Pont d'Avignon

Avignon, France

The Pont Saint-Bénézet, also known as the Pont d'Avignon, is a famous medieval bridge in the town of Avignon. It was built between 1177 and 1185. This early bridge was destroyed forty years later during the Albigensian Crusade when Louis VIII of France laid siege to Avignon. The bridge was rebuilt with 22 stone arches. It was very costly to maintain as the arches tended to collapse when the Rhône flooded. Eventually in the middle of the 17th century the bridge was abandoned.

The four surviving arches on the bank of the Rhône are believed to have been built in around 1345 by Pope Clement VI during the Avignon Papacy. The Chapel of Saint Nicholas sits on the second pier of the bridge. It was constructed in the second half of 12th century but has since been substantially altered. The western terminal, the Tour Philippe-le-Bel, is also preserved.

The bridge was the inspiration for the song Sur le pont d'Avignon and is considered a landmark of the city. In 1995, the surviving arches of the bridge, together with the Palais des Papes and Avignon Cathedral were classified as a World Heritage Site.

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Address

Boulevard de la Ligne, Avignon, France
See all sites in Avignon

Details

Founded: 1177-1185
Category:
Historical period: Birth of Capetian dynasty (France)

More Information

en.wikipedia.org
www.avignon-pont.com
whc.unesco.org

Rating

4.2/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


Palais des Papes (0,4 km)
Avignon Cathedral (0,3 km)
Musée du Petit Palais (0,2 km)
Fort Saint-André (1,4 km)
Calvet Museum (0,8 km)
Tour Philippe-le-Bel (0,8 km)


Arles Amphitheatre (33,7 km)
Arles Roman Theatre (33,9 km)
St. Trophime Church (33,9 km)
Arena of Nîmes (38,1 km)
Arles Obelisk (34 km)
Arles Cryptoporticus (34 km)
Pont du Gard (21,6 km)
Thermae of Constantine (33,7 km)
Maison Carrée (38,2 km)

User Reviews

Bishop Graham Kettle (4 months ago)
Off season so not over tourists... if that's a word. Well worth the visit by every Avignon tourist.
Ramya Gajula (4 months ago)
Well, this bridge is beautiful when viewed from the terrace at palais de papes or even from the banks of the river. The visit to the bridge is good for 1. Accessing the audio guide explaining the story behind it and 2. Catching the views of the wall and the old town
Nigel Hall (4 months ago)
A nice place to visit and step back in time
Samuel Devaux (5 months ago)
It is a must to do in order to understand the history of the city.
Albert Hu (5 months ago)
It's a definitely nice one in the city center. You can feel the passion from their service and dishes. The price is absolutely reasonable with their food quality. Strongly recommended.
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Palazzo Colonna

The Palazzo Colonna is a palatial block of buildings built in part over ruins of an old Roman Serapeum, and has belonged to the prestigious Colonna family for over twenty generations.

The first part of the palace dates from the 13th century, and tradition holds that the building hosted Dante in his visit to Rome. The first documentary mention notes that the property hosted Cardinal Giovanni and Giacomo Colonna in the 13th century. It was also home to Cardinal Oddone Colonna before he ascended to the papacy as Martin V (1417–1431).

With his passing, the palace was sacked during feuds, and the main property passed into the hands of the Della Rovere family. It returned to the Colonna family when Marcantonio I Colonna married Lucrezia Gara Franciotti Della Rovere, the niece of pope Julius II. The Colonna"s alliance to the Habsburg power, likely protected the palace from looting during the Sack of Rome (1527).

Starting with Filippo Colonna (1578–1639) many changes have refurbished and create a unitary complex around a central garden. Architects including Girolamo Rainaldi and Paolo Marucelli labored on specific projects. Only in the 17th and 18th centuries were the main facades completed. Much of this design was completed by Antonio del Grande (including the grand gallery), and Girolamo Fontana (decoration of gallery). In the 18th century, the long low facade designed by Nicola Michetti with later additions by Paolo Posi with taller corner blocks (facing Piazza Apostoli) was constructed recalls earlier structures resembling a fortification.

The main gallery (completed 1703) and the masterful Colonna art collection was acquired after 1650 by both the cardinal Girolamo I Colonna and his nephew the Connestabile Lorenzo Onofrio Colonna and includes works by Lorenzo Monaco, Domenico Ghirlandaio, Palma the Elder, Salviati, Bronzino, Tintoretto, Pietro da Cortona, Annibale Carracci (painting of The Beaneater), Guercino, Francesco Albani, Muziano and Guido Reni. Ceiling frescoes by Filippo Gherardi, Giovanni Coli, Sebastiano Ricci, and Giuseppe Bartolomeo Chiari celebrate the role of Marcantonio II Colonna in the battle of Lepanto (1571). The gallery is open to the public on Saturday mornings.

The older wing of the complex known as the Princess Isabelle"s apartments, but once housing Martin V"s library and palace, contains frescoes by Pinturicchio, Antonio Tempesta, Crescenzio Onofri, Giacinto Gimignani, and Carlo Cesi. It contains a collection of landscapes and genre scenes by painters like Gaspard Dughet, Caspar Van Wittel (Vanvitelli), and Jan Brueghel the Elder.

Along with the possessions of the Doria-Pamphilij and Pallavacini-Rospigliosi families, this is one of the largest private art collections in Rome.

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