Road Bridges of South-eastern Spain, 1850-1936. Heritage Awaiting Recognition: Recovering a Heritage

Abstract

he development of a system of national roads in south-eastern Spain entailed the construction of a considerable number of bridges. Their design incorporated the main novelties of bridge engineering of the day, and, after more than 100 years of service constitute a harmonious ensemble of heritage in which certain salient typologies and other common features can be identified. The present research, based both on the study of the original documents preserved in different archives of the region as well on the identification of bridges that are still standing, has the aim of describing these typologies and common construction trends. At the same time, this represents an initial effort towards their systematic cataloguing as well as a step towards establishing their value and recognition as elements of heritage of the first magnitude