Steinerner Steg

The Steinerner Steg (Italian: Ponte Romano) is a two-arched, stone-built footbridge across the Passer in Merano, South Tyrol, northern Italy. The oldest bridge in the town, it connects the historic centre and the Steinach district with the Obermais quarter. In 1615 the wooden aqueduct which spanned the river here had fallen into disrepair and the town decided to demolish it and build a stone bridge in its place. The following year Andrä Tanner, an architect from Brixen, was contracted to build the replacement. Scarcely had the works been completed, however, when the new bridge was washed away in a flood. The current structure was completed in 1617. The bridge is near the Passeirer Tor, one of the town gates of Merano.