Colmenar de Oreja’s majestic Plaza Mayor stands over the imposing tunnel known as the Eye of the Fountain or the Zacatín Arch. This stunning structure, an extended gallery spanning more than 70 metres, was an engineering feat that took more than a century to complete, and is formed by the meeting point of three bridges.
The construction of this tremendous work, which took 118 years, is commemorated by a plaque above the lintel of the arch, which shows the date of its completion: ‘During the Reign of Charles IIII, in the year 1794’*.
In Colmenar de Oreja, people proudly say: ‘Colmenar has three things that Madrid doesn’t: the quarries, the bakeries and the Zacatín Bridge’.
(*) The inscription on the plaque reads Charles IIII, with four I symbols. This is not a mistake. At that time, it was the trend to write it this way instead of IV on decorative art.
