Roman walls of Lugo
Muralla Romana de Lugo | |
Location | Lugo, Spain |
---|---|
Coordinates | 43°00′40″N 7°33′12″W / 43.0111°N 7.5533°W |
Type | Roman defensive walls |
Europe and North America | |
Area | 1.68 ha (4.2 acres) |
Buffer zone | 59.88 ha (148.0 acres) |
Type | Non-movable |
Criteria | Monument |
Designated | 16 April 1921 |
Reference no. | RI-51-0000191 |
The Roman walls of Lugo (Spanish, Galician: Muralla Romana de Lugo) are the ancient Roman defensive walls stretching 2,120 metres (6,960 ft) around the Old Town of Lugo, Spain. They were built in the third century AD to defend the ancient Roman town of Lucus Augusti. The fortifications, still largely intact, were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 and are a popular tourist attraction.
Description
Walls
The
The width of the walls is around 4.2 metres (14 ft) and their height varies between 8 metres (26 ft) and 12 metres (39 ft). The walls consist of internal and external stone facing with a core of earth mixed with gravel, pebbles and worked Roman stone recycled from demolished buildings, cemented with water.[1][2]
Gates
There are ten gates in the walls: five dating to Roman times; and five added after 1853 to accommodate the expanding town population. The best preserved original gates are the Porta Falsa and the Porta Miña, the latter still has its original vaulted arch set between two towers. Five stairways and a ramp provide access to the parapet walk over the walls. Within the walls, a number of double staircases provide access to the towers from the parapet walk.[1][2]
Towers
Of the original towers, 49 are still intact, and another 39 have partially survived. The towers were built at irregular intervals along the walls. They consist of two storeys and are mostly semicircular; a few are rectangular. The spaces between the towers varies from 5.4 metres (18 ft) to 12.8 metres (42 ft). A mix of materials was used for the construction of the towers. Often the base of the tower was constructed of dressed granite, with the remainder in slate.[1]
History
Pilgrim route
During the
Present day
The fortifications were added to
A walkway over the walls now allows visitors to stroll along the entire length. The town also has a visitor's centre dedicated to the walls, the Centro de Interpretación da Muralla. Since the inscription of the walls on the World Heritage List in 2000, Lugo holds a popular festival called Arde Lucus each year to celebrate its Roman past.[5][6]
Gallery
-
Map of the walls showing the location of the 10 gates
-
The San Pedro gate, one of the five original Roman gates
-
Walkway over the walls
-
Engraving of 1850 depicting the original windows, published in the Semanario Pintoresco Español
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e "Roman walls of Lugo", UNESCO World Heritage Centre
- ^ a b c d "Lugo City Walls in Lugo, Spain", Spain.info
- ^ "Muralla Romana de Lugo", Comunidad Autónoma de Galicia (Spanish)
- ^ "China y Lugo hermanan sus murallas", La Voz de Galicia, 7 February 2007 (Spanish)
- ^ "Galiciaé - el Arde Lucus deja unos ingresos de 10 millones". Archived from the original on 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2010-07-19.
- ^ Acaba un Arde Lucus no que máis de 460.000 persoas botáronse á rúa en tres días Archived July 1, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, nova en El Progreso o 27 de xuño de 2010.