# Ponte Sublicio

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**Ponte Sublicio**, also known as **Ponte Aventino** or **Ponte Marmoreo**, is a [bridge](/source/List_of_bridges_in_Rome) in [Rome](/source/Rome), [Italy](/source/Italy), over and linking the two banks of the river [Tiber](/source/Tiber), connecting the [Aventine Hill](/source/Aventine_Hill) and [Testaccio](/source/Testaccio) on one side (Piazza dell'Emporio, in the *[rione](/source/Rioni_of_Rome)* of [Ripa](/source/Ripa_(rione_of_Rome))) with [Trastevere](/source/Trastevere) on the other side (Piazza di [Porta Portese](/source/Porta_Portese), in the *quartiere* of [Portuense](/source/Portuense)).

The most ancient bridge in Rome crossed river [Tiber](/source/Tiber) just downstream of the [Tiber Island](/source/Tiber_Island), in correspondence with the former ford that, during the [protohistoric](/source/Protohistoric) age, was a required stop along the north-south way, at the feet of the [Aventine Hill](/source/Aventine_Hill). Its building has been ascribed to King [Ancus Marcius](/source/Ancus_Marcius) (642–617 BCE) by [Livy](/source/Livy) and [Dionysius of Halicarnassus](/source/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus).[1] No traces of the old bridge can be seen.

## Etymology

The current bridge takes its name from the oldest bridge of Rome, whose construction is attributed to the [king](/source/King_of_Rome) [Ancus Marcius](/source/Ancus_Marcius) in the [7th century BC](/source/7th_century_BC).[2] No trace of that structure remains today, but it stood further upstream, just downstream of [Tiber Island](/source/Tiber_Island), at the location of the ancient [ford](/source/Ford_(crossing)) along the north–south route in [protohistoric](/source/Protohistory) times.[1]

The name comes from the [Volscian](/source/Volsci) word *sublica*, meaning "wood planks".[3] In effect the bridge had been entirely built with wood.

## History

### Ancient bridge

See also: [Pons Sublicius](/source/Pons_Sublicius)

Its construction has been attributed to King [Ancus Marcius](/source/Ancus_Marcius) (642–617 BCE) by [Livy](/source/Livy) and [Dionysius of Halicarnassus](/source/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus).[4] No remains are left of the ancient bridge, but it rose in correspondence to the present Via del Porto,[5] at the north end of the monumental complex of [San Michele a Ripa Grande](/source/San_Michele_a_Ripa_Grande).

The religious tradition (originated by the necessity to easily disassemble the bridge for defense purposes) prescribed that no other material than wood could be used. The bridge was held sacred (the designation "pontiff" or *pontifex* derives from the term *pons*) and archaic ceremonies were played on it, among which the throwing into the river of the *[Argei](/source/Argei)*, or straw puppets (maybe a recollection of more ancient human sacrifices) during the ceremony called *[Lemuria](/source/Lemuria_(festival))*.[6]

Legend recounts that in the [6th century BC](/source/6th_century_BC), during the war against the [Etruscans](/source/Etruscans) of [Porsena](/source/Lars_Porsena) at the beginning of the [Roman Republic](/source/Roman_Republic), at the *pons Sublicius* [Horatius Cocles](/source/Horatius_Cocles) held back the enemy alone while the Romans destroyed the bridge behind him.[7][8]

The bridge withstood several restorations and reconstructions (during the 60 BC, 32 BC, 23 BC, 5 AD, 69 AD, under [Antoninus Pius](/source/Antoninus_Pius),[9] and maybe under Emperors [Trajan](/source/Trajan), [Marcus Aurelius](/source/Marcus_Aurelius) and [Septimius Severus](/source/Septimius_Severus)). On its imperial-age depictions in coins, the far ends of the bridge show arches with statues.

Remarkable remains of the bridge had been visible in the bed of Tiber until 1890 or so, when they were completely demolished during the works for the adaptation of the urban stretch of the river, as a preventive measure against floods.

### Present bridge

The present bridge, bearing the same name of the ancient one, was built in 1918,[10] after a design by [Marcello Piacentini](/source/Marcello_Piacentini).[11] Consisting of three arches and built in masonry, the bridge is 105m long and 20m wide.[11]

## See also

- [Bridges in Rome](/source/Bridges_in_Rome)

## References

1. [Dionysius of Halicarnassus](/source/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus), *Ῥωμαϊκὴ Ἀρχαιολογία* ["*Roman Antiquities*"], III, 45,2.

1. [Dionysius of Halicarnassus](/source/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus), *[Roman Antiquities](/source/Roman_Antiquities)*, III, 45.2.

1. Paolo-Festo, *De verborum significatu*, p. 374 Lindsay.

1. [Dionigi di Alicarnasso](/source/Dionigi_di_Alicarnasso), *[Antichità romane](/source/Antichit%C3%A0_romane_(Dionigi_di_Alicarnasso))*, III, 45,2. (in Italian)

1. (probably close to the present Via di Ripa, as suggested by the text "Roma, Il primo giorno" by A. Carandini - Laterza, 2012).

1. Plutarco, *Questioni romane*, 32 (*Moralia* 272 b-c). Macrobio (*Saturnalia*, I, 11, 47), citando [Cornelio Epicado](/source/Cornelio_Epicado), fa risalire l'usanza ad Ercole, di passaggio in Italia con i buoi di Gerione. (in Italian)

1. Varrone, *De lingua latina*, V, 15, 83. (in Italian)

1. Livy, *Ab Urbe condita*, II, 10; Valerius Maximus, *Memorable Deeds and Sayings*, III, 2, 1.

1. *Historia augusta, Antonino Pio*, VIII, 3. (in Italian)

1. ["Ponte Sublicio"](http://060608.it/it/cultura-e-svago/beni-culturali/beni-architettonici-e-storici/ponte-sublicio.html) (in Italian). *060608.it*. Retrieved 2021-11-12.

1. ["Ponte Sublicio"](https://www.turismoroma.it/it/luoghi/ponte-sublicio) (in Italian). *turismoroma.it*. Retrieved 20 October 2024.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ponte Sublicio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Sublicio) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Sublicio?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.