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Hämeensilta (the ″Häme Bridge″) is a
The tall bronze statues were donated by the local businessman Rafael Haarla and made by the prominent Finnish sculptor Wäinö Aaltonen. One is a female figure of the '' Finnish Maiden'', while the other three, the ''Tax Collector'', the ''Merchant'' and the ''Hunter'', are describing Medieval birkarls. The ''Maiden of Finland'' is featured on a postage stamp and in 1939 it was on display at the
bridge
A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
in Tampere
Tampere is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Pirkanmaa. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Tampere is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . It is the most populous mu ...
, Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
, crossing the Tammerkoski
Tammerkoski is a channel of rapids in Tampere, Finland. The city of Tampere is located between two lakes, Näsijärvi and Pyhäjärvi (Tampere region), Pyhäjärvi. The difference in altitude between these two is and the water flows from Näsij ...
rapids. The main street of Tampere, Hämeenkatu, runs along the bridge, connecting the Kyttälä district to the western parts of the city center. Hämeensilta is one of the city's best known landmarks, especially famous for the statues on the rails of the bridge. The arches of the bridge are made of concrete and they are coated with a red granite
Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
. The Hämeensilta was completed in 1929. It is named after the Finnish name of the Tavastia province.
History
The first known bridge crossing the Tammerkoski was built in the 16th century as the area was a part of the Messukylä socken. As the town of Tampere was established in 1779, the wooden bridge was finally replaced with a steel structured in 1884. During the early 1900s, Tampere was rapidly growing and the present Hämeensilta was built in 1928–1929. The 1900 completedSatakunnansilta
Satakunnansilta (the ″Satakunta Bridge″) is an old bridge in Tampere, Finland, that crosses the Tammerkoski rapids north of Hämeensilta. The bridge is part of the Satakunnankatu street and is used by both vehicle traffic and pedestrians.
Th ...
is the other large bridge crossing Tammerkoski in the Tampere city center.
Sculptures
The tall bronze statues were donated by the local businessman Rafael Haarla and made by the prominent Finnish sculptor Wäinö Aaltonen. One is a female figure of the '' Finnish Maiden'', while the other three, the ''Tax Collector'', the ''Merchant'' and the ''Hunter'', are describing Medieval birkarls. The ''Maiden of Finland'' is featured on a postage stamp and in 1939 it was on display at the World's Fair
A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition, is a large global exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specific site for a perio ...
in New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
.
See also
* Erkkilän siltaReferences