Haintal Viadukt, Railway viaduct in Kailbach, Oberzent, Germany
Haintal Viaduct is a railway bridge spanning the Haintal valley with nine arches arranged in three groups. The structure measures about 173 meters in length and rises approximately 32.5 meters above the valley floor while continuing to serve active train traffic on the Odenwald line.
The viaduct was built from May 1880 to November 1881, probably by the construction firm Carl Weisshuhn of Troppau in Silesia, as a smaller copy of the Himbächel Viaduct on the same line. It opened to traffic on 27 May 1882 together with the Kailbach–Eberbach section of the Odenwald railway. Around 8,500 m³ of Buntsandstein were used, at a cost of 170,000 Goldmark, of which 15,000 went on the scaffolding alone.
The bridge is a protected Kulturdenkmal in Hesse and, like the Himbächel Viaduct on the same line, a popular photo subject in the Neckartal-Odenwald Nature Park. Dense vegetation around the valley means the clearest views of the stonework come in winter and early spring.
The viaduct stands a few metres from the Hesse–Baden-Württemberg border, between the Hesseneck Kailbach stop and the former Friedrichsdorf stop, opposite Friedrichsdorf near Eberbach. The structure is best photographed in winter and early spring, when the surrounding vegetation is bare.
The bridge is a scaled-down copy of the Himbächel Viaduct on the same line, and its construction is attributed to the firm of Carl Weisshuhn from Troppau in Silesia. Of the 170,000 gold marks spent, 15,000 went on the scaffolding alone, which used 422 m³ of timber.
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