Eagles' Bridge ( bg, Орлов мост, ''Orlov most'' ) is a bridge over the
Perlovska River in downtown
Sofia, capital of
Bulgaria.
[''Travel Sofia: Illustrated Guide, Phrasebook and Maps'', MobileReference, 2010] The bridge and junction where it is located, sometimes referred to as ''Ploshtad Orlov Most'' (Orlov Most Square) are usually referred simply as Eagles' Bridge (''Orlov most'').
The name of the bridge itself comes from the four statues of
eagle
Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...
s on it, which are, symbolically, its protectors and patrons.
Eagles' Bridge and the junction are located in the immediate proximity of the
Vasil Levski National Stadium, the
Monument to the Soviet Army, the
Borisova gradina park and
Lake Ariana
Ariana ( bg, Ариана) is the name of a medium-sized artificial lake in Knyaz Boris's Garden in Sofia, Bulgaria. It is "B"-shaped, 175 m long and 75 m wide, with a small island at its narrowest point. It is located at the northernmost corner ...
, and near
Sofia University.
Two main boulevards cross there –
Evlogi Georgiev Boulevard, which follows the Perlovska river, and
Tsarigradsko Shose, and
Tsar Ivan Asen II Street
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...
terminates there. For the traffic entering Sofia from the southeast by
Tsarigradsko shose, Eagles' Bridge is the first junction and the point from where the city centre is accessed.
The bridge was constructed in 1891 by
Czech architect
Václav Prošek
Václav Prošek (born 8 April 1993) is a Czech football player who currently plays for FK Ústí nad Labem
FK Ústí nad Labem is a Czech football club based in the city of Ústí nad Labem. Currently the club plays in the Bohemian Football L ...
, his brother Jozef and his cousins Bohdan and Jiří.
They also designed together and built the
Lions' Bridge at the northern point of entry to central Sofia in 1889.
The cost of the entire construction of the bridge was 80,000
golden leva.
One of the bridge's columns and bronze eagles are depicted on the
reverse
Reverse or reversing may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''Reverse'' (Eldritch album), 2001
* ''Reverse'' (2009 film), a Polish comedy-drama film
* ''Reverse'' (2019 film), an Iranian crime-drama film
* ''Reverse'' (Morandi album), 2005
* ''Reverse'' ...
print of Bulgarian 20
levs banknote, issued in 1999 and 2007.
The place is often a site of protests. Orlov Most was the focus of 2012 ecological protests against construction on
Vitosha mountain and on the
Dyuni nature spot on the Black Sea coast. The bridge was also a major focus of political protests in 2013, with scenes of violence during the
winter protests, contrasted with massive but peaceful gatherings during the
summer protests, when it would close every evening while protesters gathered there until late into the night. In the
2020–2021 Bulgarian protests
The 2020–2021 Bulgarian protests were a series of demonstrations that were being held in Bulgaria, mainly in the capital Sofia, as well as cities with a large Bulgarian diaspora, such as Brussels, Paris, Madrid, Barcelona, Berlin and London. The ...
, the bridge was repeatedly blocked by protesters with barricades and tents camps were established.
Since 2009, Eagles' Bridge has been serviced by the
Sofia University Metro Station of
Sofia Metro M1 line. The M3 line
Orlov most Metro Station was opened in August 2020.
Gallery
File:Adlerbrücke Sofia c 014.JPG, Eagle's Bridge in Sofia
File:Adlerbrücke Sofia c 011.JPG, Close-up of one of the eagles
File:Sofia Tsarigradsko shose view from Orlov most 2012 PD.jpg, The beginning of Tsarigradsko shose at Orlov most
See also
*
Lions' Bridge, Sofia
References
External links
*
{{Sofia landmarks
Buildings and structures in Sofia
Transport in Sofia
Bridges in Bulgaria
Bridges completed in 1891
Tourist attractions in Sofia
1891 establishments in Bulgaria