The Arapsu Bridge is a
Roman bridge
The ancient Romans were the first civilization to build large, permanent bridges. Early Roman bridges used techniques introduced by Etruscan immigrants, but the Romans improved those skills, developing and enhancing methods such as arches and k ...
in
Antalya
Antalya is the fifth-most populous city in Turkey and the capital of Antalya Province. Recognized as the "capital of tourism" in Turkey and a pivotal part of the Turkish Riviera, Antalya sits on Anatolia's southwest coast, flanked by the Tau ...
,
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Tรผrkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
. The well-preserved footbridge lies in the Arapsuyu district, 5โ6 km west to the city center, at the foot of an ancient mound which is associated with the
Greek colony
Greek colonisation refers to the expansion of Archaic Greeks, particularly during the 8thโ6th centuries BC, across the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea.
The Archaic expansion differed from the Iron Age migrations of the Greek Dark Ages ...
of
Olbia
Olbia (, ; ; ) is a city and communes of Italy, commune of 61,000 inhabitants in the Italy, Italian insular province of Sassari in northeastern Sardinia, Italy, in the historical region of Gallura. Called in the Roman age, Civita in the Middle ...
.
Partly submerged by a modern
weir
A weir or low-head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the water level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...
about 100 m downstream, the exact form of its
masonry arch is difficult to determine. According to
George Bean, the slightly
pointed arch
A pointed arch, ogival arch, or Gothic arch is an arch with a pointed crown meet at an angle at the top of the arch. Also known as a two-centred arch, its form is derived from the intersection of two circles. This architectural element was partic ...
indicates a
post-ancient construction date.
Colin O'Connor, however, classifies the bridge as a
Roman segmental arch bridge, examples of which have survived in the neighbouring
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
Lycia
Lycia (; Lycian: ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ''Trmฬmis''; , ; ) was a historical region in Anatolia from 15โ14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It bordered the Mediterranean Sea in what is today the provinces of Antalya and Muฤ ...
(such as the
Limyra Bridge
The Bridge near Limyra (in , "Bridge of the Forty Arches") is a late Roman bridge in Lycia, in modern south-west Turkey, and one of the oldest segmented arch bridges in the world. Located near the ancient city of Limyra, it is the largest civi ...
).
See also
*
List of Roman bridges
This is a list of Roman bridges. The Roman Empire, Romans were the world's first major bridge builders. The following constitutes an attempt to list all known surviving remains of Roman bridges.
A Roman bridge in the sense of this article in ...
*
Ancient Roman architecture
Ancient Roman architecture adopted the external language of classical ancient Greek architecture for the purposes of the ancient Romans, but was different from Greek buildings, becoming a new architectural style. The two styles are often consi ...
*
Ancient Roman engineering
The Ancient Rome, ancient Romans were famous for their advanced engineering accomplishments. Technology for bringing Tap water, running water into cities was developed in the east, but transformed by the Romans into a technology inconceivable in ...
References
Sources
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External links
{{Authority control
Roman bridges in Turkey
Deck arch bridges
Stone bridges in Turkey
Pamphylia
Buildings and structures in Antalya Province
Arch bridges in Turkey
Pedestrian bridges in Turkey