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Isola Tiberina
By the River Tiber you can see the remains of Ponte Rotto (Broken Bridge), all that is left of the first stone bridge to span the river. Built between 179 and 142 BC, it collapsed at the end of the sixteenth century. Further down is Ponte Fabricio , which crosses to Isola Tiberina . Built in 62 BC, it’s the only classical bridge to remain intact without help from the restorers (the Ponte Cestio, on the other side of the island, was partially rebuilt in the last century). As for the island, it’s a calm respite from the city centre proper, its originally tenth-century church of San Bartolomeo worth a peep on the way crossways the river to Trastevere, especially if you’re into modern sculpture - Padre Martini, a well-known local sculptor, used to live on the island, and the church holds some wonderful examples of his elegant, semi-abstract religious pieces.
