Ponte Gobbo, Stone arch bridge in Bobbio, Italy
Ponte Gobbo is a stone arch bridge over the Trebbia River in Bobbio, Italy, extending 273 meters (895 feet) and built from eleven uneven arches. The arches rise at different heights and create a wavy silhouette that gives the structure its nickname meaning hunchbacked bridge.
Monks from San Colombano Abbey built the upper structure in the seventh century on foundations of a Roman predecessor. Later generations repaired and reinforced the arches multiple times after floods and wars.
Locals in Bobbio call the crossing after Saint Colombano, the Irish monk who founded an abbey here in the seventh century. On summer days many residents use the riverbanks below the arches as picnic spots and watch the life along the water from there.
The crossing is open only to pedestrians and offers a route through the eleven arches from one bank to the other. The uneven stone surface can become slippery in wet weather, so solid footwear is recommended.
Art historians have noted similarities between the silhouette of this bridge and the background of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa. The theory remains debated, but the wavy shape does recall the bridge in the famous painting.
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