Constantine's Bridge (Danube)
Constantine's Bridge | |
---|---|
Coordinates | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. |
Crosses | Danube |
Locale | Between Sucidava (present-day Corabia, Romania) and Oescus (modern Gigen, Bulgaria) |
Characteristics | |
Total length | 2,437 m (7,995 ft) |
Width | 5.7 m (19 ft) |
Height | 10 m (33 ft) |
History | |
Construction end | 328 AD |
Opened | July 5, 328 AD[1] |
Closed | mid-4th century[2] |
![]() Constantine's Bridge on the map
|
Constantine's Bridge (Romanian: Podul lui Constantin cel Mare; Bulgarian: Константинов мост, Konstantinov most) was a Roman bridge over the Danube. It was completed or rebuilt[3] in 328 and remained in use for no more than four decades.[4] It was officially opened on July 5th, 328 in the presence of the emperor Constantine the Great.[1] With an overall length of 2437 m, 1137 m of which spanned the Danube's riverbed,[5] Constantine's Bridge is considered the longest ancient river bridge and one of the longest of all time.[6]
Contents
Construction
It was a construction with masonry piers and wooden arch bridge and with wooden superstructure. It was constructed between Sucidava (present-day Corabia, Olt County, Romania) and Oescus (modern Gigen, Pleven Province, Bulgaria),[7][8] by Constantine the Great.[9] The bridge was apparently used until the mid-4th century,[2] the main reason for this assumption being that Valens had to cross the Danube using a bridge of boats at Constantiana Daphne during his campaign against the Goths in 367.[10]
Technical data
The length of the bridge was 2434 m with a wooden deck with a width of 5.70 m at 10 meters above the water.[11] The bridge had two abutment piers at each end, serving as gates for the bridge.
Researches
While Luigi Ferdinando Marsigli attempted to locate the bridge in the 17th century and Alexandru Popovici and Cezar Bolliac worked in the 19th, the first real scientific discoveries were performed by Grigore Tocilescu and Pamfil Polonic in 1902. In 1934 Dumitru Tudor published the first complete work regarding the bridge, and the last systematic approach on the north bank of the Danube was performed in 1968 by Octavian Toropu.
See also
- List of Roman bridges
- Roman architecture
- Roman engineering
- List of crossings of the Danube
- Constantine's Wall
Notes
<templatestyles src="Reflist/styles.css" />
Cite error: Invalid <references>
tag; parameter "group" is allowed only.
<references />
, or <references group="..." />
References
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Further reading
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
![]() |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Constantine Bridge. |
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Madgearu 2013, p. 311.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 CIMEC Archeologica report http://www.cimec.ro/scripts/arh/cronica/detail.asp?k=2210
- ↑ Biblioteca „V.A. Urechia“ site http://www.bvau.ro/docs/doc_eng.htm
- ↑ Pontica nr.40 page 360
- ↑ Both figures from: Tudor 1974, p. 139; Galliazzo 1994, p. 319
- ↑ Galliazzo 1994, p. 319
- ↑ Pamfil Polonic aflate în arhiva Muzeului Național de Antichități — Institutul de Arheologie „Vasile Pârvan” http://www.cimec.ro/Arheologie/ArhivaDigitala/4Pamfil20Polonic/PolonicP_Varia_71planse/Planse_sumar.htm
- ↑ Pamfil Polonic aflate în arhiva Muzeului Național de Antichități — Institutul de Arheologie „Vasile Pârvan” http://www.cimec.ro/Arheologie/Digitalarchives/4Pamfil%20Polonic/Polonic.htm
- ↑ International Database Of Structures http://en.structurae.de/structures/data/index.cfm?ID=s0003933
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. at Google Book Search
- ↑ Pontica 2007 page 360
- Pages with reference errors
- Pages using deprecated coordinates format
- Articles containing Romanian-language text
- Articles containing Bulgarian-language text
- Commons category link is locally defined
- 328 works
- Bridges completed in the 4th century
- Roman bridges
- Bridges over the Danube
- Demolished bridges
- Bridges in Romania
- Bridges in Bulgaria
- Roman Dacia
- Ancient Bulgaria
- Olt County
- Buildings and structures in Pleven Province