Aqua Augusta: upper stretch of the Cornalvo aqueduct

Water was taken at the Cornalvo dam and its springs and carried in a channel (specus) about 70 cm wide, lined with opus signinum and largely underground. LiDAR survey in recent years has documented a course of at least 70 km, with estimates reaching 90 km, which makes it one of the longest aqueducts in Roman Hispania. Its construction has traditionally been placed in the 1st century BC or the early 1st century AD; the most recent evidence points to the reign of Tiberius.

Once at the city, the conduit crossed the Albarregas valley on arcades, and what survives in town is spread over three points: the Valverde de Mérida road (EX-307, km 2), the area around the Giner de los Ríos school, and calle Vía del Ensanche, opposite the Columbarios. In 1504 part of its material was reused to build a new aqueduct, which hastened its ruin.

The course is largely owed to the survey by Cees W. Passchier for the ROMAQ project (aqueduct no. 557). Being buried, there is next to nothing to see on the surface. Location approximate, on the line of the conduit.