Paterna Tower

The Paterna Tower is a defensive tower located in Paterna (Valencia, Spain) and one of its most characteristic monuments. It is declared an asset of cultural interest along with the cave houses that later emerged in its surroundings.

History and description

The Paterna tower is a fortification designed to defend the population of the town and as part of the defense belt that surrounded the city of Valencia, along with other towers such as those of Museros, Moncada, Cuart, Torrente and Silla. Its construction dates back to the end of the xi century and the beginning of the xii. It is located on a hill near the old castle of Paterna, currently north of the Town Hall and surrounded by the Coves de la Torre, a group of cave houses that arose around it at from the 18th century. The Paterna tower was originally square and was transformed after the Christian conquest to acquire its characteristic truncated cone shape, probably during the xiv. Its height is 19.5 m, with a lower diameter of 12.70 m and an upper diameter of 9.60 m. It consists of three floors (the first two with a square base and the third octagonal) and a terrace (with a circular base) from where you have a panoramic view of the Huerta de Valencia.

The ground floor was probably a cistern that would collect water from the terrace. Its ceiling is formed by two lowered barrel vaults, which divide the floor into two parts. There is a central pilaster, from which two lowered arches start perpendicular to the vaults. The second floor (through which the building is currently accessed) has a square base, with about 5 meters on each side, and of a more complex architectural constitution.: The roof is made up of an octagonal vault that connects with its square plan thanks to some squinches resolved by half vaults with edges in its four corners. It is covered with bricks and at its height the wall of the tower, made of mortar, reaches 3 and 3.50 meters. On the west side is the access door to the next floor, including the staircase in the width of the wall. The third floor has an octagonal base and the elements of the lower floor are repeated. From it you access the ground through a staircase whose roof features three small groined vaults with bricks. The terrace is circular and is made up of eight cantilevered parapets, with embrasures, which leave space for eight battlements.

Restoration

In 1971 it was declared a historical-artistic monument and was restored, due to the deterioration suffered over time and looting. Likewise, a staircase was incorporated attached to the tower, which bridges a 5-meter gap to the door of the second floor, although in the Middle Ages there was no built-in staircase to access it. In the 1980s it was housed in the tower the Paterna Ceramics Museum, which is currently located in the old Paterna Town Hall.