Nikolaos Th. Kokkas

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The Akreo bridge is situated in the borders of the Satres county of Xanthi?s prefecture. In order to get there, you should follow the road that begins form the Potamohori vllage and continues at the left, towards the abandoned settlement of Akrea. Two kilometers away form the Potamohori we meet this impressive bridge.
The Akreo bridge has a set of big bows and another set of smaller lightening ones. The deck?s length is in 41 m. The biggest bow is 17.20 m in length while the height is in 10 m from the river?s surface. The small bow is 9.30 m in length. During the downspout of the 1996, a part of the protective walls of the deck was destroyed. This wall is fixed now. Today cars are crossing the bridge, since there is no other way to cross the river.
The most of the old bridges of Xanthi are situated in the mountainous area and were constructed between the eighteenth and the nineteenth century. A small number of them were constructed later. Until lately, these bridges were an important part of the roads net. The selection of the place were a bridge could be built was determined by the shaping of the rivers? watercourse in order to ensure a solid construction. Bridges had major positions ?they were built at the points were central roads and pathways met. Consequently, inns, mills and army guard houses were built around bridges. Only skilled craftsmen built the traditional bridges. Stone was the basic construction material. The building did not begin from the one side of the bridge to the other but from both sides in order to meet one another at the top of the arch.