An important part of Istanbul's history is the story of the bridges built over the Golden Horn, the bay surrounding much of the city. The earliest history of a bridge over the Golden Horn can be traced back to 6th century CE.
A number of bridges were built in the middle of the 19th century. In 1870, a contract to build a was given to a prominent French company and the a British one. Completed in 1875, the bridge shown here was 480 meters in length, or nearly half a kilometer long.
It was the third Galata Bridge, and for a long time one of the city's prized civic works.