The Rialto bridge is one of the four bridges, together with the Accademia bridge, the Scalzi bridge and the Constitution bridge, which cross the Grand Canal, in the city of Venice. Of the four, the Rialto bridge is the oldest.
According to the chronicles, the first passage over the Grand Canal
was made up of a pontoon bridge. A real bridge, resting on wooden poles,
was built by Nicolò Barattiero under the Doge of Sebastiano Ziani or
Orio Mastropiero (second half of the 12th century) and assumed the name
of "Ponte della Moneta", given that, near the he eastern end of the work
was the ancient mint. According to Andrea Dandolo's Chronicon, the event
took place in 1264 under the reign of Renier Zen (1252-1268):
«The Rivoaltine city, until that time divided in the middle by the
canal, was then united by the construction of a wooden bridge, a bridge
that was called "the one of the coin" because, before it was built,
those who crossed paid the ferrymen a coin called "quartarolo" of the
value of the fourth part of a Venetian denarius.»
((Year 1264):
Andrea Dandolo, Chronicon, L. X, c. VII, p. XXXI. In L.A. Muratori,
Rerum italicarum scriptores etc. T. XII. Milan, 1728.)
The
growing importance of the Rialto market, on the eastern bank of the
canal, increased traffic on the floating bridge. Around 1250, it was
replaced by a structural wooden bridge. The structure consisted of two
inclined ramps, which joined at a mobile central section, which could be
raised to allow the passage of taller ships. Given the close association
with the market, the bridge changed its name and became Ponte di Rialto.
In the first half of the 15th century, two rows of shops were built
along the sides of the bridge; the proceeds deriving from the rents,
collected by the State Treasury, contributed to the maintenance of the
bridge.
In 1310 the bridge was damaged during the retreat of the
rebels led by Bajamonte Tiepolo. In 1444, however, it collapsed under
the weight of the large crowd gathered to watch the passage of the
procession of the Marquis of Ferrara's bride.
In 1503 the
construction of a stone bridge was first proposed. In the following
decades several projects were evaluated. The first project was carried
out in 1514 by Fra Giovanni Giocondo for the reconstruction of the
Rialto market. Another collapse occurred in 1524. In 1551 the Venetian
authorities issued a tender for the reconstruction of the bridge; a
commission of three supervisors was appointed over the bridge and the
Rialto factories, made up of Antonio Cappello, Tommaso Contarini and
Vettor Grimani. Starting in 1554, other projects were presented by the
most famous architects of the time, but it was only at the end of the
16th century that Doge Pasquale Cicogna announced a competition.
Proposals came from architects such as Jacopo Sansovino, Andrea Palladio
and Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola, but all proposed a classical approach
with many arches. There are two proposals by Palladio: both envisage the
rationalization of the entire Rialto area, with two commercial forums at
the heads of the bridge. The competition was revived in 1587 and
Vincenzo Scamozzi and Antonio da Ponte took part: Da Ponte won; his
project was chosen on June 9, 1588, because he proposed a single arch.
The work was completed in 1591, with the help of the architects
Antonio and Tommaso Contin (from Besso, today's district of Lugano), who
were his nephews, as sons of his son-in-law Bernardino Contin.