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Saturday 1 December 2012

Sepia Saturday 154; Bridges of sighs;

The most famous or infamous Bridge of  Sighs.

The Bridge of Sighs,  Ponte dei Sospiri 
is a bridge located in Venice. The enclosed bridge is made of white limestone and has windows with stone bars. It passes over the Rio di Palazzo and connects the New Prison to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace. It was designed by Antoni Contino(whose uncle Antonio da Ponte had designed the Rialto Bridge and built in 1602.
The view from the Bridge of Sighs was the last view of Venice that convicts saw before their imprisonment. The bridge name, given by Lord Byron in the 19th century, comes from the suggestion that prisoners would sigh at their final view of beautiful Venice through the window before being taken 

 down to their cells. In reality, the days of inquisitions and summary executions were over by the time the bridge was built and the cells under the palace roof were occupied mostly by small-time criminals. In addition, little could be seen from inside the Bridge due to the stone grills covering the windows.
A local legend says that lovers will be granted eternal love and bliss if they kiss on a gondola at sunset under the Bridge Of Sighs.



Hertford Bridge,
 popularly known as the Bridge of Sighs, is a skyway joining two parts of Hertford College over New College Lane in Oxford, England. Its distinctive design makes it a city landmark.

The bridge is often referred to as the Bridge of Sighs because of its supposed similarity to the famous Bridge of Sighs in Venice. However, Hertford Bridge was never intended to be a replica of the Venetian bridge.
There is a false legend saying that many decades ago, a survey of the health of students was taken, and as Hertford College's students were the heaviest, the college closed off the bridge to force them to take the stairs, giving them extra exercise. However, if the bridge is not used, the students actually climb fewer stairs than if they use the bridge.





The Bridge of Sighs in Cambridge
is a covered bridge belonging to St John's College of Cambridge University. It was built in 1831 and crosses the River Cam between the college's Third Court and New Court. The architect was Henry Hutchinson]
It is named after the Bridge of Sighs in Venice, although they have little architecturally in common beyond the fact that they are both covered. 
A common myth states that it was the students who named this bridge "bridge of sighs," as the context of its existing within the college grounds means that the "sighs" are those of pre-exam students. This belief probably has much to do with the function of the bridge—linking two quadrangles of St John's College together in a covered path, as opposed to Kitchen Bridge, which is an open-air bridge. Students are rumoured for their sighs on proceeding from their quarters on the Backs to the tutor's offices in the main college quadrangle.






Långholmsbron 
 is a bridge in central Stockholm, Sweden. Connecting the major island Södermalm to the minor island Långholmen.
The bridge was formerly called Spinnhusbron ("The spinning house Bridge") in reference to the precursor to the Långholmen prison, and, popularly, Suckarnas bro ("The Bridge of Sighs"), also in reference to the prison. 






The Virginia Street Bridge in Reno, Nevada,
known for being the place where newly-divorced women coming from the Washoe County Courthouse would toss their wedding rings into the Truckee River.


Now, build a bridge and walk over to Sepia Saturday 154

27 comments:

  1. OH I like the bridges you selected for us. Your title for the Sighs bridge in Venice is one that we have seen in movies! Someday it would be my pleasure to see it in real life! All great photos and details, very nice!

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    1. Karen; Yes, Venice is fascinating among its history it has more then 400 bridges, the most well known the Rialto. Thanks for your comment.

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  2. An informative and interesting post. I learnt a lot.

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  3. I was surprised that there are so many Bridges of Sighs.

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  4. I had no idea that "Sighing" was involved with so many bridges. It seems the one that would merit the name most is the one where women threw their wedding rings "into the drink". I'm sure a few women expressed a sigh of relief when they made the toss.

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  5. I've seen the "real" Bridge of Sighs in Venice (but not from a gondola). The legends associated with the other bridges are interesting, and I'm tempted to believe there is more truth than legend. Great pictures and stories make yours my favorite post of the week.

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  6. I have been over the Bridge of Sighs at Cambridge; we used to play St Johns at cricket every year - we usually finished up sighing because we had lost.

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    1. Bob, I can understand that and there is a reason for everything;

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  7. What an interesting take on the bridge theme. It made me sigh - quite literally - because I long to go go to Venice and see the bridge for myself. One day soon I hope. I have however, been to Cambridge.

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    1. Marilyn, you are not that far away; as we all know Venice is very touristy but still worth a visit.

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  8. I always wonder how people built bridges like the first one in Venice. I mean, tossing the bricks from a gondola doesn't seem such a good idea.
    It is probably not a coincidence but the old Dutch word for 'prison' is 'spinhuis'. You see, language is capable of uniting people, at least the Swedes, the English speakers and the Dutch :)
    Well, this is my comment for today, *sigh*

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    1. Peter in Switzerland an asylum for mad people was called "a Spinwinda" dialect; a mad person was a "Spinner". Yes, languages have words in common.
      Tossing the bricks sounds a bit precarious!

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  9. What a nice selection of bridges. I didn't realize there were more than one "Bridge of Sighs".
    Nancy

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  10. An interesting and informative post - with some beautiful bridges :-) Jo

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  11. Some lovely bridges. I thought most of the bridges in Venice were beautiful. Maybe my post should have been about the Sydney Harbour bridge.

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    1. Sharon, I thought about that one too; it is an interesting bridge.

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  12. A very creative spin on the theme. I can imagine scuba diving is a popular pastime on the Truckee in Reno.

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  13. You've taken us on a world tour of bridges. What fun! Thanks for an interesting and informative post.

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  14. Such an interesting post, especially as I have always been confused by all those bridges of sighs. I have seen all three in the flesh, so to speak, but always get mixed up between the two English ones.

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