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Ponte Maria Pia
Maria Pia Bridge (in Portuguese ''Ponte de D. Maria Pia'', commonly known as ''Ponte de Dona Maria Pia'') is a railway bridge built in 1877 and attributed to Gustave Eiffel. It is situated between the Portugal, Portuguese Norte Region, Portugal, Northern municipalities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia. The double-hinged, crescent arch bridge is made of wrought iron and spans , over the Douro River. It is part of the Linha Norte system of the national railway. At the time of its construction, it was the longest single-arch span in the world. It is no longer used for rail transport, having been replaced by Ponte de São João (or St. John's Bridge) in 1991. It is often confused with the similar Dom Luís I Bridge, D. Luís Bridge, which was built nine years later and is located to the west, although the D. Luis Bridge has two decks instead of one. History In 1875, the Royal Portuguese Railway Company announced a competition for a bridge to carry the Lisbon to Porto railway across ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Douro River
The Douro (, , , ; ; ) is the largest river of the Iberian Peninsula by discharge. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in the Spanish province of Soria, meanders briefly south, then flows generally west through the northern part of the Meseta Central in Castile and León into northern Portugal. Its largest tributary (carrying more water than the Douro at their confluence) is the right-bank Esla. The Douro flows into the Atlantic Ocean at Porto, the second largest city of Portugal. The scenic Douro railway line runs close to the river. Adjacent areas produce port (a mildly fortified wine) and other agricultural produce. A small tributary of the river has the Côa Valley Paleolithic Art site which is considered important to the archaeological pre-historic patrimony, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Within Spain, it flows through the middle of the autonomous community of Castile and León, with the basin spanning through the northern half of the Meseta Central. The la ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
