A special bridge: thin as a hair, spanning the fire of hell and terribly long: Those who have to cross the Sirat Bridge in order to reach the afterlife safely should have lived a righteous life in this world, at least according to Islamic mythology . In reality, there were and are – thank God – other challenges that arise in order to be able to span banks or valleys and to be able to cross roads or paths safely.
How are bridges actually built? At least not in one night and not from the devil
But even without hellfire, it takes the burning passion of master builders, engineers and architects to overcome rivers and gorges with ever larger spans and ever more sophisticated constructions. Accordingly, “Bridges – Marvels of Wood, Stone and Steel” is the name of the book by the Russian author and graphic designer Roman Belyayev, which has now been published in German, his second after “Lighthouses – Signposts of the Seas”. It is not only placed on the desks of all Bavarian pupils who, according to the curriculum, deal with the topic of bridges in classes 3 and 4 in home and general knowledge classes. It not only ensures the acquisition of skills for younger and older people and also after the lesson, but is also great fun. Because Roman Belyayev explains the complex structure, the oldest example of which is probably the bridge at Arkadiko on the Peloponnese peninsula – an arch of layered stones, built between the 12th and 13th centuries BC – with answers to five questions: Why were bridges invented? , what did the first ones look like, what does the term “bridge” mean, what different types of construction and materials are there and how are bridges actually built? At least not in one night and not by the devil, as was believed in the Middle Ages. The modern planner, as Roman Beljajew shows him, wears a hard hat and laptop, analyzes the location, develops the construction and takes care of the realization.
In short, concise texts and with clear, striking illustrations, the book conveys the history and present of engineering architecture. “Bridge records” are presented as well as “the most unusual bridges”, from the Bridge of Sighs in Venice, built in 1603, to the “Moses Bridge” in Halsteren, Netherlands, which was relocated under the water level in 2010, to the crossing on Christmas Island specially built in 2015 for the mass migration of red crabs in Australia. The world’s first 3D-printed steel bridge spanning a canal in Amsterdam opened in 2021, after the book was printed. So it’s time for more well-made non-fiction books that deal with design and building. Then the double page “Famous bridge builders” can certainly be supplemented with great bridge builders.
Roman Beljajew: Bridges – marvels of wood, stone and steel. Gerstenberg Verlag 2022.