Taşköprü (Roman Stone Bridge)

Taşköprü — 'stone bridge' in Turkish — spans the Seyhan River through central Adana and ranks among the oldest bridges in continuous use in the world. The original structure was most likely commissioned during the reign of Emperor Hadrian in the early 2nd century AD, when the city was known as Antioch on the Sarus. Built from locally quarried limestone blocks without mortar in the Roman tradition, the bridge stretches approximately 310 metres across the river and originally carried sixteen arches, of which roughly fourteen remain visible or intact today. Roman engineers selected the site where the Seyhan River narrows between resistant rock outcrops, allowing the bridge's wide piers to be founded on stable bedrock. The structure served as a primary crossing on the strategic road linking Antioch (modern Antakya) to Tarsus and the Cilician plain, carrying military columns, merchant caravans, and pilgrims throughout the Roman, Byzantine, and early Islamic periods. Arab geographers of the medieval period described Taşköprü as one of the most remarkable structures in the Cilician region. During the Crusader campaigns of the 12th century, both Crusader armies and Armenian forces of the Kingdom of Cilicia crossed the bridge on campaigns further east. The Ottoman period saw Taşköprü maintained as the principal river crossing of Adana until modern spans were constructed in the 19th and 20th centuries. A serious flood in 1878 damaged several arches on the western bank; these were rebuilt using similar limestone blocks, preserving the visual continuity of the structure. Today the bridge is fully pedestrianised and forms a key element of Adana's riverside promenade. Its broad roadway, once wide enough for wheeled carts, now accommodates strolling residents and photographers. The arches reflect in the Seyhan at dawn and dusk, making Taşköprü one of the most photographed landmarks in Adana province. Archaeological investigations by Çukurova University have confirmed construction techniques consistent with Roman imperial practice of the 2nd century AD, alongside evidence of Byzantine and Ottoman repair campaigns in the masonry.