Scorching temperatures and a long, dry summer have given locals and tourists alike a rare opportunity to see the remains of a 2,000-year-old bridge that once spanned the Tiber river that weaves through the centre of Rome. The flow of the Tiber, which is fed from tributaries from the northern Apennine Mountains, has fallen below 80 cubic metres a second, half the national average for this time of year, according to Rome’s civil protection coordinator, Giovanni Giganti. “We are facing a major water crisis. And it is a crisis that is also due to the fact that this winter we did have quite abundant rainfall, but then the dry periods … were quite long,” Giganti told the Associated Press. Nero’s Bridge (Pons Neronianus) was thought to have been built as a triumphal monument by the Emperor Caligula around 39 AD. But it is referred to as Nero’s Bridge because Nero, Caligula’s nephew, renamed a number of ancient structures after himself during his rule from 54 to 68 AD, according to historical accounts. The bridge originally connected the ancient Campus Martius area, which now houses the Spanish Steps, the Piazza del Popolo and the posh shopping streets around Via Condotti, to the Circus of Nero stadium where St. Peter was martyred and upon which St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican City now stand. The remnants of the structure can best be seen from the Bridge of Angels, which leads to Castel Sant’ Angelo near Vatican City. The bridge is usually entirely underwater, but this year full blocks of the ancient structure are visible, giving archaeologists a rare opportunity to study it. The Tiber’s low water level has also turned up e-bikes and scooters, refrigerators and even a car further upstream. The last time the remains of the bridge were visible was during a similar drought in 2022.
