Ponte di Tiberio (Rimini)
The Bridge of Tiberius (Italian: Ponte di Tiberio) or Bridge of Augustus (Latin: Pons Augustus) is a Roman bridge in Rimini, Italy. The bridge features five semicircular arches made of white Istrian stone with an average span length of ca. 8 m. Above the arches lied niches framed with pilasters carrying entablatures and pediments. They were framed on the arch bridge's walls. Modillions supported cornices were covered by a coping at the top. An inscription commemorating the construction of the bridges was located near the coping.[1] Construction work started during Augustus' reign and was finished under his successor Tiberius in 20 AD; an inscription thus calls the structure as "given by both emperors".[2] The bridge was the only crossing of the Marecchia not destroyed by the retreating German army during the Battle of Rimini as it was judged militarily pointless.[3]
Ponte di Tiberio Pons Augustus Ponte d'Augusto | |
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Coordinates | 44.063689°N 12.563656°E |
Carries | Via Aemilia |
Crosses | Marecchia (ancient Ariminus) |
Locale | Rimini, Italy |
Characteristics | |
Design | Arch bridge |
Total length | 62.6 m (between abutments) |
Width | 8.6 m |
Longest span | 10.6 m |
No. of spans | 5 |
History | |
Construction end | 20 AD |
Location | |
The bridge is still open to pedestrian and vehicular traffic, with the exception of heavy goods vehicles. In 2014 a project called "The Tiberio Project" aimed to reorganise the road system near the bridge and redeveloping the entire area of San Giuliano a mare. The last interventions are addressed for the definitive pedestrianisation of the Tiberius bridge, which began on an experimental basis on 30 May 2020.[4]
References
- Whitney, Charles S. (2003-01-01). Bridges of the World: Their Design and Construction. Courier Corporation. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-486-42995-3.
- O’Connor 1993, p. 84
- "German Tactics in the Italian Campaign". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- Redazione (2016-04-14). "Rimini, un comparto dopo l'altro si realizza il Progetto Tiberio". Emilia Romagna News 24 (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-04-28.
Further reading
- O’Connor, Colin (1993). Roman Bridges. Cambridge University Press. pp. 84f. (I117). ISBN 0-521-39326-4.
External links
Media related to Ponte d'Augusto (Rimini) at Wikimedia Commons
- Pons Augustus at Structurae
- Traianus – Technical investigation of Roman public works