Remains of Medieval Bridge Discovered in Ljubljana

LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA—According to an STA report, archaeologists unearthed the foundations of the medieval "Butcher's Bridge" along the Ljubljanica River. The bridge was first indirectly mentioned in a written source dating to 1280. "At first it was probably fully made of wood, including the foundations on both river banks," said archaeologist Martin Horvat of the Ljubljana Museum and Galleries. These newly discovered brick foundations, which seem to date to a later construction phase in the fourteenth century, are the first material traces of the bridge's existence. The bridge derived its name from the butchers who plied their trade there, though the stench and water pollution associated with butchery led to their being banned in the early seventeenth century. Butcher's Bridge was replaced by an iron bridge in the late nineteenth century, and Shoemaker's Bridge, which was built in the 1930s, now stands on the site. To read about a 6,500-year-old dental filling found in a skull unearthed in Slovenia, go to "Fixing Ancient Toothaches."