Puente Mocho
Singular places
, Beas de Segura
The bridge known as Puente Mocho is a fine example of Roman architecture. The Romans carried out large civil construction projects in order to maintain communication routes between the different provinces that made up their territories and to enable troops to move from one location to another. In fact it was often the legionnaires themselves who undertook some of the building work that can still be observed today, particularly during the period known as the Pax Romana, in which there was no upheaval regarding imperial succession and the frontiers of the empire were under firm control.
The bridge consists of a series of semicircular arches supported by a line of pillars. On top of this is laid the road that crosses the river. To build the bridge, stone ashlars from nearby quarries were used for the outer surfaces while the interior was made from a material similar to concrete. The first stage of construction was the foundations, involving the selection of the firmest stretch of ground and the most resistant subsoil.
The main challenge facing the builders was how to begin constructing the pillars. They achieved this by fabricating a waterproof wooden structure and building the pillar up inside it. When the pillar was sufficiently high, the carpenters attached a wooden framework on which the arches were built.
Imagine the scene when Puente Mocho was being built: the sound of the stonemasons working on the ashlars, the carpenters driving nails into wood, the bustle of men constantly moving around and performing different activities such as moving the ashlars into place or carrying stones over to the bridge.
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