Bridge, Cappamore, Co. Kerry

Co. Kerry |

Bridges & Crossings

Bridge, Cappamore, Co. Kerry

There is something quietly contradictory about a bridge with a central pier that bisects its own arch.

Most arched bridges exist to carry traffic over an obstacle in a single unbroken sweep; this one at Cappamore, in County Kerry, interrupts its own geometry with a supporting pier running the full width of the structure, splitting the arch down the middle. It is an unusual solution, and one that draws the eye once you know to look for it.

The bridge spans a southward-flowing tributary of the Finnihy River, oriented roughly east to west and measuring around 8.5 metres in width. It is built from random rubble sandstone, meaning the stone was laid without the regular coursing you would find in more formal construction, giving the structure a rough, workmanlike character suited to a rural crossing. The arch itself is three-centred, a form in which the curve is drawn from three separate points rather than a single radius, producing a lower, flatter profile than a semicircular arch. Voussoirs are the wedge-shaped stones that form an arch, locking together under compression to carry the load above; here they are described as roughly shaped, reinforcing the impression of practical, local craftsmanship rather than any decorative ambition. The central pier, at around 0.6 metres wide, runs the entire breadth of the bridge and effectively divides the arch into two openings, an arrangement that would have helped manage the load or perhaps the particular conditions of the stream bed below.

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