A Ponte Maceira
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A Ponte Maceira | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 Pontemaceira | |
  A Ponte Maceira Location in Spain | |
| Coordinates: 42°54′20″N 8°41′47″W / 42.90556°N 8.69639°W | |
| Country |  Spain |
| Autonomous community |  Galicia |
| Province | A Coruña |
| Comarca | A Barcala |
| Municipality | Negreira |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 73 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Official language(s) | Galician and Spanish |
A Ponte Maceira (Spanish: Pontemaceira[1]) is a village located in the parish of Portor, in the eastern part of the municipality of Negreira. The village is crossed by the Tambre River. It has a population of 73 inhabitants, 41 men and 32 women.[2]
It has been listed as one of "The Most Beautiful Villages in Spain" since 2019 and has been a member of the namesake association since then.
In Pontemaceira, located between the municipalities of Ames and Negreira, there is a monumental complex that includes a primitive settlement, an old mill, a dam, a chapel, a modern manor house, and a bridge built over the Tambre in the 13th century. This bridge utilized the pillars of an earlier Roman bridge and features five arches and two smaller ones.
History
The Ponte Maceira bridge was very important on the Maritime Way of St. James, as it connected the city of the Apostle James with Finisterre. There are many legends related to the Way, such as one in which the disciples of the Apostle James fled south to find a place to bury the decapitated body of their master while being pursued by Roman legionaries. The Christians managed to cross the bridge, and when the Romans tried to follow them, the bridge collapsed by "divine" intervention, allowing the Christians to escape.
Here, in the early 12th century, a battle took place between the men of the first Archbishop of Compostela, Diego Gelmírez, and the troops of Pedro Fróilaz de Traba and his sons Fernando Pérez de Traba and Bermudo Pérez de Traba, with whom conflicts on the Tambre River border of the Land of Santiago were common.
