It’s actually keeping the arch steady with its weight, though the old form gives it an unusual silhouette. Unholy Features: Puente del Diablo, or Pont del Diable in Catalan, in Martorell, Spain, has a curious architectural feature: a little chapel-shaped structure at the peak of what looks like an unstable arch. The stone he supposedly dropped is nearby.ġ934 aerial view of Teufelsbrücke (via Adrian Michael/Wikimedia) The devil flipped out and picked up a giant rock and was going to shatter the wood bridge, but an old woman with a cross scared him off. But of course he wanted the first crosser’s soul. The first is long gone, but to get the point across a pink devil and a goat (see story below) were painted by the tunnel entrance into the cliff.ĭeal with the Devil: Back in the 13th century for the first bridge, it’s said that the Andermatt villagers found building their bridge to be impossible. Yet crossing the river used to be fatal, so three bridges were perilously constructed over the same crossing. Unholy Features: The Teufelsbrücke, or Devil’s Bridge, over the cascading Reuss River near Andermatt, Switzerland, is harrowing just to drive over as it soars through the Schöllen Gorge. As per usual, he requested the soul of the first to cross. It’s also said to be an unsettling experience to walk over due to the strange rise of these arches.ĭeal with the Devil: The tale is that the complicated bridge proved too much for the villagers to complete, so they begged the devil to finish it. Unholy Features: The Ponte della Maddalena in Borgo a Mozzano, Italy, is better known as Ponte del Diavolo, or Devil’s Bridge. The 11th century bridge looks like it’s lunging towards the opposite shore over the Serchio River with asymmetrical arches, the tallest at 60 feet. Photograph by Vassia Atanassova - SpiritiaWikimedia But another goes that the devil himself walked over its arches while helping its construction and left a footprint. One is that the builder’s wife died while it was being constructed and her shadow became a part of it. The incredibly still water in the Arda River below perfectly reflects the mottled stones where bits of moss grow, while the surrounding hills can cast a reddish landscape in autumn when their dense trees change colors.ĭeal with the Devil: This has a double legend. Unholy Features: The humpbacked Devil’s Bridge near Ardino, Bulgaria, has four odd gaping holes (built to monitor the water levels). You can descend to the oldest bridge on a set of stairs called Jacob’s Ladder.ĭeal with the Devil: Story goes that the the ravine was too steep for mortal architecture, so the devil offered the traditional deal which was to take the soul of the first to cross. Unholy Features: This Devil’s Bridge in Ceredigion, Wales, is actually three bridges stacked strangely on top of each other - the oldest at the bottom being from 1075-1200, the second from 1753, and the third from 1902 - all looming over a yawning ravine in the woods. These stories that developed independently of each other likely were related to the gravity-defying structure of these bridges, the likes of which had rarely been seen and seemed beyond the possibilities of human hands.īelow are six (the devil’s traditional number) of these Devil’s Bridges with a most unholy story in their stones: All around Europe are bridges known as the Devil’s Bridge, each with a story of soul-selling deals and outwitting satan. If the medieval legends are to be believed, the devil was a prolific architect. Illustration of the devil in the Nuremberg Chronicle, by Hartmann Schedel (1440-1514) (via Wikimedia)
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