 Durant
& Cheryl
Imboden'sVenice for Visitors veniceforvisitors.com |
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Rialto BridgeFrom: Venice's Top 11 Free Sights
ABOVE: Tourists watch canal traffic from the Rialto Bridge.
Related article: Next page: Rialto Food Markets
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The
Ponte di Rialto, a.k.a. the Rialto Bridge, has been the main
pedestrian crossing between the two banks of the Grand Canal since 1591. In
fact, it was the only bridge across the Canale Grande until a predecessor
to today's Accademia Bridge was built in 1854.
You
might think that, with Venice being a city of traders, the shopping arcade in
the center was built to separate tourists and locals from their money. In fact,
the shops have a structural purpose: The rows of covered arches that run up the
center of the bridge and over the top help to stiffen the bridge, making piers
unnecessary and allowing 7.5 meters or 24 feet of clearance for boats (including
the galleys that existed in the 16th Century, when the current stone bridge was
built).