**5. Renaissance: Leonardo bridge over Golden Horn**

Renaissance is strongly associated with an outstanding personality of this period, Leonardo Da Vinci. This genius had a brief albeit challenging bridge episode, **Figure 12**.

Through diplomatic channels he was asked to design a project of and construct a bridge over the Golden Horn (Haliç – tr.), an inlet of the Bosphorus in Istanbul. In 1502, an ambassador of Sultan Bayezid II came to Rome. It is probably then, from 1502 to 1503, that Leonardo made the sketch of the bridge that now can be found in the manuscript commonly known as *Paris Manuscript L* [11]. The manuscript pages are rather small, 7 × 10 cm, and the drawing itself is quite simple. Despite the fact that the drawing does not contain any dimensions, it is assumed that the bridge was supposed to be 240 m long and 23 m wide with the arch curvature of 40 m. The bridge was not built, however. In 2001 in Norway, creator Vebjorn Sand constructed a footbridge in the town of Ås [12], which was a reference to Leonardo da Vinci's concept. However—in the author's subjective view—it is only partially successful, both in the aesthetic sense and as an incorporation of the Renaissance genius' idea. Looking at the drawing in the manuscript, it is difficult to decide about the bridge structure. Sand's footbridge seems to be one of many possible interpretations.

**Figure 12.** Golden Horn Bridge project, 1502. Paris Manuscript *L*: (a) 66th page of the manuscript; (b) bridge enlarged.
