Aqueduto de Água de Prata

I think I am really enjoying exploring the history city of Évora. It seems that there are a lot of secrets waiting to be discovered in this delightful city. I was actually trying to figure out where I should be going and I noticed a camera icon in Google Maps and it was just outside of town towards the north west. I decided to follow the map and I was surprised to see a full fledged aqueduct here. Aqueducts are obviously structures which were used back then to ferry water from far away places to large towns. This was all down through the use of gravity by letting water flow from a higher place to a lower place. The lower place is Évora.

The Aqueduto de Água de Prata is a mouthful of a name for an aqueduct. The aqueduct was completed in the 1530’s to serve the needs of the city of Évora. The presence of the aqueduct here in Évora serves to highlight the importance of the city to the kingdom. Évora is, after all, the second city in the kingdom. The portion of the aqueduct near the city is quite splendid. It crosses a major road and heads straight into the city. What I couldn’t see is the other 18 kilometers of the aqueduct which stretches the other direction.

I had no intention to hike eighteen kilometers, so I decided to head back to town by following the aqueduct. It actually goes a fair bit into the city to the point that it is incorporated into the buildings of the city. You can see some houses build under the arches of the aqueduct. There aren’t a lot of them since the aqueduct is getting lower as it goes further in the city. At the end point, you can even sit on it if you want to. I never knew what was in that location since it appeared to be residential area but it is fascinating to see the aqueduct built like it is part of the city.

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