The 11th-century Puente Mantible crossing the Ebro river

The Bridge of Mantible is what remains of a massive stone crossing over the Ebro river. It was built to link El Cortijo and Laserna between La Rioja and the Basque Country. The structure was 164 meters long and featured seven semicircular arches. Only two of those arches remain relatively intact today, though they still showcase the high quality of the quarry stone used by the original builders.

For a long time, some historians classified this bridge as a Roman project from the 2nd century AD. However, comparison of the structural characteristics with the Puente la Reina suggests it is a medieval bridge. It was likely built in the 11th century, around the same time as the Puente la Reina, to connect the cities of Nájera and Pamplona in the medieval kingdom of Navarre.

The records are not clear at what point the bridge became no longer passable, but documents suggest that it had already fully deteriorated by halfway through the 16th century. The ruins of the right pier and an arch collapsed in January 2021.

You can visit the remains today to see the weathered stone for yourself. It was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural in 1983, so the ruins are protected.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons