Angel Bridge

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Coordinates: 41 ° 54 ′ 7 "  N , 12 ° 27 ′ 59"  E

Angel's Bridge
(Pons Aelius)
Angel's Bridge (Pons Aelius)
View of the Angel Bridge with the Castel Sant'Angelo
Official name Ponte Sant'Angelo
Crossing of Tiber
place Rome ( Italy )
construction Arch bridge with vaulted vaults
Number of openings 5
completion 134 AD
location
Angel Bridge (Italy)
Angel Bridge
Rome Engelsbruecke BW 3.JPG
On the Angel's Bridge
p1

The angel bridge ( latin Pons Aelius , Italian Ponte Sant'Angelo ) is an over the Tiber in Rome leading bridge . The received here accolade was after the Holy grave rated highest.

Angel with the lance
Angel with the handkerchief
Angel with the crown of thorns

The ancient name of the bridge has never completely gone out of use in scholarly (especially Latin) literature, but the name Angel's Bridge has been popular since the Middle Ages, because it leads directly to the Castel Sant'Angelo . Opposite is the Torre dei da Ponte .

The angel statues on it are not the reason but the consequence of the naming. The ten magnificent angels in baroque style were created by Gian Lorenzo Bernini and his students, whose works have played a decisive role in shaping the Roman cityscape to this day. The angels carry all symbols that are connected with the passion story , etc. a. the cross, the crown of thorns and the lance. However, two of the statues on the bridge are only copies. The originals from Bernini are now in the church of Sant'Andrea delle Fratte . Statues of the Apostles Paul and Peter from the mid-16th century can also be seen at the entrance to the bridge. Originally the bridge consisted of three curved arches; in the 17th century two smaller arches were added to the bridgeheads.

Originally the bridge, which in ancient times was considered the most beautiful in the world, was built by Emperor Hadrian . He wanted her to connect the Field of Mars directly to his mausoleum . The inauguration of the former Pons Aelius (after Publius Aelius Hadrianus ) took place in the year 134 AD.

The Angel's Bridge was one of the main bridges in Rome. During the so-called Holy Years , an unimaginable number of pilgrims came to Rome to secure the promised indulgences for their sins. The narrow Tiber bridges then represented true bottlenecks. The throng of pilgrims across the Engelsbrücke through the stalls of shopkeepers, jugglers and craftsmen is described by numerous chroniclers in the most colorful metaphors. In the early evening of September 19, 1450, the shy of some horses and mules, the incessant advancement of the crowds and the ruthlessness of a number of traders resulted in a total of 172 deaths. Pope Nicholas V then had all stands and booths removed from the Angel's Bridge and ordered that unhindered passage must be guaranteed. The incident also triggered the construction of the Ponte Sisto .

Due to its central location, the Engelsbrücke also owes the dubious honor that not only was there a place of execution here, but that the heads or other limbs of criminals or notorious opponents of the popes were often set up as a deterrent. For example, on December 24, 1585, the head of the robber captain Giovanni Valente was placed on the Ponte Sant'Angelo so that it was clearly visible to all. According to legend, under Pope Sixtus V there were even more bandit heads to be seen than melons on the market. The guillotine of the executioner Giovanni Battista Bugatti , which was first used in February 1810 , stood on the Angel's Bridge .

1669 gave Pope Clement IX. Bernini received the order to renew the superstructure of the bridge and to erect the sculptures. The bridge is now a pedestrian bridge.

See also

literature

  • Hans Gerhard Evers : The angel bridge in Rome. Giov. Lorenzo Bernini. = The Angel Bridge in Rome by Giuov. Lorenzo Bernini (= Der Kunstbrief. No. 53, ZDB -ID 847345-6 ). Gebr. Mann, Berlin 1948, (reprint in: Hans Gerhard Evers: Schriften. Technische Hochschule Darmstadt, Darmstadt 1975).

Web links

Commons : Bridge of Angels  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. A source from 1572, published in: Francesco Cancellieri: Storia de 'solenni possessi de' Sommi Pontefici ... - Rome 1802 , names both names side by side: "Via fuit per pontem Aelium, seu, ut hodie vocant, S. Angeli. "
  2. ^ See Augsburgische Ordinari Postzeitung, Nro. Saturday, Jan. 20, Anno 1810, p. 1.