The Huc Bridge – a bridge representing the cultural beauty of Hanoi people. Going along with that time are historical values and stories not everyone knows.
One of the first architectural highlights of Ngoc Son Temple is The Huc Bridge with its ocher paint color like a soft silk strip squeezing through the typical blue water of Hoan Kiem Lake, creating a harmonious and eye-catching beauty. Built by Than Sieu (Nguyen Van Sieu) in 1865.
The Huc Bridge is a vermilion red bridge made of wooden boards, a bridge connecting the shore with Ngoc Son temple in the middle of Hoan Kiem lake. The Huc Bridge has the meaning of “the place where the light is stored” or “the place where aura condenses”.
The bridge consists of 15 spans, 32 legs of round wooden pillars arranged in 16 pairs, the deck is paved with a dark red paint wall, the word “The Huc” is covered with gold.
As can be seen, the bridge faces the East, towards the rising sun to fully receive that oxygen source. And with that meaning, so far this red bridge brings the color of life, of all sources of happiness, of longing desires from ancient times to the present – The Huc bridge – the symbol of God of the sun.
Therefore, in his own feelings, journalist Nguyen Ngoc Tien wrote: “Hoan Kiem Lake makes Hanoi more charming and softer, but The Huc bridge is a precious jewel of Hoan Kiem”.
According to the architects, The Huc bridge was originally made according to the culture of the Northern Delta region. That is the characteristic that every family has a pond and makes a pond bridge so that when they come back from work, it is convenient to wash feet and wash clothes.
The structure of The Huc bridge has many ancient architectural features. It is modeled after a wooden house in the Red River Delta.
Hoan Kiem Lake, Turtle Tower, and Ngoc Son Temple, The Huc Bridge,… create a complete complex. This population has become one of the typical symbols for Hanoi today.
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