Traditional Culture

4 Rare Inhabited Bridges: Europe’s Vibrant River Crossings

In this installment of ‘Larger Than Life: Architecture Through the Ages,’ we feature four rare bridges, lined with buildings on both sides.
4 Rare Inhabited Bridges: Europe’s Vibrant River Crossings
The Krämerbrücke (the Merchant’s Bridge) crosses the Breitstrom, a branch of the Gera River, in Erfurt, Germany. The 136-yard-2-foot-long medieval arch bridge consists of at least six barrel arches between 18 feet wide and 26 feet wide. A church once stood at each end of the bridge and people once entered the bridge via a gateway under each church. But now, only the Church of St. Giles survives. Thirty-two three-story houses, up to about 49 feet tall, overhang the bridge and are braced by a series of wooden trusses. Sina Ettma Photography/Shutterstock
Lorraine Ferrier
|Updated:
0:00
Only four bridges lined with buildings on both sides exist—and they are all in Europe: the Rialto Bridge in Venice, Italy; the Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge) in Florence, Italy; the Pulteney Bridge in Bath, England; and the Krämerbrücke (the Merchant’s Bridge) in Erfurt, Germany.

The Krämerbrücke

Pilgrims today cross the Krämerbrücke (the Merchant’s Bridge) when walking one route of the Camino de Santiago. The bridge was once part of an important Medieval trade route, called the Via Regia, which connected Rome with the Baltic Sea, and Moscow with the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain.

A wooden bridge was first built on the site between the eighth and 11th centuries, and records show that market stalls have existed on the bridge since 1156. In 1325, the Krämerbrücke was rebuilt in limestone and sandstone as a medieval arch bridge. Between 1472 and 1486, 62 three-story half-timbered houses were built on the bridge. Over time, the houses merged to create 32 larger buildings, with shops occupying the ground floor level and living quarters in the upper levels.

Lorraine Ferrier
Lorraine Ferrier
Author
Lorraine Ferrier writes about fine arts and craftsmanship for The Epoch Times. She focuses on artists and artisans, primarily in North America and Europe, who imbue their works with beauty and traditional values. She's especially interested in giving a voice to the rare and lesser-known arts and crafts, in the hope that we can preserve our traditional art heritage. She lives and writes in a London suburb, in England.