The bridge stands where the Cagnan Grande canal merges with the Sile river. In the past, there were the landings of the river port in the area, and the bridge was made of wood, but frequent collapses made the current stone construction necessary.
Dante mentioned this area in the Divine Comedy (Paradise, IX, 49), as the place "where Sile and Cagnan meet." Thus, the great poet, during one or more stays in Treviso, had noticed the different coloration of the waters of the river and the canal, which flow close together for a certain stretch before mixing.
In 1865, on the occasion of the sixth centenary of the great poet's birth, the bridge was renamed Ponte Dante, and a marble stele from Carrara was erected in his honor, created by the sculptor Luigi Borro.
