Jayuui Bridge

Jayuui Bridge (literally 'Bridge of Freedom') stands behind the Mangbaedan, a memorial altar at Imjingak built to console the spirits of displaced people who died longing for the families and hometowns they had left behind in North Korea, and to ease the grief of those who still mourn them. Originally, the Gyeongui Line railway bridge had two tracks, up and down, but both were destroyed by bombing, leaving only the piers standing. The western railway bridge was later restored for a wartime prisoner exchange, and a temporary bridge was built at its southern end. It used to be called Dokgae Bridge, after a natural village on the Nosang-ri side, but was renamed to its present name in 1953, after 12,773 Korean and UN soldiers who had been held as prisoners of war returned home across it. The bridge has a structure of six spans combining timber and steel members, measuring 83m in length, 4.5-7m in width, and about 8m in height. Symbolising the tragedy of the Korean War, the bridge has no particular architectural merit, being only a temporary structure, but because it embodies the symbolic meaning of a 'return to freedom,' it stands as a representative piece of modern heritage symbolising the Cold War.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Paju, Gyeonggi

Designation

Provincial Monument · 시도기념물