Canal tour
Skinny Bridge (Magere Brug)
bridge over the river Amstel in the city centre of Amsterdam. It
connects the banks of the river at Kerkstraat (Church Street), between
Keizersgracht (Emperors' Canal) and Prinsengracht (Princes' Canal).
The central section of the Magere Brug is a bascule bridge made of
white-painted wood. The present bridge was built in 1934. The first
bridge at this site was built in 1691 as Kerkstraatbrug and had 13
arches. Because this bridge was very narrow, the locals called it
magere brug, which literally means "skinny bridge". In 1871 the state
of the bridge was so bad that it was demolished and replaced by a
nine-arched wooden bridge. Fifty years later this bridge also needed
to be replaced. Architect Piet Kramer made several designs for a steel
and stone bridge, but the city decided to replace it with a new bridge
that looked the same as the previous, only slightly bigger. In 1934
the bridge was demolished and replaced by a redesign made by Piet
Kramer. The last major renovation was in 1969. Until 1994 the bridge
was opened by hand, but now is opened automatically.
Photo 160