Cobblestones of Camagüey. Smaller than the tinajones, the cobblestones that pave the main streets of Camagüey , constitute another distinctive touch of the city since its pavement is made of bricks and stones from the first half of the 19th century . The cobblestones (from the Arabic ad-dukkân, “squared stone”) are stones or blocks carved and rectangular in shape. Its dimensions are usually 20 cm . long by 15 cm. wide, which facilitates manipulation with one hand.
Summary
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- 1 Definition
- 2 The history of cobblestones
- 3 In Cuba
- 1 In Camagüey
- 2 Origin of the Camaguey cobblestones
- 3 The builders
- 4 Shapes of cobblestones
- 4 Sources
Definition
The word cobblestone comes from the Arabic and means “squared stone” and is a hard stone, granite, hand carved and processed in various ways. Worldwide, the cobblestone is known by different names; in French it is Pavé, in Italian Trasta; in English Paving Stone. But they all mean the same thing, a stone used to pave streets and roads.
Worldwide the cobblestone is known as:
- Pavé (French).
- Trasta (Italian).
- Paving Stone (English).
But they all mean the same thing: stone used to pave streets and roads.
The history of cobblestones
The history of the cobblestone has millennia since the ancient Carthaginian and Roman cities used it to strengthen their roads.
It has its origins more than 20 centuries ago in paving. Its appearance was due to the need felt by man to have durable, clean and safe roads that would allow him to move quickly at any time of the year. Thus, at the same time as the animal-drawn trolleys were perfected, a continuous rolling surface was also sought that allowed a more comfortable transit; To achieve this, the practice of placing the stones in a natural state was abandoned and they began to be carved in the form of blocks to obtain a better fit between the elements. This simple action gave rise to the first cobblestone pavement, since the Spanish word cobblestoneit comes from the Arabic “ad-dukkân”, which means “squared or square stone”. The construction of the stone pavements continued until the beginning of the 20th century and not a few are still in service and in good condition, which testifies to their durability.
In Cuba
The first cobblestones were laid in [[Havana]] in the 1900s . Towards the first half of the 19th century, in Camagüuey the dusty streets and squares of the central areas of Port-au-Prince were paved with brick and stones (paved, according to It was the first city in the country, after Havana, to pave its streets with 18 kilometers of cobblestones. Over the years, the works of the aqueduct, the sewerage and the laying of the tram line in the main urban arteries ended up deteriorating that original pavement, which in some places should not have differed from the one still observed in Trinidad .
In Camaguey
Camagüey was the first city in the country , after Havana in 1900 , to pave its streets. With 18 kilometers of cobblestones and they are still preserved in perfect condition. It has rectangular, square, octagonal and even triangular paving stones. Presumably, in those empires, the making of cobblestones was done by slaves, which must have been a difficult task. The first city in Spain to have cobblestones was Córdoba , around 850 AD during the reign of the Moors.
In the city of Camagüey, according to the press of the time, the first cobblestones were planted at 9 am on July 3 , 1921 , and they were placed first on the corner of Avellaneda and Van Horne streets, in front of the Plaza Hotel . The inauguration of that work, with which the sewerage of the streets began, was made by the mayor of the city Andrés Morán Cisneros and the President of the Supreme Court, Dr. Ángel Ciro Betancourt , who spoke on behalf of the President of the Republic, also spoke. . The Minister of Public Works and the President of the Senate were present, as well as journalists from the main newspapers in the country because that work had an impact on the “National”.
Towards the first half of the 19th century , the dusty streets and squares of the central areas of Port-au-Prince were paved with bricks or stones (paved, according to the times).
Over the years, the works of the aqueduct, the sewerage and the laying of the tram line in the main urban arteries ended up deteriorating that original pavement, which in some places should not have differed from the one still observed in Trinidad .
The cobbled streets of Camagüey have an eternal durability that amazes the perfection and symmetry of that work, was in charge of the Camaguey engineers Armando Pradas de la Torre and Benito Antonio Rodríguez , who used gangs of Cubans and Spaniards who for years had dedicated themselves to repairs of roads and highways and that they had experiences in this hard work, which in this case took them about five years.
The city’s cobblestones come from the Norwegian volcanoes , with an average value of 18 cents each, and which entered Cuba through the port of Nuevitas , from where they moved by rail to Camagüey.
Skillful hands arranged them. They adapted their geometry to the capricious urban layout of the city, weaving a warp of beautiful figures that even today tread on the feet of natives and visitors.
Origin of the Camaguey cobblestones
The paving stones of our city come from the Norwegian volcanoes , with an average value of 18 cents each, and which entered Cuba through the port of Nuevitas, from where they moved by rail to Camagüey .
The builders
The cobblestone streets in Camagüey have an eternal durability and, as they say, the perfection and symmetry of this work amazes, which was in charge of the Camaguey engineers Armando Pradas de la Torre and Benito Antonio Rodríguez, who used crews of Cubans and Spanish that Years had been spent on road and highway repairs and they had experiences in this hard work. It took them about five years to complete
