most Zwierzyniecki, Wrocław

Explosives were laid here in 1945, but Most Zwierzyniecki escaped destruction because the Red Army entered Breslau from the south, not from the east German forces had expected. The bridge in front of you carries its single steel span across the Oder, close to the zoo and the Centennial Hall exhibition grounds. It began as a timber bridge around 1655; the structure you see was built between 1895 and 1897.

Karl Klimm designed the replacement, working under city architect Richard Plüddemann, with engineer A. Fruhwirth also involved. The engineering is made ceremonial.

Granite supports anchor two braced steel arches set twelve and a half metres apart, while four red-sandstone obelisks give the bridge its unmistakable Art Nouveau character. Period-style street lamps illuminate it after dark. This is also a protected immovable heritage monument in Poland. Near the bridge, Przystań Zwierzyniecka is the departure point for tourist boats on the river.