Zwierzyniecki Bridge in Wroclaw

This time, I present the pearl of Wrocław construction engineering - the most beautiful iron bridge in Poland and definitely one of the most beautiful steel bridges in the world - the Zwierzyniec Bridge. Its design, color and materials used make the walk across this bridge truly unforgettable.

The project consists of 2991 parts so it is really big, it is 102,4 cm long, 34,1 cm high and 32,3 cm wide. In the original version, trams run in both directions, but the idea would become too complicated so

I simplified it a bit. The remaining elements and the color scheme are the same as in the original.

Below is a bit of the history of the bridge

Zwierzyniecki Bridge in Wrocław - a bridge crossing in the eastern part of the city, over the Old Oder, connecting the city center with the Dąbie, Biskupin, Sępolno and Bartoszowice housing estates. Located in the immediate vicinity of the Zoological Garden (from which its modern name derives) and the exhibition grounds around the Centennial Hall.

The crossing in this place, initially wooden, was built around 1655. During the plague epidemic in 1704, a checkpoint for passes authorizing the crossing of the city limits was established on the bridge, hence its German name Paßbrücke, sometimes translated as "Pass bridge". Toll-gates for checking travelers on exit roads from Wrocław functioned for many years, also in the 19th century, and one of them operated at the Zwierzyniec Bridge. He was also referred to as "Ceglany" (from the brickyard in Biskupin) and "Szczytnicki" (from the nearby village of Szczytniki). Today, however, another bridge in the area is defined as the Szczytnicki Bridge, located about a kilometer downstream - north of Zwierzyniecki.

In the years 1895-1897 construction master Karl Klimm under the supervision of the city architect ("construction advisor") Richard Plüddemann and with the help of Ing. A. Fruhwirtha designed a new bridge. It is a single-span steel truss structure based on granite abutments, consisting of two parallel steel lattice arches set at a distance of 12.5 m. The main chords of the girders are connected at the top with several bracings. A 60.6 m long platform was suspended to the arches on slender hangers, and the main arch-lattice girders are based on movable six-shaft bearings. The bridge is decorated with four red sandstone Art Nouveau obelisks and stylish lanterns illuminated at night.

The movie shows the bridge, but with a slightly different underside. Due to the size of the project, a slight modification was required