Old Bridge, Hasankeyf

Old Bridge, Hasankeyf

Eski Köprü
Remains of two piers of a bridge in the Tigris river
The piers of Hasankeyf's Old Bridge over the Tigris river, as seen in 2012. Since 2020 they have been submerged underwater due to the completion of the Ilısu Dam.
Coordinates37°42′52″N 41°24′40″E / 37.71444°N 41.41111°E / 37.71444; 41.41111 (Old Bridge)
CrossedTigris River
LocaleHasankeyf, Batman Province, Eastern Anatolia Region, Turkey
Other name(s)(Old) Tigris Bridge
Characteristics
DesignArch bridge
MaterialStone masonry and rubble, with some brick and wood
Total length200 m (660 ft)
Longest spanapprox. 40 m (130 ft)[1]
No. of spans4
Piers in water2
History
Construction startafter AH 541 (1146/1147)
Construction endbefore AH 562 (1166/1167)
Collapsedbefore 1673
Location
Map

The Old Bridge (Turkish: Eski Köprü), also known as the Old Tigris Bridge, is a ruined four-arch bridge spanning the Tigris River in the town of Hasankeyf in Batman Province in southeastern Turkey. It was built by the Artuqid Turkmens in the mid-12th century, between about 1147 and 1167, and at the time its central arch was one of the largest in the world, if not the largest. The bridge was repaired by Ayyubid Kurdish and Aq Qoyunlu Turkmen rulers during the 14th and 15th centuries and appears to have eventually collapsed in the early or mid-17th century. The bridge's ruined piers still stand (two of them in the Tigris River), as does one arch. Since 2020 the ruins of the bridge, along with most of the town of Hasankeyf, have been submerged underwater by the filling of the Ilısu Dam reservoir.

  1. ^ Meinecke 1996, pp. 58–60, 80.