| Arkadiko Bridge (Kazarma Bridge) |
|
|---|---|
Culvert of Arkadiko Bridge |
|
| Carries | Mycenaean road Tiryns–Epidauros |
| Locale | Arkadiko, Argolis, Greece |
| Design | Corbel arch bridge |
| Material | Cyclopean stone |
| Total length | 22 m |
| Width | 2.50 m |
| Height | 4 m |
| Longest span | Ca. 1 m |
| Number of spans | 1 |
| Opened | Ca. 1300-1190 BC (LHIII) |
The Arkadiko Bridge or Kazarma Bridge is a Mycenaean bridge near the modern road from Tiryns to Epidauros on the Peloponnese, Greece. Dating to the Greek Bronze Age, it is one of the oldest arch bridges still in existence and use.
The corbel arch bridge belonged in Mycenaean times to a highway between the two cities, which formed part of a wider military road network. It has a culvert span of ca. 1 m and is made in the typical Mycenaean manner of Cyclopean stones. The structure is 22 m long, 5.60 m wide at the base and 4 m high. The width of the roadway atop is about 2.50 m. The sophisticated lay-out of the bridge and the road indicate that they were specifically constructed for the use by chariots.[1] Built in the late Late Helladic III (ca. 1300-1190 BC), the bridge is still used by the local populace.[2]
The Arkadiko Bridge is only one of four known Mycenaean corbel arch bridges nearby Arkadiko, all belonging to the same Bronze Age highway between the two cities, and all of similar design and age.
One of them is the Petrogephyri bridge, which crosses the same stream 1 km to the west of the Arkadiko bridge. Otherwise similar in size and appearance, the structure has a larger span and a little higher vault. It, too, is still used as a local track.[1]
A fifth, well-preserved Mycenaean bridge is located in the wider region at Lykotroupi, where it was part of another Mycenaean main road. Its measurements are close to the Arkadiko Bridge: 5.20 m wide at the bottom, 2.40 m at the top and a corbelled arch span of a little more than a metre. The road still features kerbs, obviously meant for guiding reasonably fast moving chariots.[1]
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Bridges_around_Arkadiko Bridges around Arkadiko] at Wikimedia Commons