Bridges

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early bridges in that they were poorly built and failed to support heavy weight. This led to the development of better bridges. Bridges over more narrow width required a certain architectural device, which led to the Roman arch.
The Romans, whom some consider to be the greatest bridge builders of antiquity, were the first people to use the arch for bridges and aqueducts. These arch based bridges could stand in conditions that before damaged and destroyed earlier primitive designs. The Alcantara Bridge provides a good example, which was built of the Tagus, near Portugal. Unlike earlier bridges swept away by the strong current, the Alcantara Bridge could withstand the current. Some of these arch based bridges still exist and stand today such as is the Sant'Angelo Bridge, in the picture below.
The Sant'Angelo Bridge was built in Rome, over the Tiber. It is one of the finest surviving bridges, built by Emperor Hadrian to connect the Campus Martius with his mausoleum. It was ...

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a major material used in bridge construction. Today’s long-span reinforced- concrete bridges are descended from French gardener Joseph Monier's flowerpots and his numerous bridge patents. He was one of the first to understand the principles of reinforced concrete.
The Romans also constructed Coffer Dams that were used as temporary enclosures built in riverbeds to keep the water out while foundations were built. They were made by driving timber piles into the riverbed, removing water from the area enclosed, and then excavating the soft ground inside. After the Roman era, the technology for cement was lost and brick and mortar bridges were built. In India in the 4th century the ...

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