Rear view of one of the green dragons that guard the Dragon Bridge in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The four sentinels, one at each corner of the structure, were made in Vienna in 1900 of sheet copper. The dragon is Ljubljana’s official emblem, featuring on the city arms and flag - and even on municipal manhole covers.
Ljubljana, Slovenia: no sign of this green dragon’s tail either wagging or twitching as it guards the Dragon Bridge spanning the River Ljubljanica – despite claims of involuntary muscle movement every time a virgin walks past. The popular myth has turned the four mythical monsters on the bridge into one of the Slovenian capital’s most popular attractions. The sentinel dragons, made of sheet copper in Vienna in 1900, were designed by Dalmatian architect and engineer Jurij Zaninović (1876-1946) (known in Italy as Giorgio Zaninovich). They perch on pedestals at the corners of the (109 ft 5 in) span, in the company of 16 much smaller statues of griffins. The Dragon Bridge, designed in Art Nouveau / Vienna Secession style, was opened in 1901, when Ljubljana was a city in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was originally named the Jubilee Bridge of the Emperor Franz Josef, but renamed the Dragon Bridge in 1919. The triple-hinged arch structure was one of Europe’s earliest reinforced concrete bridges. The dragon is Ljubljana’s official emblem, taking pride of place on the city coat of arms and flag and even appearing on municipal manhole covers. According to ancient legend and local folklore, Ljubljana was founded by Greek mythological hero Jason, who defeated and killed a dragon terrorising a marshland area near the Ljubljanica’s source. The city’s medieval coat of arms included a dragon and the beast was later transformed from a marauding monster into a symbolic protector of the city, a mascot embodying power, courage and wisdom.
Size: 2832px × 4256px
Location: Dragon Bridge, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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