Rising high above the Gardon River in the Gard, southern France, the Pont du Gard is one of the most extraordinary surviving buildings of the Roman world. Almost 2,000 years old, and almost perfectly preserved, this golden-hued structure is an engineering masterpiece and the sight of it takes your breath away. Discover the Pont du Gard – a bridge to the ancient world.
History of the Pont du Gard
I started my exploration of this magnificent monument at the fascinating Pont du Gard Museum, a short walk from the aqueduct. With the exception of a couple of artefacts, the exhibition is new, but don’t let that put you off, it’s an incredible display that features “sections of the bridge”, explains how it was built, the day and age and more. It’s interactive, innovative and unless someone tells you that what’s in the museum isn’t actually Roman, you probably wouldn’t know – the rooms are dimmed as if everything is real and the exhibits are built using the same stone the Romans used, from the same (hidden) quarry 600m away. And the biggest surprise for me was discovering that the Pont du Gard was not a unique achievement in the area, the Romans built many aqueducts here, several of which remain.
In the 1st century AD, the Roman city of Nemausus – modern-day Nîmes – was a thriving metropolis of about 30,000 inhabitants and vast quantities of fresh water were needed for drinking, bathing, fountains and public life. But that was a problem – there was no suitable local water source at the right elevation.
The solution was bold and ambitious. Roman engineers sourced water from the Fontaine d’Eure near Uzès and designed a vast aqueduct system to carry it all the way to Nîmes, which though only around 20km away as the crow flies, required the water to be carried over a distance of around 50km.
The Pont du Gard was the most dramatic part of that journey, built to carry the water channel across the deep Gardon valley – the highest Roman aqueduct in existence.
The water had to flow purely by gravity, and the engineers couldn’t design it in a straight line because of the many natural obstacles including hills and deep valleys. The route needed to curve and wind but be precise, so they created tunnels and several aqueducts. Astonishingly the incline over the entire route was only 12 metres and by the time it reached Nîmes, the system was delivering an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 cubic metres of water every day, the flow managed by a series of doors that were opened and shut as required. It was genius.
Rising to nearly 50 metres high, the bridge spans three tiers of arches – 52 in total. But what truly amazes engineers today is how it was built – a whopping 50,000 tons of limestone and blocks cut so precisely that no mortar was needed, and the stones are held together purely by weight, friction and perfect fitting. Everything was quarried locally and assembled with remarkable efficiency by a workforce estimated to be 800 to 1,000 strong.
And it was in use for almost 500 years.
Discover the Pont du Gard – a bridge to the past
Armed with this knowledge and more, I set off to see the real thing. Nothing prepares you for the sight of this astronomical bridge when you see it for real. It’s mind boggling and has had a reputation for being one of the wonders of France for centuries. King Louis XIV visited in 1660; King Louis XVI was so impressed by it he commissioned a drawing for the dining room at the Chateau of Fontainebleau. When Napoleon III visited in 1850, he commanded that it be restored and preserved for future generations to admire.
Standing before this majestic building, it’s not hard to see how their majesties felt humbled by its magnificence.
And, it’s not hard to imagine how tough it must have been to build the Aqueduct of Pont du Gard. Even in early September when I visited, the sun was blazing and a little café at the base of the bridge was doing a roaring trade selling bottles of water. I shut my eyes and imagined the men who worked here, cutting stone, transporting it to this treacherous site, shaping the rocks into enormous bricks (some weighing up to 6 tons), cutting, pushing, pulling them into place, climbing ever higher to build a three-story aqueduct, come rain or shine for five long years. I wonder if the builders were proud of what they created when the water started flowing along the canal – or did they just think “thank the Gods that’s over.” Their work was of the highest standard, if those workmen came back today, they would recognise their handiwork. Though they may see a change to the first level of the bridge.
Suitable for Roman chariots but not for horse-drawn cannons. The first level was widened in the 18th century. Astonishingly it became part of the D986 road, and cars, coaches and caravans were able to drive over it until as late as 1996!
Now this UNESCO world heritage building is car-free, and you can walk across it – as more than a million people do each year. It gives you goosebumps to be here, the same sort of wow factor as the Eiffel Tower, people just stop and stare as they approach, mesmerised by the sheer scale of Pont du Gard, but it has emotional pull too, you can’t help but think of the years that have passed, the people who have passed and the history that has taken place since it was built.
The Devil’s bridge?
People in the past seem to have been somewhat cynical about the abilities of builders and commonly claimed that they must have done a deal with the devil to get the job done – especially bridges! And that’s the case with the Pont du Gard. The Romans placed a stone with the outline of a rabbit believed to ward off the evil eye. But in the Middle Ages the legend spread that Lucifer offered to help the builder if he agreed that the first soul to cross the bridge would belong to the devil himself. The builder’s canny wife suggested that since the evil one had not specified the soul of a human, they should simply pop a rabbit on the bridge if you know where to look you may spot the stone!
Walk inside the Pont du Gard
Book a visit with a guide and climb the 80 steps to reach the top of the bridge and walk inside the 275m long water channel – a truly special experience. Once lined with lead to waterproof the walls (there are still traces of it) the canal is narrow in places and was covered to stop the water evaporating. It’s extraordinary how the Romans created something that required such precise measurements. Though it turns out that even Roman genius architects sometimes get it wrong, you can see the line on the canal wall where they had to add a new layer of stone to raise the level, it was too low! But that takes nothing away from the stunning achievement.
You can easily make a day of it here with several places to take a break: there are visitor centres on either side of the river; Les Terrasses restaurant (book in advance, it’s popular), a bistro and terraces on the right bank where you can enjoy a snack, ice cream etc. – all offering fabulous views of the aqueduct. Hire a kayak : (there are several companies in Collias and Remoulins a few minutes by car), and float under the bridge for another perspective. And there are year-round events from a summer sound and light show to concerts and festivals.
This really is a bridge to the past – and it is quite simply, breath-taking.
Find all the information about the Pont du Gard website, and the villages and places of interest to explore in the surrounding area, at: www.uzes-pontdugard.com/en
Janine Marsh is an author and Editor of The Good Life France magazine and website.
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