Cádiz (Spain)

Gades, one of the oldest cities in Europe was served in roman times by an aqueduct of more than 60 km in length, possibly 70. Its sources lie in the area of Tempul, NE of Cadiz and possibly in the recently discovered basins and springs of Sierra Aznar, south of Arcos de la Frontera. In the field, no remains of the aqueduct are known to us but close to Cadiz, scant remains of the aqueduct are visible. Along the highway IV between Puerto Real and San Fernando at the south side of the main road, alongside a small parking bay with tile-map there is a section of perforated limestone blocks which obviously formed part of a pressurised section of an aqueduct. Each stone is square with rounded upper edges, and perforated, showing an extension of the perforated part on one side, and a hollow part where it fits in opposite block. Such blocks were also used in other parts of the empire, for example in Asia Minor for the aqueduct of Patara. From the remains it is not clear how they were made waterproof, since the rock used is a very porous calcareous sandstone. Possibly, concrete was used for this.

The map shows the approximate course of the aqueduct. Since the terrain is flat between San Fernando on the mainland coast and Cadiz, the pressurised section may have been more than 10 km in length, one of the longest such sections in the Roman Empire. It may be, of course, that only some stretches were pressurised, separated by normal open sections. The perforated blocks are obviously less desirable as building material and therefore remain, while the more desirable other works may have been dismantled and used for building stone; the flat marshy area around Cadiz is poor in building stone and it would have been tempting to use the aqueduct.
Another section of reconstructed aqueduct is visible on a town square south of the main road and north of Playa Victoria, the Plaza Hasdrubal. The section is easy to find, on a pedestal along the north side of the square.

The aqueduct of Cadiz is said to have ended at an altitude of 20m near the old amphitheatre, on one the highest elevations of the city at the main islands.

ANY FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE AQUEDUCT OF CADIZ IS MUCH APPRECIATED
QUALQUIER INFORMATION ADICIONAL SOBRE EL ACUEDUCTO DE CADIZ SERIA APRECIADO

Cádiz - Gades / COL. AUGUSTA GADITANA

Map of the aqueduct	Local map	Rebuilt section	Rebuilt section
Rebuilt section	Blocks	Blocks	Blocks
Blocks