Panorama of Szczecin with Long Bridge

Views of Szczecin by the Oder River and the harbour were popular themes for artists working in the second half of the 19th century. Nonetheless, part of the iconography was characterised by a tendency to idealise the existing reality, which served propaganda purposes - to show the city in bloom. Such works, as illustrations, found their way into sightseeing, commemorative and scientific-educational publications. In the era of mass tourism, mainly geographic and tourist publications were prevalent. The illustrations showed the current appearance of the city and documented changes in the buildings along the riverside, including bridge crossings. One of Szczecin's characteristic bridges was the Long Bridge (Lange Brücke) over the Western Oder, connecting the city with the river island of Łasztownia (Lastadie). The wooden bridge with a passageway for ships was built in 1283. In 1900, it was replaced by a modern drawbridge called the Hanza Bridge (Hansabrücke). It was blown up in April 1945, rebuilt in 1959 and ceased to be a drawbridge in 2000. The Long Bridge became one of the favourite painting motifs of the German draughtsman and lithographer Gustav Frank, who was artistically active from 1850 to 1875, connected initially with Oldenburg, where he drew vedutas of German cities for geographical publications. He was the author of several panoramas of Szczecin with the Long Bridge, published in the 1860s and 1870s. At that time, he worked for the Royal Lithographic Institute (Königliche Lithographische Institut) in Berlin. Around 1860, he created a lithograph with a striking panorama of Szczecin viewed from in front of the Long Bridge, showing the bustling boulevards.

Małgorzata Peszko