The Bridge of Sighs (
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
: ''Ponte dei Sospiri'', vec, Ponte de i Sospiri) is a bridge in
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...
, Italy. The enclosed bridge is made of white limestone, has windows with stone bars, passes over the Rio di Palazzo, and connects the New Prison (''Prigioni Nuove'') to the interrogation rooms in the
Doge's Palace
The Doge's Palace ( it, Palazzo Ducale; vec, Pałaso Dogal) is a palace built in Venetian Gothic style, and one of the main landmarks of the city of Venice in northern Italy. The palace was the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme aut ...
. It was designed by
Antonio Contino, whose uncle
Antonio da Ponte designed the
Rialto Bridge. It was built in 1600.
Etymology
The view from the Bridge of Sighs was the last view of Venice that convicts saw before their imprisonment. The bridge's English name was bequeathed by
Lord Byron
George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...
in the 19th century as a translation from the Italian "Ponte dei sospiri", 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 culture
The 1861 opera ''
Le pont des soupirs'' ("The Bridge of Sighs") by
Jacques Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach (, also , , ; 20 June 18195 October 1880) was a German-born French composer, cellist and impresario of the Romantic period. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s to the 1870s, and his uncompleted opera ' ...
has the name of the bridge as a title.
The Bridge of Sighs features heavily in the plot of the 1979 film ''
A Little Romance''. One of the characters tells of a tradition that if a couple kiss in a gondola beneath the Bridge of Sighs in Venice at sunset while the church bells toll, they will be in love forever.
''
Bridge of Sighs'' is the name of the second solo studio album released in April 1974 by English rock guitarist and songwriter,
Robin Trower
Robin Leonard Trower (born 9 March 1945) is an English rock guitarist who achieved success with Procol Harum throughout 1967–1971, and then again as the bandleader of his own power trio known as the Robin Trower Band.
Biography
Robin Trowe ...
.
A Bridge of Sighs is mentioned in the opening line of “
Itchycoo Park
"Itchycoo Park" is a song written by Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane, first recorded by their group, the Small Faces. Largely written by Lane, it was one of the first music recordings to feature flanging, an effect at that time made possible ...
” by the
Small Faces
Small Faces were an English rock band from London, founded in 1965. The group originally consisted of Steve Marriott, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones and Jimmy Winston, with Ian McLagan replacing Winston as the band's keyboardist in 1966. The ...
Marillion
Marillion are a British rock band, formed in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, in 1979. They emerged from the post-punk music scene in Britain and existed as a bridge between the styles of punk rock and classic progressive rock, becoming the most ...
, an English progressive rock band, mentions this particular bridge in their song ''Jigsaw''. ('We are renaissance children becalmed beneath the Bridge of Sighs').
Giles Corey, an American slowcore band, likewise mentions this bridge in their song ''No One Is Ever Going To Want Me.''
Renowned American architect
H.H. Richardson
Henry Hobson Richardson, FAIA (September 29, 1838 – April 27, 1886) was an American architect, best known for his work in a style that became known as Richardsonian Romanesque. Along with Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Richardson is one ...
used the bridge as inspiration when designing part of the
Allegheny County Jail
The old Allegheny County Jail in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is
part of a complex (along with the Allegheny County Courthouse) designed by H. H. Richardson. The buildings are considered among the finest examples of the Romanesque Revival s ...
complex in
Pittsburgh, PA. It was completed in 1888, and features a similar enclosed arched walkway that connects the courthouse and jail, therefore bearing the same name.
Gallery
File:Venise - Pont des Soupirs.jpg
File:View from the Bridge of Sighs (Ponte dei Sospiri), Venice Italy.jpg, The bridge in front of the Bridge of Sighs. Picture taken from the Bridge of Sighs.
File:Ponte dei Sospiri during maintenance.jpg, The Bridge of Sighs during maintenance
File:Brooklyn Museum - The Bridge of Sighs - John Singer Sargent.jpg, John Singer Sargent
John Singer Sargent (; January 12, 1856 – April 14, 1925) was an American expatriate artist, considered the "leading portrait painter of his generation" for his evocations of Edwardian-era luxury. He created roughly 900 oil paintings and more ...
watercolor
File:0 Venise, le pont des Soupirs franchissant le Rio di Palazzo o Rio della Canonica (2).jpg, The Bridge of Sighs seen from Ponte della Canonica.
File:Pont des Soupirs Venise.jpg, Lateral view from Doge's Palace
See also
*
Bridge of Lies – another bridge with legends regarding its name
*
List of buildings and structures in Venice
References
External links
Bridge of Sighs, Venice*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridge Of Sighs
Sighs
Paralanguage, also known as vocalics, is a component of meta-communication that may modify meaning, give nuanced meaning, or convey emotion, by using techniques such as prosody, pitch, volume, intonation, etc. It is sometimes defined as relatin ...
Sighs
Paralanguage, also known as vocalics, is a component of meta-communication that may modify meaning, give nuanced meaning, or convey emotion, by using techniques such as prosody, pitch, volume, intonation, etc. It is sometimes defined as relatin ...
Sighs
Paralanguage, also known as vocalics, is a component of meta-communication that may modify meaning, give nuanced meaning, or convey emotion, by using techniques such as prosody, pitch, volume, intonation, etc. It is sometimes defined as relatin ...
Sighs
Paralanguage, also known as vocalics, is a component of meta-communication that may modify meaning, give nuanced meaning, or convey emotion, by using techniques such as prosody, pitch, volume, intonation, etc. It is sometimes defined as relatin ...
Sighs
Paralanguage, also known as vocalics, is a component of meta-communication that may modify meaning, give nuanced meaning, or convey emotion, by using techniques such as prosody, pitch, volume, intonation, etc. It is sometimes defined as relatin ...
Tourist attractions in Venice
1602 establishments in the Republic of Venice
1602 establishments in Italy