The bridge was designed by William Etheridge, and built by James Essex in 1749. It has been rebuilt on two occasions, in 1866 and in 1905, but has kept the same overall design. Although it appears to be an arch, it is composed entirely of straight timbers[4] built to an unusually sophisticated engineering design, hence the name.
The original Mathematical Bridge was another bridge of the same design, also commissioned by James Essex, crossing the Cam between Trinity and Trinity Hall colleges, where Garret Hostel Bridge now stands.
The tangential members of the tangent and radial trussing are highlighted
The arrangement of timbers is a series of tangents that describe the arc of the bridge, with radial members to tie the tangents together and triangulate the structure, making it rigid and self-supporting. This type of structure, technically tangent and radial trussing, is an efficient structural use of timber, and was also used for the timber supporting arches (centring) used for building stone bridges.[6] Analysis of the design shows that the tangent members are almost entirely under compression, while the radial timbers are almost entirely subject to tension with very little bending stress, or to put it another way, the tangent and radial elements elegantly express the forces involved in arched construction.
The Mathematical Bridge (approx. 1865) pictured shortly before it was partially rebuilt in 1866
South face of the Mathematical Bridge
The bridge from Queens' College's Riverside Building
Mythsedit
A popular fable is that the bridge was designed and built by Sir Isaac Newton without the use of nuts or bolts. Various stories relate how at some point in the past either students or fellows of the University attempted to take the bridge apart and put it back together, but were unable to work out how to hold the structure together, and were obliged to resort to adding nuts and bolts. In reality, bolts or the equivalent are an inherent part of the design. When it was first built, iron spikes were driven into the joints from the outer side, where they could not be seen from the inside of the parapets, explaining why bolts were thought to be an addition to the original. Newton could not have been directly involved since he died in 1727, twenty-two years before the bridge was constructed.[7]
^"Mathematical Bridge". Queens' College, Cambridge. Retrieved 2 November 2013.
Further readingedit
Ruddock, Ted (1979). Arch Bridges and their Builders 1735-1835. Cambridge University Press. ISBN978-0521090216. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
External linksedit
Photograph of the original 1748 model of the bridge, made by William Etheridge and still in possession by Clare College
January 01, 1970
mathematical, bridge, wooden, footbridge, southwest, central, cambridge, england, bridges, river, about, hundred, feet, northwest, silver, street, bridge, connects, parts, queens, college, official, name, simply, wooden, bridge, queens, bridge, grade, listed, . The Mathematical Bridge is a wooden footbridge in the southwest of central Cambridge England It bridges the River Cam about one hundred feet northwest of Silver Street Bridge and connects two parts of Queens College Its official name is simply the Wooden Bridge 2 or Queens Bridge 3 It is a Grade II listed building 1 Mathematical bridgeMathematical Bridge at the University of Cambridge in 2016Coordinates52 12 08 0 N 0 06 54 2 E 52 202222 N 0 115056 E 52 202222 0 115056CrossesRiver CamLocaleQueens College CambridgeOfficial nameQueens Bridge Wooden BridgePreceded bySilver Street BridgeFollowed byKing s College BridgeCharacteristicsDesignTruss bridgeMaterialWood on stone abutments No of spansOneHistoryDesignerWilliam EtheridgeConstruction end1906 1906 1 Current bridge Location The bridge was designed by William Etheridge and built by James Essex in 1749 It has been rebuilt on two occasions in 1866 and in 1905 but has kept the same overall design Although it appears to be an arch it is composed entirely of straight timbers 4 built to an unusually sophisticated engineering design hence the name A replica of the bridge was built in 1923 near the Iffley Lock in Oxford 5 The original Mathematical Bridge was another bridge of the same design also commissioned by James Essex crossing the Cam between Trinity and Trinity Hall colleges where Garret Hostel Bridge now stands Contents 1 Mathematical explanation 2 Myths 3 See also 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksMathematical explanation edit nbsp The tangential members of the tangent and radial trussing are highlightedThe arrangement of timbers is a series of tangents that describe the arc of the bridge with radial members to tie the tangents together and triangulate the structure making it rigid and self supporting This type of structure technically tangent and radial trussing is an efficient structural use of timber and was also used for the timber supporting arches centring used for building stone bridges 6 Analysis of the design shows that the tangent members are almost entirely under compression while the radial timbers are almost entirely subject to tension with very little bending stress or to put it another way the tangent and radial elements elegantly express the forces involved in arched construction nbsp The Mathematical Bridge approx 1865 pictured shortly before it was partially rebuilt in 1866 nbsp South face of the Mathematical Bridge nbsp The bridge from Queens College s Riverside BuildingMyths editA popular fable is that the bridge was designed and built by Sir Isaac Newton without the use of nuts or bolts Various stories relate how at some point in the past either students or fellows of the University attempted to take the bridge apart and put it back together but were unable to work out how to hold the structure together and were obliged to resort to adding nuts and bolts In reality bolts or the equivalent are an inherent part of the design When it was first built iron spikes were driven into the joints from the outer side where they could not be seen from the inside of the parapets explaining why bolts were thought to be an addition to the original Newton could not have been directly involved since he died in 1727 twenty two years before the bridge was constructed 7 See also editList of bridges in Cambridge Old Walton Bridge a larger bridge on the same principle also designed by William Etheridge References edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mathematical Bridge a b Historic England QUEENS COLLEGE MATHEMATICAL BRIDGE Grade II 1125515 National Heritage List for England Retrieved 5 December 2015 TL4458 Mathematical Bridge Queens College Geograph Britain and Ireland 2 September 2007 Retrieved 2 November 2012 Ordnance Survey OS Maps Online Map 1 25 000 Leisure Retrieved 8 January 2021 Mathematical Bridge Cambridge Engineering Timelines 2 September 2007 Retrieved 2 November 2012 Iffley Lock Where the Thames Smooth Waters Glide Archived from the original on 12 August 2014 Retrieved 13 October 2014 History of the Design Queens College Cambridge Archived from the original on 21 September 2013 Retrieved 2 November 2013 Mathematical Bridge Queens College Cambridge Retrieved 2 November 2013 Further reading editRuddock Ted 1979 Arch Bridges and their Builders 1735 1835 Cambridge University Press ISBN 978 0521090216 Retrieved 26 February 2013 External links editPhotograph of the original 1748 model of the bridge made by William Etheridge and still in possession by Clare College Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mathematical Bridge amp oldid 1187236391, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
