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RIALTO BRIDGE

Rialto bridge is the most important between the three bridges over the Grand Canal; the other two are Academia and Scalzi bridges. A forth and useless bridge is actually under construction near Piazzale Roma, planned by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava.

Originally, in 1811, a bridge of boats was built in the same place where now Rialto bridge rises. It was called “bridge of the Coin”, because the Mint Palace, where the Serenissima money was coined, stand looking on to it. Due to the even more importance of Rialto Market (its feverish activity still being admirable nowadays), which was the first inhabited place in the city, it was necessary to built, around the middle of the 13th century, a mobile wood bridge, which should have supported the heavier land and sea traffic.

The bridge was structured in two inclined stumps, which final parts rise to allow the passage at those boat which had the highest tree. As it often happened in medieval times the cause of an effect determined the effect itself, so the bridge was called “Rialto” because of the importance of the Rialto Market.

In the following centuries the bridge was enlarged and the first shops appeared. In the 15th century the bridge collapsed under the excessive weight of the people during a boat-parade, in which the bride of the Marquis of Ferrara was given homage. The authorities’ advice wasn’t taken and so, instead of a stone work, an other wooden bridge, larger than the first, was built.

In the 16th century an other tragic collapse had to happen to persuade the authorities building a stable stone bridge.

The competition for the design of the stone bridge , in which the major architects of that time took part, was won by a noble-man, Alvise Boldù; the execution of the work was made by the architect Antonio da Ponte (it is not clear how this work was assigned to him, some doubts about the vicissitude of attribution still exist). It took three years and an expense of 250.000 ducats to complete the work that nowadays we can admire.