Roman Bridge (Saint-Thibéry)

The Roman Bridge at Saint-Thibéry (French: Pont romain de Saint-Thibéry) was a Roman bridge on the Via Domitia in southern France.[1] The partly surviving structure crossed the river Hérault in Saint-Thibéry, 17 km east of Béziers.[2]

Roman Bridge
Coordinates	43.392887°N 3.432836°E / 43.392887; 3.432836
Carries	Via Domitia
Crosses	Hérault River
Locale	Saint-Thibéry, Hérault, France
Characteristics
Design	Segmental arch bridge
Material	Stone
Total length	Ca. 150 m
Width	4 m
Longest span	12 m
No. of spans	9
History
Construction end	Reign of Augustus (30 BC–14 AD)
Roman Bridge Location in France

Construction

Nearby water mill

The ancient bridge had nine arches with spans of 10–12 m. The roadway rested on wide piers, which were protected on both sides by arched floodways and large cutwaters.[2] The original length of the structure is estimated as 150 m, its road width as 4 m.[2] The missing spans are known to have been destroyed by flood some time before 1536.[2]

The remaining arches, with a span to rise ratio of 3.3:1 (115°) or more, show a visibly flatter profile than the semi-circular arches usually preferred by Roman engineers (180°).[1][2] The rib thickness varies between one-tenth to one-twentieth of the span, corresponding to a common ratio also observed at a number of other Roman stone bridges.[3] The structure is dated to the reign of emperor Augustus (30 BC–14 AD). Immediately upstream an old water mill and its millrace is located.[2]

See also

• List of Roman bridges
• Roman architecture
• Roman engineering

References

1. O’Connor 1993, p. 171
2. O’Connor 1993, pp. 98–99
3. O’Connor 1993, p. 169f.

Sources

• O’Connor, Colin (1993), Roman Bridges, Cambridge University Press, pp. 98f. (G11), 169–171, ISBN 0-521-39326-4

External links

Media related to Roman Bridge (Saint-Thibéry) at Wikimedia Commons

• Roman Bridge at Structurae
• Traianus – Technical investigation of Roman public works