Roman Bridges (Pontetto)

Two Roman bridges from the ancient Via Julia Augusta survive in Loano — remnants of the road the Romans built to connect the Ligurian coast towns. The most famous of these, the Pontetto, is now buried beneath the modern Via Aurelia, testament to how thoroughly later development has built over the ancient route.

The bridges are not a conventional tourist attraction — you cannot stand on them — but they are why Loano's history stretches back further than its medieval appearance suggests. Ask locally and you may find someone who can point out exactly where beneath the modern road the ancient stonework lies.

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The Pontetto is now buried beneath the modern Via Aurelia road, invisible to passing traffic. This fate is not unusual — much of the ancient Via Julia Augusta, the Roman road that ran along this coastline connecting Genoa to Arles, has been swallowed by subsequent construction. That two bridges from the original road survive at all, even underground, makes Loano an unexpectedly significant site in the history of Roman infrastructure.

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