Bridges of Wood, Steel And Stone
Enjoy this live stream of the Historic Rialto Bridge on the Grand Canal.
Venice is made up of a group of 126 islands joined together by 435 bridges. Everywhere you go in Venice you will be walking over numerous bridges. The majority of them are for public access around the city but a fair few of them are privately owned, allowing access to homes or groups of houses.
Mostly, they are wide, built of stone and with shallow steps which makes them very easy to navigate, as long as you're not in a gondola at high tide! Some of them have a ramp on either side, good for prams, wheelchairs, etc.
When the city was first being established, all the islands were separate neighborhoods with individual churches, stores and lifestyles. To cross a canal meant taking a traghetto or taxi gondola which you can still do today from various points along the Grand Canal. Planks of wood were put over some of the narrower canals, sometimes with a toll controlled by landowners on either side.
Larger wooden planks were then laid down so that horses could get across the canals. Eventually permanent bridges began being constructed out of wood. Even the Rialto Bridge was initially built of wood, with a central section that could be raised to allow huge ships to travel underneath and along the Grand Canal.
The evidence of first stone bridges dates back to 1170 but until the sixteenth century the bridges in Venice had no steps at all in order to allow horses to cross easily, they were also built with no sides or handrails, railings were finally added during the nineteenth century.
Every bridge has its own fascinating and mysterious story, with names like the Ponte dei Pugni (Bridge of Fists) or Ponte del Diavolo (Bridge of the Devil) there are clearly some wonderful legends.
Today masonry bridges constructed from Istria Stone from Croatia, bricks and mortar make up the majority of bridges seen in Venice.
Many of them have beautiful carvings in the form of decorative mascaroni (keystones) or symbols for safe travelling.
The Rialto Bridge has several carvings on the facade including the Annunciation and the Archangel Gabriel.
As you explore Venice you will come across many bridges with different angles as they cross bends in canals. They all have beautiful views of course and are a wonderful place to stop and take it all in.
The Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs) is one of the most famous bridges in Venice, it connects the Doge's Palace to the prisons that were built across the canal in the late 16th century.
Constructed of fine, white limestone with lattice-like screens covering two small rectangular windows it was used to lead prisoners to their prison cells or to the execution chamber. Legend has it that the bridge earned its name from the fact that prisoners who crossed through it would sigh as they caught their last glimpses of Venice through the tiny windows.
"I stood in Venice, on the Bridge of Sighs; a palace and a prison on each hand." Lord Byron
The Rialto Bridge was the first of the four bridges built which span the Grand Canal.
It is an elegantly arched stone bridge lined with arcades on each side and wide steps up the middle. The central archway at the top is a great place to watch the comings and goings on the canal.
Under the arcades are numerous shops selling all sorts of mostly tourist products, but also goods which have been sold for many, many years like clothing for gondoliers.
The current bridge built in 1588 stands in limestone, sporting carvings of saints, giving us a glimpse into the glory days of Venice’s contribution to the Italian Renaissance. There has always been a Rialto Bridge; it is the oldest bridge on the canal and gives access to the markets and the trading that has been the centre of Venice for a thousand years.
The Ponte dell'Accademia (Academy Bridge) crosses the Grand Canal at the Galleria dell'Accademia, which houses a collection of pre 19th century art including Vetruvian Man by Leonardo da Vinci.
Anyway, back to the beautiful, wide, wooden bridge with a gentle arch.The bridge links the sestieri (neighbourhoods) of Dorsoduro and San Marco.
The original steel bridge opened 1854, but was demolished and replaced by a wooden bridge in 1933, however it was razed and replaced by the present bridge, of identical construction, in 1985.
It was in the news lately when young lovers had covered the railings with padlocks, as they did in many European cities, threatening to collapse the bridge with the extra weight!
The Scalzi Bridge is an elegant stone span that links the Santa Croce and Cannaregio neighborhoods. It takes its name after the Santa Maria di Nazareth church it faces, which is known as “degli Scalzi” (of the barefoot [monks]) because for more than three hundred years it belonged to the Carmelitani Scalzi religious order.
If you arrive in Venice by rail to the Santa Lucia Station, the Scalzi Bridge will be one of the first bridges you will cross after disembarking.
The Ponte della Costituzione (Constitution Bridge) designed by Santiago Calatrava, and built of steel and glass is the fourth bridge over the Grand Canal. It connects Stazione di Santa Lucia (The Santa Lucia Railway Station) to Piazzale Roma. The official name was adopted to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Italian constitution in 2008 however, tourists and locals in Venice now refer to it as the Ponte di Calatrava (Calatrava Bridge).
