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The Triple Bridge

Ljubljana, Slovenia
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The Triple Bridge is a group of three bridges across the Ljubljanica river. It connects the Ljubljana's historical, medieval, town on one bank, and the modern city of Ljubljana, on the other. The central bridge is partly built from Glinica limestone. Other parts are built from concrete. The balustrades with 642 balusters are made of artificial concrete. The platform is covered with granite blocks laid in 2010. Previously, it was covered with asphalt. There is mention of a wooden bridge in this location from 1280. It was at first called the Old Bridge (Stari most) and later the Lower Bridge (Spodnji most), in contrast to the Upper Bridge that was built in the location of the nowadays Cobblers' Bridge in the same century. It was also named the Spital Bridge (Spitalski most) after the nearby poorhouse, which was established in the early 14th century. It was built anew in 1657 after a fire. In 1842, the Lower Bridge was replaced by a new bridge designed by Giovanni Picco, an Italian architect from Villach, and named Franz's Bridge, (Francev most) in honor of Archduke Franz Karl of Austria. It also became known as the Franciscan Bridge (Franciskanski most). This bridge, opened on 25 September 1842, had two arches and a metal fence.

Plecnik's Renovation

In order to prevent the old bridge from being a bottleneck, Joze Plecnik designed the extension of the bridge with two footbridges at each side of it. The footbridges are not parallel to the old bridge, but form the shape of a funnel, directing the space of Presernov trg over the river toward Mestni trg. In this way both banks are united in a composition and make the Presernov trg the focal point of the city. The unique feature introduced in Plecnik's design is the two staircases leading from the pedestrian bridges down to the lower river terrace. These staircases resemble the bridges of Venice and create a river portal, to reinforce the Mediterranean character of Ljubljana. The varying rhythms of balustrades and the orbs of the lamps give an impression of incessant movement on the bridge. The Triple Bridge was renovated in 1992 and since 2007have been part of the Ljubljana pedestrian zone.

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bostjan, November 26th, 2017
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