BRIDGES OF WASHINGTON, D.C.

I previously posted a series of photos of Charles Bridge in Prague, the bridge that set me off on a quest to visit, study, and photograph tourist bridges. However, although the 630-year-old Charles Bridge is the only bridge in Prague that is a household name, it is just one of seven interesting bridges located within an easy walk of the amazing tourist areas in Prague’s Old Town, Mala Strana, and Castle Hill. The first bridge downstream, Manesuv Bridge, connects the city’s main concert hall, the Rudolfinum, with the Castle area and the Czech Parliament building on the west bank of the river. Dating from 1914, the Manesuv Bridge is four open-spandrel gray granite arches with subtle geometric patterns carved into the parapet.

​

About a half-mile further downstream is Čechuv Bridge, which would be a major bridge destination in any city that did not also have Charles Bridge. Čechuv Bridge dates from 1908 and is integrated into a pleasant river-level promenade on the northern side of the Josefov neighborhood near Old Town. This promenade is where Vltava River tour boats can be found. Stairs from the promenade lead up to Čechuv Bridge, which is composed of three open-spandrel steel-girder arches resting on ornate stone piers. The bridge has gigantic Art Nouveau style bronze statues on the piers, and boats from upriver are greeted by two larger-than-life bronze women, offering bronze fire in outstretched torches.

​

Upstream from Charles Bridge, the next bridge to the south is Legií Most, or Legion Bridge. Built in 1901, Legií Most crosses Strelecky Island, an urban park in the middle of the river. The sidewalk of the bridge has both a stairway and an elevator from the deck down to park level. Legií Most consists of nine stone arches with elaborate decorative stonework throughout. The decoration is accomplished with stones of different colors, textures, and placement in either recessed or relief positions. The different colors include red, black, yellow, and multiple shades of white or tan. The decoration highlights the arch-rings, the piers, the spandrels, and the balustrades. On the four corners near the ends of the bridge are small stone towers with decorative domed roofs topped by elaborate copper metalwork. The ornate lampposts are large black iron posts topped with gilded lions. Like Čechuv Bridge, Legií Most would be a major bridge attraction in almost any other city.

​

The three bridges south of Legií Most are connected on the east bank of the river by an attractive riverwalk used for biking, jogging, and general tourist strolling. Jiraskuv Bridge, dating from 1931, is the next bridge south of Legií and is the least decorated of the Vltava bridges, but it does connect interesting areas that should be visited. At its eastern end is the famous modernistic Dancing House, an interesting curved building that has become a major Prague landmark. At its western end is Detsky Island, where you can investigate the workings of the locks on the Vltava.

​

Palacky Bridge dates from 1876 and is similar in appearance and structure to Legií Most. It also uses a riot of stone colors and textures to highlight the stone arches, piers, spandrels, and balustrades.

​

Another half-mile to the south is Vyšehrad Bridge. This is an industrial-looking black steel through-truss railroad bridge dating from 1901, and only becomes semi-interesting due to its location near the Vyšehrad fortress complex, an area that is of immense importance in Bohemian history and legend. The bridge has sidewalks on both sides but is generally off the beaten tourist path. It is a bit surprising then to walk out on it and find quite a few love padlocks, which are usually reserved for more romantic locations and popular tourist areas. The reason for this is not clear, although it may be related to the importance of Vyšehrad in Czech nationalism.

​

Charles Bridge is described in detail in Chapter 1 of my book, Bridgespotting: A Guide to Bridges that Connect People, Places, and Times. A more general description of a tour of all of the Vltava bridges is included in Chapter 9 of Bridgespotting Part 2: A Guide to Even More Bridges that Connect People, Places, and Times.