The Rialto Bridge is the famous stone bridge with an enclosed central walkway spanning Venice’s Grand Canal.
The present bridge was designed by Antonio da Ponte and completed in 1591. It replaced earlier wooden bridges at the same crossing, which had become unstable or burned. The stone structure uses a single broad arch supported by foundations driven into the canal bed, an impressive achievement for late-sixteenth-century Venice.
The bridge has two inclined arcades lined with shops and a central portico. Its position at the historic Rialto market made it a major commercial and transport crossing. For centuries, it was the only permanent bridge across the Grand Canal; later bridges were built at the Accademia, Scalzi and Constitution crossings.
The Rialto Bridge is often confused with the Bridge of Sighs. The Bridge of Sighs is a smaller enclosed limestone passage connecting the Doge’s Palace with a former prison, while the Rialto Bridge is an open market bridge over the Grand Canal.