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The Rialto Bridge is the oldest of the four bridges that cross the Grand Canal in Venice. It is approximately located in the center of the main island of Venice. When walking from the train station towards Piazza San Marco, it is most likely one of the first tourist attractions to be recognized.
It began as a floating pontoon bridge built by Nicolò Barattieri in the late-12th century and was named Ponte della Moneta due to its proximity to the mint's entrance.
As traffic began to increase when the Rialto market flourished on the canal's eastern bank, the pontoon was replaced by a more permanent wooden bridge in 1255. It featured two ramps that could be raised when tall ships needed to sail along the canal and was maintained through the rental of shops built along the sides of the bridge. But the Rialto Bridge was partially burnt down during a revolt in 1310 and later collapsed when a crowd gathered to watch a passing boat parade.
At the start of the 16th century, it was decided to rebuild the bridge in stone and numerous prominent architects (including Michelangelo) were considered for its design. But, Antonio da Ponte was charged with building the Rialto Bridge that is seen today, completing the structure in 1591. It features two inclined ramps leading to a central portico and (much like its wooden predecessor) had a row of shops on either side. While many doubted that its audacious engineering would survive the test of time, the Rialto Bridge defied its critics and stands as one of Venice’s architectural icons today.
The bridge crosses the Grand Canal in a single stone arch spanning roughly 28.8 meters, with a rise of about 7.5 meters -- an audacious engineering choice for its time, when a single unsupported span of that width was considered a serious risk. Built between 1588 and 1591 under the Swiss-born architect Antonio da Ponte, the bridge is faced in Istrian stone, a dense limestone widely used across Venice for its resistance to salt water. Its foundations rest on more than 6,000 wooden piles driven into the lagoon bed to keep the structure stable on Venice's notoriously soft ground.
Rather than a plain crossing, the bridge's deck carries a row of small shops down its center, split by a central portico into two parallel arcades. Around two dozen tiny shopfronts line the crossing, continuing a commercial tradition that stretches back to the wooden bridges that stood on this site before the current stone version -- Rialto has been one of Venice's main trading and market districts since the city's earliest days.