Bridges on Scherpenzeel Estate

Bridges adorn a park: they add refinement, serve as orientation points, and bring about coherence in the park. In the grounds of Scherpenzeel Estate, a footbridge over the lake in front of the house has disappeared and two bridges for pedestrians and cyclists over the Lunterse Beek need replacing.

The grounds were laid out in the middle of the nineteenth century by S.A. van Lunteren in an English landscape style. Typical characteristics of the design are the winding lanes, vistas, open meadows, planted here and there with a solitary tree, and large, smoothly flowing expanses of water with a footpath around them. Characteristics of the English landscape style also recur in the many features and decorative elements of the estate and the buildings. The architecture of the buildinga is richly decorated and gives the estate a luxuriant, elegant look.

Our design for the family of bridges continues this decorative use of detail. In harmony with the buildings, it is based on an attractive balance between the tranquillity of a simple main structure and refined ornament.,

The footbridge in the grounds of Scherpenzeel House will be composed of a curved steel main structure over the water. The bridge railings are formed by curved steel strips that refer to the plant world and the elegant decorative idiom that is characteristic of the estate. This refined design fits smoothly into the equally refined design of the grounds and will be the first member of a harmonious family of bridges for the estate. The two bridges for pedestrians and cyclists over the Lunterse Beek are given the same elegant bridge railings. The bridges are powder coated in a fresh white tint to make them stand out against the vegetation.