Eifel Aqueduct - Above-ground Sections

Above-ground Sections

For various reasons, the Eifel aqueduct has very few above-ground sections, unlike other Roman aqueducts, such as the Pont du Gard in southern France:

• The course of the aqueduct was chosen so as to avoid the need for such constructions.
• By construction underground, the aqueduct was protected from freezing.
• The water arriving in Cologne had a pleasant temperature due to the insulating properties of the ground.
• In case of war, the aqueduct would be less easily damaged.

Nonetheless, there are a few places where bridges or other constructions were necessary. The most notable was an arched bridge over the Swistbach near Rheinbach that was 1,400 metres (0.87 mi) long and up to 10 metres (33 ft) high. Archaeologists calculate that the original bridge had 295 arches, each 3.56 metres (11.7 ft) wide, but the bridge has been reduced to rubble with the passage of the years.

A smaller arched bridge crossed a valley near Mechernich. This was some 10 metres (33 ft) tall and 70 metres (230 ft) long. The archaeological remains were in good enough condition here that a partial reconstruction was built to show how the original must have looked.