this post was submitted on 21 Mar 2026
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[–] hoch@lemmy.world 21 points 1 day ago

There is a chamber above the central arch that was used for a variety of purposes, including as a prison. During the 1936–1939 civil war, both sides allegedly used the prison as a torture chamber for captured opponents, killing some by throwing them from the windows to the rocks at the bottom of the El Tajo gorge.

Well that's fun.

Wiki

[–] Fizz@lemmy.nz 10 points 1 day ago (2 children)

How do structures like that survive so long? The maintenance burden must be insane

[–] dhork@lemmy.world 14 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Those ancient stone arch bridges are remarkably durable, and can survive with very little maintenance. Many large stone bridges and aqueducts were built with no mortar whatsoever, and everything held together strictly through gravity. That requires quite a bit of skill with the stone cutting, though, in order for the weight to be distributed properly. And it makes them extremely costly and time-consuming to build. Wikipedia says the bridge pictured here took 30+ years to build, and that's after the original bridge built here collapsed a few years after being built.

[–] JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social 1 points 23 hours ago

built with no mortar whatsoever

The white lattice-pattern in this case seems to suggest mortar?

[–] Gonzako@lemmy.world 5 points 1 day ago

I don't think there's much upkeep cost tbh. I'd have to check but there are structures from roman times that I can assure you they weren't maintained for around a thousand years

[–] PTM@europe.pub 10 points 1 day ago

Been there. There is a stairway from the building at the top to the bottom of the gorge, it was used by servants to fetch water.

[–] CameronDev@programming.dev 10 points 1 day ago (2 children)

A different angle of this was the w11 picture recently I think? Looks really cool.

[–] PTM@europe.pub 12 points 1 day ago (1 children)
[–] CameronDev@programming.dev 7 points 1 day ago

Deviantart is an interesting image host, was definitely a risky click :D

[–] problembasedperson@lemmy.dbzer0.com 8 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I hate that photo because Windows will try to geolocate your IP and put the closest thing in the Spotlight wallpaper feature. Thus, I'm constantly seeing that image in new Windows installs, with its stupid bloom. Goddamn it looks like the HL2: Lost Coast tech demo

[–] CameronDev@programming.dev 5 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Are you sure it geolocates your IP? I get a pretty wide variety of photos from around the world, it's definitely not anything near me?

I think I have location services disabled though.

Perhaps it's Spanish-language Windows installs? Don't know.

[–] Tuuktuuk@nord.pub 5 points 1 day ago

That has taken some resources to build. They have essentially filled the whole gorge with bricks.

[–] StillAlive@piefed.world 4 points 1 day ago