Ancient site · Monument
Pont du Gard
The Pont du Gard is a three-tiered Roman aqueduct bridge over the river Gardon in southern France. Built in the 1st century CE, it carried water about 50 kilometres to the Roman city of Nemausus (Nîmes).
The whole channel drops only a tiny amount over its length, showing how precisely Roman engineers worked. It may have carried water until the 6th century, but it was poorly maintained after the 4th. It is one of the best-preserved Roman aqueduct bridges.
- Dates
- 1st century CE; used perhaps until the 6th century
- Still standing
- Yes
- UNESCO World Heritage
- Yes
- Location
- 43.95° N, 4.54° E
How we know
It is a Roman engineering work dated by archaeology and building style; Roman records of the aqueduct do not give an exact year.
Nearby sites
- Ötzi the Iceman (find site) died c. 3230 BCE
- Heuneburg 7th–5th century BCE (mudbrick wall c. 600 BCE)
- Su Nuraxi di Barumini tower 17th–13th century BCE; village to the 6th century BCE
- Pantheon, Rome c. 126 CE; a church since 609
- Colosseum 72–80 CE; games until the 6th century
- Carnac stones c. 4500–3300 BCE