Ponte Pietra
Last updated on September 8, 2026Overview
Ponte Pietra carries pedestrians across the Adige between the old city and the Roman theatre area. A bridge stood here in Roman times, but the five unequal arches visible today contain material and rebuilding from several periods rather than surviving unchanged from antiquity.
Retreating German forces destroyed most of the bridge in April 1945. Its postwar reconstruction reused stones and bricks recovered from the river where possible, restoring a crossing that remains part of everyday city life.
Quick Facts
- Type: Historic Place, Bridge, Roman
- Visitor access: Open to visitors
- Admission: Free
- Built: 1st century BC; rebuilt 1957-1959
- Architectural style: Roman
- Size: Five arches
- Verona’s only Roman bridge: Known to the Romans as the Pons Marmoreus, it is the one bridge of Roman Verona still standing; the two arches at the northern end are original, the rest rebuilt over the centuries.
- Blown up in 1945, rebuilt from the riverbed: Retreating German troops destroyed it in 1945. It was rebuilt between 1957 and 1959 using the original stones, dredged back out of the Adige.
Visit Responsibly
Ponte Pietra is a working pedestrian and cycle crossing as well as a viewpoint. At busy times, pausing close to the sides rather than in the centre allows residents and other visitors to pass without turning the narrow bridge into a bottleneck.
Plan Your Visit
Admission: Free · Free public pedestrian bridge
Ponte Pietra is a free pedestrian crossing with no separate visiting hours. Its paved surface and approaches may be uneven, and the narrow route becomes congested at popular photography times.