Saint Vincent's Gate

King Charles III commissioned Sabatini to build the Puerta de San Vicente in 1775, around the same time as the Puerta de Alcalá. However, the original work has not survived to the present day, as it was dismantled in 1892 to make more space for traffic, and some of the ashlars that made up the monument were used to build monumental lampposts in the Cibeles roundabout. The idea came from the municipal architect, López Salaberry, who also requested authorization to appraise and auction the pillars that could not be reused. On several occasions, the desire to rebuild the Puerta de San Vicente was expressed. The attempt by the Queen Regent, Maria Cristina, stands out; she expressed her wish that the gate once again grace a prominent location in Madrid. Later, in 1962, the Madrid City Council carried out an initial cost estimate, but it wasn't until 1992 that its reproduction was approved. The foundation stone of the new San Vicente Gate, an exact replica of Sabatini's original, was laid in 1994 in the Moncloa-Aravaca district. Composed of an arch and two posterns, the arch is adorned with two Doric columns on the exterior and two pilasters on the interior. For the replica, made of concrete clad in gray granite and limestone, the moldings from the upper cornices that were still preserved from the original were reused. Among the reproduced elements, the ornaments, the work of José Luis Parés Parra, stand out.