塔桥是世界上最引人注目和最知名的桥梁之一, 1894年完工,当时的伦敦是世界上最繁忙的贸易港口之一,处理来自大英帝国各地及其他地区的货物,有‘伦敦正门’之称。由霍勒斯·琼斯爵士和约翰·沃尔夫·巴里爵士设计,塔桥是一项令人惊讶的工程壮举,它有一个特殊的配重机制,允许巷道升降,以便船只从下面通过。据“泰晤士报”报道,在1894年6月30日的开幕式上,观众们“恍恍惚惚,无言以对”。今天,这座桥平均每天两次升起,这仍然是一个令人印象深刻的奇观。这本书将吸引对工程,建筑和伦敦历史感兴趣的人。
“Tower Bridge is one of the most remarkable and recognizable bridges in the world. Completed in 1894, at a time when London was one of the world’s busiest trading ports, handling goods from all corners of the British Empire and beyond, it served as a gateway to the capital and a key crossing point over the River Thames.
Designed by Sir Horace Jones and Sir John Wolfe Barry, Tower Bridge is an astonishing feat of engineering, containing a special counterweight mechanism that allows the roadway to lift so that ships can pass beneath. At the opening ceremony on 30 June 1894, spectators were ‘spellbound and speechless’ when the bridge was lifted, according to The Times. Today, the bridge is raised on average twice a day, and it is still an impressive spectacle. This book charts the story of the bridge from the earliest plans for a river crossing on this site, through the complex evolution of its development, to its construction and operation, offering the reader insights into its architecture and engineering history, while also shedding light on the people who worked on it. It contains specially commissioned photographs and a wealth of archival images, including a sequence showing the bridge at every stage of construction. Also included are the original working drawings for the bridge, some of which have never been published. This book will fascinate and inform anyone interested in engineering, architecture and the history of London.