Bridge of Sighs a translation from the Italian "Ponte dei sospiri" in the 19th century, comes from the suggestion that prisoners would sigh at their final view of beautiful Venice through the window before being taken down to their cells. In reality, the days of inquisitions and summary executions were over by the time the bridge was built, and the cells under the palace roof were occupied mostly by small-time criminals. In addition, little could be seen from inside the bridge due to the stone grills covering the windows. The name "Bridge of Sighs" has since been applied by association to other bridges
Sixteenth Century Society and Conference during October. Currently, the President is Amy Burnett, Department of History, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and the Executive Director is Donald J. Harreld, Department of History, Brigham Young University. Sixteenth Century Society and Conference The Sixteenth Century Society and Conference (SCSC) is a learned society that promotes research on the early modern period. The society is interdisciplinary in membership, welcoming scholars in history, art history, religion, history of science, musicology, dance history, and literary and cultural studies in English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish. The SCSC has close associations with an academic journal, the "Sixteenth Century Journal" (SCJ), and with the