The Chain Bridge crosses the River Rioni in Kutaisi and is regarded as the oldest of the city’s surviving bridges. It was the first thing of note that I saw after walking down the mountain from my accommodation, although local geographers may insist that it was merely a hill. Remains of a crossing dating from the fifth century have been discovered at the site, while the main supports of the later bridge date from the 1770s. A wooden bridge was constructed across them and the crossing was formerly known as the Royal Bridge and the Archieli Bridge, before chains were added during the nineteenth century, giving it its current name.
The present bridge carries vehicles and pedestrians across the river, with the chains running along either side as a reminder of the structure which preceded it. One of the chains apparently broke during the 1860s as merchants crossed with their wagons following heavy snowfall. The explanation offered is that the accumulated snow had not been cleared during the preceding holidays, which sounds like a suitably familiar combination of infrastructure, weather and nobody quite getting around to doing anything about it. All rather sub-optimal.
The city eventually restored the crossing between 1884 and 1885, while the bridge acquired its current form during another reconstruction in 1995. In 2006, the bridge was granted national cultural monument status, which I imagine must have pleased it. It might just now be carrying small blue cars across the Rioni, but I rather liked the amount of history that was represented here.