Ottoman Masonry Bridges in Anatolia and the Balkans

Abstract

Remains of the historical masonry bridges in Anatolia and the Balkans are dated back to the Roman (first half of the I. Millenium AD), to the Seldjukide (early centuries of the II. Millenium AD; basically in Anatolia), and to the Ottoman periods (13th to 19th centuries). Besides serving to transportation, bridges crossing watercourses have to be considered as important hydraulic structures. Built for military as well as economic purposes, more than one hundred Ottoman bridges (roughly two thirds in Anatolia and one third in the Balkans) served for several centuries; some of them being still in operation. They are silent witnesses of the hydraulic knowledge and solid construction technology of their times. In this inventory study, only Ottoman's masonry bridges in Anatolia and Balkans have been presented. Some of the Ottoman's masonry bridges had sunken in the reservoir of modern dams, some of them demolished during the construction of the new highways, and some of them are still in service.