The wooden architecture of the Dong nationality is world-famous and is called the world's wooden architecture by Chinese and foreign architectural experts. The Dong family has three treasures, Gulou Dage Wind and Rain Bridge, two of which are wooden buildings. The Dong people are born masters of architectural art. In the Dong villages, you can see majestic drum towers, exquisite wind and rain bridges, continuous stilts (houses), elegant well pavilions, unique gates, and open theaters everywhere. The wide distribution of these wooden buildings, the variety of styles, the beautiful shapes and the exquisite skills of these wooden buildings are breathtaking.

The wooden structure of the Dong nationality is a frame structure, which is connected by tenon and tenon joints, without a nail, but very strong. In Dong villages, public buildings, drum towers, wind and rain bridges, stage, gates, pavilions, and residential buildings form a unique rural settlement, which meets the needs of production and life, but also contains Chinese Fengshui culture, forming mountains, waters, forests and fields. , The complete ecological landscape of the village.

The master is a craftsman who can independently design and preside over the construction of wooden buildings, and is responsible for the organization of the overall construction of the building. Since there are no drawings in the design and construction of the wooden buildings of the Dong nationality, the masters complete the design work by making small models. The construction management is completed by making bamboo sticks. On the bamboo sticks there are Mo Shi Wen drawn and written by the Master Mo Shi. The commonly used Mo Shi Wen has 13 characters and related scales, which record the position and tenon of each wooden component. The specifications of 卯making, this ancient construction technique has been passed down to the present day in the Dong area.

The Sanjiang Chengyang Yongji Wind and Rain Bridge is a key cultural relic protection unit in China. It was built in 1912 and completed in 1924, which lasted 12 years. Together with the Zhaozhou Stone Arch Bridge, the Luding Cable Bridge and the Romanian Novavo Steel Girder Bridge, it is known as the world's four historic bridges. Ba Tuan Fengyu Bridge is also a national key cultural relics protection unit, built in 1910. It is unique in that it is divided into upper and lower floors, with sidewalks on the upper and livestock passages on the lower. It is a unique wooden overpass in the history of Chinese and foreign architecture. What is even more amazing is that it was constructed by two masters from both sides, and the result was close and seamless, which is truly ingenious.

In addition to the exquisite architectural skills, Dong architecture is accompanied by rich folklore activities and culture in the process of building construction. The construction of the Drum Tower has to undergo important ceremonies such as site selection, beam cutting, construction start, pillars, beam installation, and gate opening celebrations. The construction of Fengyu Bridge has to go through important ceremonies such as starting the construction of the day, setting up happy beams, starting construction on the river worship, starting construction of beams, issuing hammers, beams, and stepping on the bridge. The ritual process and the building itself constitute the culture of the Dong's wooden building construction skills. Editor/He Yuting