Ponte Sant’Angelo, once the Aelian Bridge or Pons Aelius, meaning the Bridge of Hadrian, is a Roman bridge in Rome, completed in 134 AD by Roman Emperor Hadrian, to span the Tiber, from the city centre to his newly constructed mausoleum, now the towering Castel Sant’Angelo. The bridge is faced with travertine marble and spans the Tiber with three arches; it was approached by means of ramp from the river. It links the Rioni of Ponte (which was named after the bridge itself), and Borgo.

Angels

  • Angel with the Column (Throne) (Antonio Raggi, inscription “Tronus meus in columna”).
  • Angel with the Whips (Lazzaro Morelli, inscription “In flagella paratus sum”).
  • Angel with the Crown of Thorns (Bernini and son Paolo, now in church of Sant’Andrea delle Fratte. (Copy on the bridge by Paolo Naldini, inscription “In aerumna mea dum configitur spina”).
  • Angel with the Sudarium (Veronica’s Veil) (Cosimo Fancelli, inscription “Respice faciem Christi tui”).
  • Angel with the Garment and Dice (Paolo Naldini, inscription “super vestimentum meum miserunt sortem”).
  • Angel with the Nail (Girolamo Lucenti, inscription “Aspicient ad me quem confixerunt”).
  • Angel with the Cross (Ercole Ferrata, inscription “Cuius principatus super humerum eius”).
  • Angel with the Superscription (Copy by Giulio Cartari, inscription “Regnavit a ligno deus”).
  • Angel with the Sponge (with vinegar) (Antonio Giorgetti, inscription “Potaverunt me aceto”).
  • Angel with the Lance (Domenico Guidi, inscription “Vulnerasti cor meum”).

Of the statues on bridge prior to Bernini’s update, only those of the two apostles, Saint Peter and Paul remain.

Map: Ponte Sant’Angelo
Map: Ponte Sant’Angelo