The Landwasser Viaduct (german: Landwasserviadukt) is a single-track six-

arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vaul ...

ed curved

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...

. It spans the

Landwasser The Landwasser is a river in Switzerland, canton of Graubünden. Its origin was Lake Davos before this was turned into a reservoir for a power station. Nowadays it is prolonged by the creek Flüelabach at its source and changes its name near Da ...

between Schmitten and

Filisur Filisur is an Alpine village and former municipality in the Albula Region in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. The village sits on a hillside with a view to the west where the two rivers Albula/Alvra from the Albula Pass and Landwasser ...

, in the canton of Graubünden,

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. Designed by Alexander Acatos, the Landwasser Viaduct was constructed between 1901 and 1902 by Müller & Zeerleder on behalf of the

Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (german: Rhätische Bahn; it, Ferrovia retica; rm, Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the RhB ...

, which both owns and operates it through to the present day. A signature structure of the

World Heritage A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

-listed

Albula Railway The Albula Railway (german: Albulalinie; it, Linea dell'Albula; rm, Lingia da l'Alvra) is a single track metre gauge railway line forming part of the so-called core network of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB), in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerl ...

, it is high, long; its southeastern abutment connects directly to the

Landwasser Tunnel The Landwasser is a river in Switzerland, canton of Graubünden. Its origin was Lake Davos before this was turned into a reservoir for a power station. Nowadays it is prolonged by the creek Flüelabach at its source and changes its name near Dav ...

. During 2009, the Landwasser Viaduct underwent renovation work for the first time since its original construction.

Location

The Landwasser Viaduct, composed of dark

, forms part of the

section between

Tiefencastel Tiefencastel ( rm, Casti) is a village and a former municipality in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2015 the former municipalities of Alvaschein, Mon, Stierva, Tiefencastel, Alvaneu, Brienz/ ...

and

, and is at the mark from

Thusis Thusis ( it, Tosana, '' Romansh: Tusàn'') is a municipality in the Viamala Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2018 the former municipality of Mutten merged into the municipality of Thusis. History Thusis is first mentioned ...

. To passengers on trains approaching the viaduct from Tiefencastel and

Alvaneu Alvaneu ('' Romansh: Alvagni'') is a former municipality in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2015 the former municipalities of Alvaschein, Mon, Stierva, Tiefencastel, Alvaneu, Brienz/Brinzauls an ...

on the Albula Railway, the viaduct becomes visible from quite some distance away. The first major feature to be reached on that approach is the

Schmittentobel Viaduct The Schmittentobel Viaduct (german: Schmittentobel-Viadukt) is a single track limestone railway viaduct. It is situated near Schmitten, in the Canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. The viaduct was opened in 1903 by the Rhaetian Railway, which s ...

, which itself is of considerable size. Then, while crossing the curved Landwasser Viaduct, passengers can observe the front of the train heading into the Landwasser Tunnel. On the other side of the tunnel, the separate line from

Davos Platz , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Bergün/Bravuogn, Klosters-Serneus, Langwies, S-chanf, Susch , twintowns = } Davos (, ; or ; rm, ; archaic it, Tavate) is an Alpine resort town and a municipality in the Prättigau/Davos R ...

forms a

junction Junction may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Junction'' (film), a 2012 American film * Jjunction, a 2002 Indian film * Junction (album), a 1976 album by Andrew Cyrille * Junction (EP), by Basement Jaxx, 2002 * Junction (manga), or ''Hot ...

with the Albula Railway just as both lines arrive in Filisur. Shortly before reaching that junction point, passengers on the Davos–Filisur line can experience a view of the viaduct from the northeast.

Technical details

One of the striking features of the Landwasser Viaduct is its highly pronounced curve, which has a radius of , the minimum used throughout the whole railway. It possesses a height of and a length of . The viaduct's

masonry Masonry is the building of structures from individual units, which are often laid in and bound together by mortar; the term ''masonry'' can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are bricks, building ...

is approximately in volume and is jointed with

dolomitic Dolomite () is an anhydrous carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate, ideally The term is also used for a sedimentary carbonate rock composed mostly of the mineral dolomite. An alternative name sometimes used for the dolomiti ...

. It comprises six arch spans, in width, resting on five high pillars; the arches themselves are flat. The Landwasser Viaduct carries a single railway track, which has a

gradient In vector calculus, the gradient of a scalar-valued differentiable function of several variables is the vector field (or vector-valued function) \nabla f whose value at a point p is the "direction and rate of fastest increase". If the gradi ...

of 2 percent across the structure. The southeastern abutment of the Landwasser Viaduct is located on a high cliff, and at that point, the tracks lead directly into the long Landwasser Tunnel. The tunnel's entrance is positioned on a vertical rock wall, having been purposefully aligned with the viaduct. It was considered to be a challenging architectural feat of its era, and its construction employed several innovative techniques. Construction of the Landwasser Viaduct commenced during 1901 and was completed during the following year. Designed by Alexander Acatos for the Rhaetian Railway, its construction was undertaken by Müller & Zeerleder. The viaduct's construction was performed without the use of

scaffolding Scaffolding, also called scaffold or staging, is a temporary structure used to support a work crew and materials to aid in the construction, maintenance and repair of buildings, bridges and all other man-made structures. Scaffolds are widely use ...

, instead employing two cranes. The limestone pillars were built up around a steel-reinforced core. During 2009, 106 years after its completion, the masonry and track trough of the viaduct were repaired for the very first time. To facilitate this renovation,

modular Broadly speaking, modularity is the degree to which a system's components may be separated and recombined, often with the benefit of flexibility and variety in use. The concept of modularity is used primarily to reduce complexity by breaking a s ...

scaffolding was temporarily erected around the Landwasser Viaduct.

In popular culture

The Landwasser Viaduct briefly appears as a bridge which was destroyed by

Rasputin Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin (; rus, links=no, Григорий Ефимович Распутин ; – ) was a Russian mystic and self-proclaimed holy man who befriended the family of Nicholas II, the last Emperor of Russia, thus ga ...

's minions in the 1997 animated film ''

Anastasia Anastasia (from el, Ἀναστασία, translit=Anastasía) is a feminine given name of Greek origin, derived from the Greek word (), meaning "resurrection". It is a popular name in Eastern Europe, particularly in Russia, where it was the most ...

''. The portrayal was of a taller, 4-storey viaduct very similar to a

Roman aqueduct The Romans constructed aqueducts throughout their Republic and later Empire, to bring water from outside sources into cities and towns. Aqueduct water supplied public baths, latrines, fountains, and private households; it also supported mining o ...

but set in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. It also appears within the first couple of minutes of the film “A Cure for Wellness”. Since 2008, the cultural importance of the railway, and features such as Landwasser Viaduct, has been formally recognised by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

, having been placed on a World Heritage list.

Gallery

File:2007 10 Albulabahn 01 Tiefencastel Filisur 02.JPG, Approaching from

. File:CH_Landwasser_1.jpg,

Glacier Express The Glacier Express (GEX) is a direct train connecting railway stations of the two major mountain resorts of Zermatt and St. Moritz via Andermatt in the central Swiss Alps. The train is not an "express" in the sense of being a high-speed train ...

panorama cars entering the Landwasser Tunnel. File:Viadukt Landwasser.jpg, View from the road. File:Landwasserviadukt, aerial photography from northeast 2.jpg, View from northeast. File:Landwasser viaduct 01.jpg, With red cover during renovations

References

Citations

*See the references in Landwasserviadukt (de Wikipedia)

Bibliography

* Talbot, Frederick A. "Railway Wonders of the World." Books on Demand, 2012. . * Troyano, Leonardo Fernández. "Bridge Engineering: A Global Perspective." Thomas Telford, 2003. .

External links

* * * {{RhB structures Viaducts in Switzerland Rhaetian Railway bridges Monuments and memorials in Switzerland World Heritage Sites in Switzerland Buildings and structures in Graubünden Bridges completed in 1902 1902 establishments in Switzerland Bergün Filisur Schmitten, Graubünden