Tarragona Roman Ferreres aquaduct | Pont del Diable
Roman aquaduct crossing Barranc del Diable river valley on the outskirts of Tarragona. Visitor tips for walking along the top of the viaduct and getting to information
About Tarragona Roman Ferreres aquaduct | Pont del Diable
The Tarragona Roman aquaduct, known as acueducto de Ferreres or Pont del Diable is a 249 metres long aqueduct that crosses the Barranc del Diable river valley with a maximum height of 27 metres. The Tarraco aqueduct can be found three kilometres outside of the centre of Tarragona in Parque Ecohistórico del Puente del Diablo.
The Pont del Diable (Devil's Bridge), is only a fragment of a much longer conduit used to supply Tarraco with water from the Francolí River. The water was taken from the Rourell area, 92 metres above sea level, and carried water more than ten kilometres through a network of conduits and aqueducts of varying sizes.
The portion of this conduit called Les Ferreres aqueduct is comprised of 25 arches sitting on a lower tier of 11 arches, each with a span of 5.90 metres. The structure was built in the 1st century A.D. from large square-cut stones stacked without mortar to form the two tiers of arches.
Les Ferreres aqueduct is one of two aquaducts that supplied Tarraco with water. The other route took water from the Gaià river with a substantial roman ruin of Aqüeducte de la font del Llorito which is not really visitable and in a state of disrepair.
Once water from these two feeds reached Tarraco. it was deposited in distribution tanks located in the Roman city. The floor of the water channel had to be waterproofed with a characteristic mortar (opus signinum) that prevented loss of water. The water conduit was originally covered.
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