Ponte do Império, Stone bridge in Candelária, Brazil.
Ponte do Império is a stone arch bridge crossing the Arroio Passa-Sete in Candelária, featuring solid arches built with the structural methods of its era. The crossing presents a clear view of late 19th-century construction techniques without applied decoration, allowing the stone pattern and arch geometry to speak directly.
Carlos Himberto Puhlmann, an architect of German origin, designed and built the crossing between 1879 and 1880 along the important Botucaraí road corridor. The bridge emerged during a period when stone structures of this kind represented new engineering solutions for the region's interior.
The bridge serves as a daily crossing between the Alto Passa Sete communities, embodying the craftsmanship traditions of its builders through its solid form. Locals and visitors experience how such structures were once central to connecting settlements in the interior of Rio Grande do Sul.
The crossing sits near the RS-400 highway and remains accessible year-round for those wishing to walk across and inspect its stone construction. When visiting, wear sturdy shoes as the structure's surface and surrounding terrain can become slippery in wet conditions.
The bridge ranks among only five ancient stone crossings in Rio Grande do Sul that received official heritage protection through state designation. This rarity makes it a significant technical record of how bridge building evolved in the region during that construction era.
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