The Alcantarilla Dam is a Roman gravity dam built to supply water to the Roman city of Toletum –present-day Toledo, Spain–, in the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis. It was built in the 2nd century BC on a tributary of the River Tagus. Currently in ruins, it is located in present-day Mazarambroz (Toledo).[2] It is believed to be the oldest dam in Spain, and is possibly the oldest known Roman dam.
| Alcantarilla Dam | |
|---|---|
 Alcantarilla Dam in 2016 | |
  Location of Alcantarilla Dam in Spain | |
| Location | Mazarambroz (Toledo), Spain |
| Coordinates | 39°39′36″N 4°3′28″W / 39.66000°N 4.05778°W |
| Opening date | 1st century |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Impounds | Guajaraz (Tagus basin)[1] |
| Height | 20 m (66 ft) |
| Length | >800 m (2,600 ft) |
| Width (base) | 4 m (13 ft)? |
The toponym "Alcantarilla" means conduit and is of Arabic origin:[3] its Latin name is unknown.[1] It was 20 metres (66 ft) high and at least 550 metres (1,800 ft) long.[2] The water was conveyed to the city by an aqueduct which passed through Layos.
Structure
editThe structure appears to have been similar to the surviving Proserpina Dam near Merida, an earth dam with a stone retaining wall.[4] The upstream retaining wall consists of two parallel rubble-masonry walls about 1 metre (3.3 ft) thick, separated by a concrete-filled space approximately .6 metres (2.0 ft) wide. The upstream side of the wall was faced with cut stone blocks.[2]
Conservation
editThe structure has been in ruins for a long time. There has been speculation that it was not strong enough to cope with a large volume of water. It was possibly breached in the Roman era.[4] Another possibility is that the masonry collapsed upstream, perhaps by the pressure of the earth fill when the water was low, since, unlike later dams, it was not buttressed on the upstream side.[2]
The remains of Toledo's Roman water supply system are partly protected by a heritage designation (Bien de Interés Cultural).[5]
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ a b Spann, P. "Places: 268784 (Untitled)". Pleiades. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
- ^ a b c d Jansen, Robert B. (1983). Dams and Public Safety. U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation. p. 14. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
- ^ It is the diminutive of "alcántara" from the Arabic word al-QanTarah (القنطرة) meaning "the bridge".
- ^ a b Arenillas & Castillo 2003
- ^ "Restos del acueducto" [Remains of the aqueduct] (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 May 2018.
References
edit- Arenillas, Miguel; Castillo, Juan C. (2003), "Dams from the Roman Era in Spain. Analysis of Design Forms (with Appendix)", 1st International Congress on Construction History [20th–24th January], Madrid, retrieved 29 December 2018 – via TRAIANVS
Further reading
edit- Hodge, A. Trevor (1992), Roman Aqueducts & Water Supply, London: Duckworth, pp. 87–89, ISBN 0-7156-2194-7
- Schnitter, Niklaus (1978), "Römische Talsperren", Antike Welt, 8 (2): 25–32 (29), JSTOR 44431542
- Smith, Norman (1971), A History of Dams, London: Peter Davies, p. 48, ISBN 0-432-15090-0
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