Some legends say that the Ponte dei Sospiri was called so because it was a rendezvous for lovers; however, the truth relates a much sadder tale. The bridge, in fact was built to convey magistrates to the courts and prisoners to their fates. However, the Baroque bridge, designed by Antonio Contino, still has a very romantic association, and remains an important historical landmark in Venice today. It is made of white limestone and has windows with stone bars, and connects the old prisons to the interrogation rooms in the Doge’s Palace. It was the last view of Venice the convicts saw before their imprisonment. The name was given by Lord Byron in the 19th century and comes from the suggestion that prisoners would sigh at their final view of this beautiful city out the window before being taken down to their cells. A local legend says that lovers will be assured eternal love if they kiss on a gondola at sunset under the bridge.
