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Roman bridge in Alcántara

This post is also available in: Polish (polski)

Roman bridge in Alcántara
Roman bridge in Alcántara | Photo: Dantla from de.wikipedia | GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2

Roman bridge at Alcántara in Spain is an example of the engineering genius of the Romans. The construction was built on the Tagus in 104-106 CE. The construction of the bridge was dedicated Emperor Trajan by the local community.

This bridge has survived to our times, mainly due to the engineering excellence of its structure. The demolition of one span did not cause the collapse of the others, neither did the war damage during various conflicts (including the wars of the Spaniards with the Portuguese and the French in the 18th and 19th centuries), in which one of the arches was destroyed to make it difficult for the enemy to cross, nor did they destroy the entire bridge.

The bridge was 194 meters long, the 8-meter wide roadway is 47 meters above the river bed. The middle of the bridge was formed by a road, in Latin called iter, it was accompanied by two-sided footpaths (decursoria), and was topped with full or openwork balustrades, called plutei.

In the middle of the bridge there is a triumphal arch, 14 meters high.

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