Illustrations of the Croton AqueductTower, F. B. (Fayette Bartholomew)
History
Illustrations of the Croton Aqueduct
Tower, F. B. (Fayette Bartholomew)
Croton Aqueduct (N.Y.)
Three Aqueducts exist in the valley of Bourgas, 8 miles from
Constantinople, for conducting water into the city. One of them
is remarkable for the beautiful architectural arrangement and the
solidity of its construction. It is 115 feet high, and was built under
the Emperor Justinian, A. D. 527. It has two ranges of arches, one
above the other, and the Aqueduct supported upon the second. These
Aqueducts are in some parts unlike those of Rome, which were formed on
a continuous line for many miles, with a regular inclination from the
source to the city, but are interrupted by reversed syphons. Instead of
crossing deep and wide valleys in the usual manner of stone structures,
the Aqueduct terminates on one bank in a reservoir or cistern, and a
pipe is laid from it down the sloping side of the hill to a stone pier
erected at a suitable distance; the pipe rises up the pier to the top
where the water is discharged into a small cistern nearly as high as
that in the reservoir. From the cistern, another conduit pipe descends
to the bottom of the pier, passes along the ground to a second pier at
a proper distance and rises to another cistern on the top of it, and
so on till it rises on the crest of the opposite bank, where the water
resumes its regular motion along the Aqueduct.
This plan was probably adopted with a view to avoid the expense of
constructing a bridge which should preserve the general inclination of
the channel-way; but it is difficult to imagine any advantage arising
from the construction of the piers, instead of laying the pipe along
the bottom of the valley.
_Modern Rome._
Rome is now supplied with water by three Aqueducts, being three of the
ancient works restored in modern times.
First, _Aqua Virgini_, called by Frontinus, Aqua Virgo, or _Virgin
Aqueduct_.
The trunk of the Aqueduct having been injured, the reparation was began
under the Pontificate of Nicholas V. and Sextus IV., and completed
under that of Pius IV. in 1568. This water supplies the beautiful
fountain Trevi, thus named from the three discharges issuing from it,
or from its being placed at the junction of three streets. The water
this Aqueduct furnishes is 2,322,762 cubic feet (14,168,848 gallons)
daily, discharging through 7 principal conduits, at 13 public and 37
other fountains.
Second, _Aqua Felice_. This is a part of the ancient water of the
Claudian and Marcian Aqueducts united with many others, and collected
under Sextus V. The daily quantity it furnishes is 727,161 cubic feet,
(4,435,682 gallons,) and supplies 16 public and 11 other fountains. The
Moses fountain discharges from this source.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account