In 1860, seventeen years after work on the Clifton Suspension Bridge had been abandoned, and a year after the Brunel's death, a new company was set up to complete the bridge. The work restarted in 1862 with the erection of scaffolding around the piers. Between June and September of 1863, six wire ropes were stretched one at a time across the Gorge and secured to the piers, creating a platform to attach the main load-bearing chains (which were recycled from the recently demolished Hungerford Suspension Bridge, also designed by Brunel). This photograph shows the platform spanning the two scaffolded piers, and was taken on a sunny day, as shown by the distinct curved shadow cast onto the distant rocks on the Gloucestershire side of the Avon. From the angle of the sun, it is possible to narrow down the time to early- to mid-morning. From an examination of the appearance of, and light falling on, the features and buildings seen on the Somerset side of the river, it is probable that this is the one captured by the camera seen in photograph Mb5061.

The period of 1843 to 1862, when no work was undertaken on the Suspension Bridge, corresponds with the ongoing development and gradual popularisation of photography. With the Avon Gorge offering dramatic and picturesque views, what better place could there be for an enthusiastic and inquisitive amateur to take their camera? Consequently, many photographs in Bristol's collections show the two Suspension Bridge piers in their forlorn and abandoned state, but many more show the gradual completion and opening of the bridge.