Krämerbrücke

Krämerbrücke
Krämerbrücke North Front
Coordinates	50°58′43″N 11°01′51″E / 50.97861°N 11.03083°E / 50.97861; 11.03083Coordinates: 50°58′43″N 11°01′51″E / 50.97861°N 11.03083°E / 50.97861; 11.03083
Crosses	Breitstrom
Locale	Erfurt, Thuringia Germany
Characteristics
Design	segmental stone arch bridge
Total length	79 metres (259 ft)
Width	26 metres (85 ft)
History
Construction end	1472 (reconstructed)
Krämerbrücke Location in Germany

The Krämerbrücke (Merchants' bridge) is a medieval bridge in the city of Erfurt, in Thuringia in central Germany, which is lined with inhabited, half timbered buildings on both sides. It is unique in Europe. The footbridge spans the Breitstrom, a branch of Gera River, connecting Benediktsplatz and Wenigemarkt.

The bridge was built next to a ford and was part of the Via Regia, a medieval trade and pilgrims' road network, which linked Rome with the Baltic Sea, and Moscow with Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain. The Krämerbrücke is on the route from the river Rhine to Silesia, which was awarded the title of a European Cultural Route by the Council of Europe in 2005. This is also one of the main routes of the Camino de Santiago, the Way of St. James pilgrimage.

Originally constructed from wood, the bridge was first mentioned in 1117 after its destruction by one of the many fires. The first documentary evidence as “pons rerum venalium”, i.e. "the market bridge", dates back to 1156. Merchants and trades people had already set up market stalls on both sides of the bridge by this date.

Because of repeated fires in 1175, 1178, 1213, 1222, 1245, 1265, and 1293, the municipal administration acquired all bridge rights from the monasteries in 1293 in order to build a stone bridge. This was completed in 1325, with uninhabited, half-timbered trading stalls on top of it. At both bridgeheads stone churches with gated entrance-ways were erected; at the western end St. Benedicti and at the eastern end St. Aegidien. St Aegidien was previously a bridge chapel (first mentioned in 1110).

The 79 m long arch bridge is constructed of limestone and sandstone, and consists of six visible barrel vaults with diameters ranging from 4.8 m to 7.8 m.