Pont du Gard: the highest Roman aqueduct in the world. Aqueduct of Pont du Gard - ancient Roman heritage Directions to Pont du Gard

Pont du Gard- this is the highest of all Roman aqueducts that have survived to this day, and one of them in France. The name of the bridge is given in honor of the river it crosses - Gard. Now, however, it has been renamed the Gardon River. The bridge is located in the vicinity of the city in the region, in the Gard department.

This bridge was part of a 50-meter aqueduct built to transport water from the Uzes springs to the city. Construction of the bridge is believed to have begun in the mid-1st century AD. under the reign of Claudius or Nero. About a thousand people worked on the construction of Pont du Gard over 5 years. This is the highest bridge built in antiquity.

It is a grandiose structure, 275 meters long and 47 meters high, built from stones without the use of lime. The bridge consists of three tiers: 6 arches in the lower tier, 11 arches in the middle and 35 arches in the upper tier. The closer to the shore, the narrower the arches become. This is the last of the three-tier bridges Ancient Rome, preserved to this day.

Aqueducts were built at an angle so that the water flowed into Right place under the influence of gravity. With literally the smallest slope averaging just 25 cm per kilometer, the Pont du Gard provided Nimes with 30,000 to 40,000 m3 of running water per day, supplying numerous baths, fountains, and water pipes in rich houses.

The aqueduct ceased to be used almost 500 years after its construction, shortly after the fall of the Roman Empire, although for many centuries it simply served as a bridge over the Gar River. In the mid-18th century, a modern bridge was built nearby and gradually closed to traffic. The first restoration of the bridge was carried out by order of Napoleon III.

In 1985 it was added to the list.

Visit Pont du Gard

Only the lower level is open to access. The top ones are closed for safety reasons.

Tickets to Pont du Gard:

You can visit not only the bridge, but the entire Pont du Gard Park:

The ticket includes all the attractions of the Pont du Gard complex: (Pont du Gard, Museum, Ciné, Ludo, the Mémoires de Garrigue path):

  • Adults: 9.50€/person
  • Reduced rate*: 7€/person
  • Free for under 18s
  • Guided tour: +6€/person

Evening rate in July and August:

  • Adults: 5€
  • Reduced rate*: 3€
  • Free for under 18s

Parking is included in the ticket price and is provided exclusively for visitors (that is, those who have purchased a ticket).
Prices valid until December 31, 2019.

Ticket to Pont du Gard includes:

  • acquaintance with the Pont du Gard and the elements of the aqueduct,
  • visiting museographic complexes: museum, cinema, game library, exposition, route to outdoors"Memory of Garigi"
  • free cultural and entertainment events,
  • access to 7 kilometers of marked and maintained hiking trails,
  • picnic areas,
  • guarded parking...

In the evening, after the venues close, a single tariff applies 10 € per car (up to 5 people). You can come and admire the illumination of the monument!

Working hours: every day throughout the year.

During the winter season, the left bank and its cultural sites are open.

Shops and cultural venues open at 9 am and close:

  • at 19.00 in June and September
  • at 20.00 in July and August
  • at 17.00 from November to February
  • at 18.00 from March to May and in October

The parking lot has souvenir shops, restrooms, a cafe, a restaurant and even a movie theater.

Directions to Pont du Gard

Located between Remulen (RN 100) And Vert-Pont-du-Gard (D 81), in the vicinity of several large cities of Provence:

  • — 26 km, 30 minutes by car
  • — 26 km, 34 minutes
  • — 38 km, 30 minutes by car
  • — 40 km, 42 minutes
  • — 51 km, 50 minutes
  • — 72 km, 1:20.
  • — 83 km, 1 hour travel time
  • — 135 km, 1:21.
  • — 136 km, 1:22
  • — 152 km, 1.5 hours.
  • — 152 km, 1.5 hours

By car

Motorway A9, exit 23 at Remoulins (gare de Remoulins - Pont-du-Gard), direction to Uzes, then follow the signs to the right or left bank.

There are guarded bridges near the bridge, open from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m.*, payment for which is included in the admission ticket cost 18 € per car.

* Since parking lots are closed to visitors between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m., a fixed price is charged for each car parked during this period of time. 43 €.

The Pont du Gard crosses the gorge of the Gardon River in the vicinity of the Roman city of Nemaus, which today the French call Nimes. The Romans built the Pont du Gard in the 1st century. AD to supply the city with water coming from the same natural source where the world famous Perrier brand now gets its water. The aqueduct bridge is just part of a 50-kilometer water supply system that delivered water from the source to the city of Nîmes without a single pump. Roman engineers used simple measurements and calculations to ensure that the water supply gradually descended from the source to the city and the water flowed through it on its own thanks to the force of gravity.

Pont du Gard is an example of the skill of ancient architects. The individual blocks, each weighing up to 6 tons, were laid into masonry without the visible use of mortar - in a method known as "opus quadratum". The Romans further strengthened the structure by slightly changing the standard order of laying the cladding. Instead of alternating half and whole blocks in each row, they alternated a row of whole blocks and a row of halves. This significantly increased the strength of the building as a whole due to some freedom of movement.

The supports of the lower and middle tiers stand exactly on top of each other, so as not to burden the arched spans with additional weight. The width of the spans gradually decreases in both directions from the middle of the aqueduct to the banks in order to correspondingly reduce the weight carried by each arch. The giant key stones weigh 6 tons each. They are hewn with special care and placed in their places.

The three tiers of the Pont du Gard rise to a height of 49 m and have 52 arches. The lowest tier consists of 6 arches, its total length is 142 m, height 22 m and width 6 m. The middle tier of 11 arches is 242 m long, 20 m high and only 4 m wide. The upper tier, through which the water supply ran, has a length 275 m, height 7 m and width 3 m. The water channel laid out in stone was supported by 35 relatively small arches. This channel, 1.2 m wide and 1.8 m deep, is still in good condition. The gradient of its descent is about 19 cm per 1 km. At one time, he delivered 20,000 cubic meters to the city per day. m of water.

After the 4th century The aqueduct practically stopped being cleaned, so by the 9th century. it finally became clogged with salts and debris and ceased to serve as a water supply. However, until the 18th century. it was used as pedestrian bridge. In 1747, a new bridge was built nearby for pedestrians.

These days, the Pont du Gard is one of the most visited tourist attractions in the south of France. And you can still cross the Gardon River on foot.

Chronology

  • 1st century AD: The Pont du Gard was built and served as an aqueduct.
  • Vb.: The water supply silted up due to lack of maintenance and stopped working.
  • 19th century: Napoleon III restored the Pont du Gard.
  • 1985: Pont du Gard is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Data

  • Functions: The Pont du Gard served as a water main and a pedestrian crossing. Local limestone was used for its masonry.
  • Dimensions: Height 49 m, length 275 m at its widest point.
  • Width of arch spans: The largest arch is 24.4 m wide.
  • Descent gradient: The 1.2 m wide channel decreases by 1 9 cm for every 1 km.

Pont du Gard- an ancient Roman aqueduct spanning the Gardon River near French city Nim. The dimensions of the aqueduct are simply amazing and make it the most large aqueduct Roman Empire. The length of the bridge is 275 meters, height 47 meters. We ended up in these parts completely by accident. French website railways(SNCF) for some reason decided that it would be most convenient for us to change from the Paris-Montpellier train to the Lyon-Barcelona train in Nimes.

We learned about the aqueduct when we began to wonder what we could do during a two-hour layover in Nîmes. As a result, we increased the transfer time to 6 hours, rented a car and drove to the aqueduct. We knew only one thing about the aqueduct - geographical coordinates.

We planned to approach the bridge along a small dirt road and walk the last 400 meters along a forest path. But it was not there. On site it turned out that an entire tourist complex with a huge parking lot, lecture hall, exhibition pavilions, etc. had been built on the left bank of the Gardon River. A visit to the aqueduct cost us 18 euros. The “ferry” tariff seemed to us the most successful - car + 4 people. How to get to the aqueduct without a car remains a mystery to us.

The construction of the aqueduct was carried out in the middle of the 1st century. n. e. It was built without the use of a fastening mortar (lime) and was an integral part of a 50-kilometer water pipeline that led to Nîmes from Uzès. The aqueduct is three-tiered: there are six arches in the lower tier, eleven on average, and thirty-five in the upper tier. As you approach the shore, the width of the arches decreases.

Water gutter. Aqueduct of Pont du Gard.

On the right bank, water from the viaduct immediately flowed into the tunnel. Reminded me of something.

G Ardes Bridge is a Roman aqueduct located on the territory of modern France, near the city of Nimes. Pont du Gard, as the French call it, is an outstanding structure measuring 275 meters long and 48.7 meters high. This is the highest ancient Roman aqueduct that has survived to this day.

The Romans built excellent houses and aqueducts. Through aqueducts, water reached its destination and supplied residents settlement with its life-giving moisture. The importance of aqueducts for ancient world difficult to overestimate. They were vital and amazing technical structures built according to certain rules. Often several aqueducts were involved in the water supply system.

Panorama of Pont du Gard

The clone of the aqueduct system had to be constant throughout its entire length so that the water would be guaranteed to reach, as they would now say, the consumer. And these were often tens of kilometers. And despite the complexity of the task, the Romans managed to build real masterpieces. The Gardsky Bridge is distinguished by the perfection of its proportions, achieved by using the “golden section” and rhythmic structure in its construction.

Perfection of form

This combination is typical of ancient buildings. Attempts to achieve harmony of the Gardsky Bridge were made in the 19th century. in Europe, but this was never achieved, since the rhythmic structure was replaced by modern builders with a metric one. The amazing proportions of the Gardsky Bridge became the subject of study by a special commission.

Gardsky Bridge - view from space on Google map. Clickable

Let's take a closer look at the Pont Du Gard.

The aqueduct itself is three-tiered: there are six arches in the lower tier, eleven on average, and thirty-five in the upper tier. As you approach the shore, the width of the arches decreases. The Gardsky Bridge was built without the use of lime, it is made of golden tuff and in our time makes a grandiose impression. This is one of the most majestic ancient buildings.

P on du Gard was built in the middle of the 1st century. AD and was part of a 50-kilometer water pipeline that led from Uzès to Nîmes in the south of France, at that time a province of Gaul.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the aqueduct ceased to fulfill its main function, but for many centuries it was used as a transport bridge across the Gar River.

The length of the Garda Bridge is 275 m. For example, the length of the longest ancient Roman aqueduct in Western Europe is 728 m, which is located in spanish city Segovia.

It should be added that today it attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world. Situated in a most picturesque place, it is amazing creation ancient architects. Pont Du Gard is depicted on the 5 euro banknote. Gardsky Bridge is ranked among world heritage UNESCO in 1985.

Garda Bridge on the 5 euro note

17 reviews so far...

admin writes:

That's right, Volodya. They built it just like they built it without fancy equipment. It is unlikely that modern buildings can compete with ancient ones. Look at our roads, you can still drive and walk on Roman roads today, but ours are all full of potholes and are repaired twice a year.

admin writes:

Kirill writes:

Very interesting review and the photographs are professional and beautiful. I would like to remember everything, use it and apply it in the right situation. I think your article will be useful to many people who are asking this question. I wish you great victories and great luck. I will be very grateful to you for your mutual visit.

admin Replied:
May 10th, 2012 at 01:14 pm

Reading time: 4 minutes. Views 3k. Published August 25, 2014

Pont du Gard is the highest of all Roman aqueducts that have survived to this day. The name of the bridge is given in honor of the river it crosses - Gard. Now, however, it has been renamed the Gardon River. The bridge is located near the city of Nimes in the Languedoc-Roussillon region, in the Gard department.

This bridge was part of a 50-meter aqueduct built to transport water from the Uzes springs to the city of Nîmes. Construction of the bridge is believed to have begun in the mid-1st century AD. under the reign of Claudius or Nero. About a thousand people worked on the construction of Pont du Gard over 5 years. This is the highest bridge built in antiquity.

Photo 2.

It is a grandiose structure, 275 meters long and 47 meters high, built from stones without the use of lime. The bridge consists of three tiers: 6 arches in the lower tier, 11 arches in the middle and 35 arches in the upper tier. The closer to the shore, the narrower the arches become. This is the last of the three-tier bridges of Ancient Rome that have survived to this day.

Photo 3.

Aqueducts were built at an angle so that water flowed to the desired location under the influence of gravity. With literally the smallest slope averaging just 25 cm per kilometer, the Pont du Gard provided Nimes with 30,000 to 40,000 m3 of running water per day, supplying numerous baths, fountains, and water pipes in rich houses.

Photo 4.

The aqueduct ceased to be used almost 500 years after its construction, shortly after the fall of the Roman Empire, although the Pont du Gard served simply as a bridge over the Gard River for many centuries. In the mid-18th century, a modern bridge was built nearby and the Pont du Gard was gradually closed to traffic.

In 1985, Pont du Gard was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Photo 5.

From 1696 to 1702, large-scale work was carried out to restore the bridge. And in 1747, a modern bridge was built near the aqueduct, thanks to which the Pont du Gard gets rid of the constant load. It is being repaired and brought into proper shape. Now it is a popular tourist destination.

Photo 6.

its height is 49 meters. Rare for that time, the building consists of 3 floors of arches: in the first row - 6 arches, in the second - 11, in the third - 35. The total weight of the structure is 50 thousand tons.

Photo 7.

At one time, the Pont du Gard aqueduct made a deep impression on the philosopher and thinker Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the writer Stendhal, and the artist Hubert Robert, whose painting “Pont du Gard” is now kept in the Louvre.

Photo 8.

The Pont du Gard is made of six-ton ​​stones, without the use of lime. It is believed that the Pont du Gard was built by order of the great commander Marcus Agrippa, a friend of Emperor Octavian Augustus, in 19 BC. However, according to modern research, the construction of the bridge was completed only in the middle of the 1st century AD. The Pont du Gard was part of a 50-kilometer water pipeline that connected two ancient Roman cities in the south of France - Nîmes and Uzès.

The Pont du Gard is a three-tier aqueduct, with each tier having a different number of arches: thirty-five arches in the upper tier, in which the water supply ran. There are eleven arches in the middle tier, and only six in the lower tier, and only one of these six arches is the load-bearing part of the bridge. The width of the arches decreases as you approach the shore.

Photo 9.

According to modern calculations, thanks to this aqueduct, the inhabitants of Nîmes, who numbered about 50 thousand people, could consume 400 liters of water each day.

The Pont du Gard served as an aqueduct until the fall of the Western Roman Empire, then it was sometimes used as a bridge. But already in the 8th century ancient aqueduct was practically incapacitated: winds and time destroyed many of its sections, and local residents they broke out stone for construction. In addition, in order for larger vehicles to pass over the bridge, it was necessary to hollow out part of the aqueduct's supports, which could cause the collapse of the entire structure. However, the Pont du Gard stood for over a thousand years, and traffic on the Pont du Gard only finally ceased in 1747, when a modern bridge was built nearby. And in 1855, the ancient aqueduct was restored by order of Napoleon III