Ponte D. Maria

D. Maria Bridge
D. Maria Bridge; Ponte D. Maria
Coordinates	37°30′36″N8°28′04″W / 37.5100362°N 8.4677331°W Coordinates: 37°30′36″N8°28′04″W / 37.5100362°N 8.4677331°W
Carries	Pedestrian
Crosses	River Mira
Locale	Portugal, Odemira, Santa Clara-a-Velha
Official name	Ponte de D. Maria
Other name(s)	Ponte de Santa Clara-a-Velha
Heritage status	Municipal Interest
Characteristics
Material	Limestone
History
Designer	Francisco Lopes do Rosário
Construction end	1758
Collapsed	Yes

Last updated April 07, 2020

Ponte D. Maria (D. Maria Bridge) is an 18th-century bridge which crosses the River Mira in the civil parish of Santa Clara-a-Velha in the municipality of Odemira in the Portuguese district of Beja. It is an 18th-century structure that was constructed on the Roman model, allowing it to remain a functional span until the 19th century, when iron structures were introduced in the region.

History

A 1748 travellers guide mentioned the locality of Santa Clara as a point of passage between Lisbon and Albufeira, later confirmed by 18th century maps.^[1] It is likely a construction that occurred in 1758, at a time when the clergy of Sabóia and S. Clara-a-Velha affirmed that no bridge existed on the Mira River.^[2]

By the end of the 19th century, maps of the period did not show any roads passing through Santa Clara, even though the village had three stations for changing horses or stopping the night.^[1] In 1822, the construction or expansion of the bridge occurred, under the direction of Francisco Lopes do Rosário, and located in relation to an ancient Roman road that connected Beja to the Algarve. Remnants of the former crossing over the River Mira have been lost.^[1]

By 1849, the municipal council of Odemira referred to the need to reconstruct the "old bridge" in Santa Clara and the advantage of constructing the new structure at the edge of the village.^[1]

At the end of the 19th century, the master of public works wrote an inspection report referring to the old masonry bridge over the River Mira along the road between Alentejo and Algarve, a distance of 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) from the village of Santa Clara.^[1]In his report, the inspector found the bridge in a terrible state of conservation, with many great fractures along the central vaults, causing depression in the pavement, where water coalesced and accumulated, draining along the cracks...where vehicles pass.^[1] The author lamented the state of such an important construction and recommended urgent repair.^[1]

By the middle of the 20th century, there was a partial landslide.^[1] On 25 February 1992, by dispatch of the IPPC, the bridge was classified as Property of Public Interest, and by 31 October 1996, similarly by the IPPAR. On 25 August 2000, it was included in the Odemira PDM (resolution 114/2000, DR 196).^[1]

Architecture

The bridge is located in an isolated, rural position at the end of a valley, crossed by the River Mira, whose margins are densely populated by forest and water lilies.^[1] It is an area of great natural landscape, situated near the Pousada de Santa Clara, Santa Clara dam and the community cemetery.^[1]^[2]

The structure consists of stone and limestone masonry, plastered and whitewashed, with arched frames and breakwaters coated stone.^[1]^[2] The bridge, now ruined, still includes two arches with archivolts and masonry.^[2]

Related Research Articles

Alandroal is a municipality in the Portuguese district of Évora located on the eastern frontier with Spain along the right margin of the Guadiana River in the Central Alentejo region. It is located 341 metres (1,119 ft) above sea level, northeast of Évora and southeast of Estremoz. The population in 2011 was 5,843, in an area of 542.68 km².

The Maria Pia Bridge is a railway bridge built in 1877, and attributed to Gustave Eiffel, situated over the Portuguese northern municipalities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia.

Paderne is a civil parish in the municipality (concelho) of Albufeira, in the Portuguese subregion of the Algarve. The population in 2011 was 3,304, in an area of 52.56 km².

The Dom Luís I Bridge, or Luís I Bridge, is a double-deck metal arch bridge that spans the River Douro between the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia in Portugal. At its construction, its 172 metres (564 ft) span was the longest of its type in the world. It has been confused with the nearby Maria Pia Bridge, a railway bridge that was built 9 years earlier, which is similar in aspect to the Luís I bridge.

Miróbriga is an ancient Roman town located near the village and civil parish of Santiago do Cacém, in the municipality of the same name in the south-west of Portugal. Archeology revealed that the town occupied the site of an ancient Iron Age settlement that existed since the 9th century B.C.

Fort of Santa Catarina (Portimão) building in Portimãeso, Faro District, Portugal

The Fort of Santa Catarina is a medieval fort situated in the civil parish of Portimão, in the municipality of Portimão in Portuguese Algarve. The structure was considered one of the last Philippine military projects in the Algarve, erected to defend the peninsula from pirates and privateers, as well as military invasions. Its construction is one of the better examples that work of Alexandre Massai, a military engineer who toured the Algarve to reinforce numerous military fortifications along the coast.

The Fort of Nossa Senhora da Rocha is a medieval castle is situated in the civil parish of Porches, in the municipality of Lagoa in Portuguese Algarve. Inside the fort is the Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Rocha, of uncertain date.

Mexilhoeira Grande is a civil parish in the municipality (concelho) of Portimão in the southern Portuguese region of the Algarve. The population in 2011 was 4,029, in an area of 91.15 km².

The Castle of Alcoutim is a medieval castle in the civil parish of Alcoutim, in the municipality of the same name, in the southeastern Algarve of Portugal. Built in the 13th century, the castle stands in a dominant position on a hill south of the parish seat of Alcoutim on the right bank of the San Marcos River, opposite the territory of Sanlúcar de Guadiana.

The Ponte da Palhaça is a bridge crossing the Ribeira da Tojeira in the civil parish of Palhaça, municipality of Oliveira do Bairro in the Portuguese district of Aveiro.

The Bridge of Fontinha is a medieval is a bridge situated in the civil parish of Roge, in the municipality of Vale de Cambra, Portuguese district of Aveiro.

The Ponte da Ribeira de Cobres is a bridge in the civil parish, in the municipality of Almodôvar in the Portuguese district of Beja.

Ponte de Mem Gutierres is a Romanesque bridge in Portugal, located in the civil parish of Esperança e Brunhais, in the municipality of Póvoa de Lanhoso. Crossing the river Ave in the district of Braga, the bridge connects either margin lined with picturesque houses.

Ponte Velha de São Pedro da Torre is a bridge in the civil parish of São Pedro da Torre, municipality of Valença in the Portuguese district of Viana do Castelo.

The Old Bridge of Santo Adrião is a two-arch bridge over the Rio Tedo in the civil parish of Vila Seca e Santo Adrião, municipality of Armamar, the Portuguese district of Viseu.

The Castle of Aljustrel, is a Portuguese medieval castle in civil parish of Aljustrel e Rio de Moinhos, in the municipality of Aljustrel, in the district of Beja.

Torrão is a civil parish and town, in the municipality of Alcácer do Sal, in the Portuguese district of Setúbal, bordering on the districts of Évora and the Beja. It is crossed by the river Xarrama River. The population in 2011 was 2,295, in an area of 372.39 km².

The Ponte de Aljezur, is a structure located over the Ribeira de Aljezur, in the civil parish of Aljezur, municipality of Aljezur, in the Portuguese district of Faro.

References

Notes

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Pereira, Ricardo; Gordalina, Rosário (2002), SIPA (ed.), Ponte de D. Maria/Ponte de Santa-Clara-a-Velha (IPA.00007859/PT040211040020) (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal: SIPA – Sistema de Informação para o Património Arquitectónico, retrieved 6 May 2012
1 2 3 4 IGESPAR, ed. (2015), Ponte D. Maria (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal: IGESPAR - Instituto Gestão do Patrimonio Arquitectónico e Arqueológico, retrieved 7 January 2016

Sources

Quaresma, António Martins (1993), A Barca de Odemira (in Portuguese), Beja, Portugal