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Rialto Bridge

The Rialto Bridge crosses the Grand Canal between the sestieri of San Marco and San Polo and is the oldest of the four that span it. Before it there was a pontoon bridge and, from 1255, a wooden one with a movable central section, which burned in 1310 and collapsed in 1444 and 1524. The present stone structure was built between 1588 and 1591 to a design by Antonio da Ponte, who won out over Vincenzo Scamozzi in the competition; it rests on some 12,000 wooden piles. It is a single arch with a span of about 28 metres, with two ramps leading to a central portico and 24 covered shops on either side. It was the only crossing over the Grand Canal for about two and a half centuries, until the Accademia Bridge was built in 1854. On the other side, already in San Polo, lie the Rialto campo and market.

Things to do at Rialto Bridge: 4 missions

• Cross to San Polo and walk through the Rialto marketGo down the ramp on the San Polo side and walk among the fish and vegetable stalls of the Rialto market.
• Climb a ramp and walk through the covered shopsGo up one of the two side ramps and walk between the 24 shops that flank the bridge until you reach the central portico.
• Find the great clock of San Giacomo di RialtoIn the Rialto campo, at the foot of the bridge, find the church of San Giacomo and the great 15th-century clock above its entrance, next to its Gothic portico.
• Look at the Grand Canal from the central archStand in the central portico, at the highest point of the bridge, and look at the Grand Canal in both directions.

Near Rialto Bridge

Source: Wikipedia - Ponte di Rialto