Roman Bridge of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain

The Roman bridge of Salamanca crosses the Tormes River. Actually it is a construction of two separated bridges by a central fortification: the old bridge which extends along the portion near the city and it is of Roman origin, and the new bridge. Of the twenty-six arches, only the first fifteen date from Roman times. The bridge has been restored on numerous occasions and has survived several attempts demolition. Many of the restorations have been poorly documented, leaving for the study of archaeologists a great part of the work of determination, dating and explanation of the construction techniques of the ancient. The date of the construction of the bridge not is precisely known, but is among the mandates of the Emperors Augustus (27 BC-14 AD) and Vespasian (69-79), making it a bimillennium architectural monument.

The bridge is presented in the 21st century as a result of several restorations. One of the disasters that most affected it was the Flood of San Policarpo (January 26's night) of year 1626. From the construction of a third bridge for road traffic it remains a unique way of pedestrian and walking uses.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

James Dooms (4 months ago)
Nice to be able to see and walk along the bridge and experience history. Nice views from the bridge of the cathedral and other parts of the city as well. Worth a stop if you visit Salamanca.

David Rumptz (5 months ago)
A must visit. Easy to get to from the historic center. Great photo opportunities. People will happily take your photos of you. Great experience!

Kamil NOWAK (6 months ago)
Great spot for trip around Salamanca, a lot of students by evening passing by this place. Bridge even accessible by car CCTV is watching and you shouldn’t.

Dejan Braki (6 months ago)
As many reviewers said the original Roman bridge from 1st cent is only the downtown's closer part (first 15 arches). The rest was built in medieval era, and you can easily notice the difference in stones if you descend down below the bridge. Nevertheless, it's an important engineering masterpiece offering great views from both sides

Jason Perce (8 months ago)
Beautiful old Roman Bridge with great views of the cathedral in old town. The river it crosses (Tormes) is also beautiful and the city keeps it looking immaculate. It is often the scene/route for many festivals and events in the city. Pedestrian only and well used.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Zvonimir Hrvoj

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Roman Bridge of Salamanca

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