Aqueduct of Valens
Atatürk Boulevard north of the Saraçhane Park, Fatih
360s -370s
The construction of a water supply system for the city of Byzantium began under Emperor Hadrian (117-138). It was expanded by Constantine the Great (306-337) and completed by Emperor Valens (364-378). That system of aqueducts and canals reached up to Thrace, being the longest in the antique world.
The water was brought to Constantinople via two lines, possibly in underground pipes, from outside lakes. The lines joined outside the walls near Edirnekapı. From there, the water was channeled along the ridges of the Sixth, Fifth, and Fourth Hills, before carried across the valley between the Fourth and Third Hills by the Aqueduct of Valens. On the Third Hill, the water was received by a large cistern, the Nymphaeum Maximum, from which it was distributed to a large area, including the district of the Great Palace.
The Aqueduct of Valens features a double tier of arches (between arches 18-73). It was originally built of limestone blocks. The stones were taken from the walls of Chalcedon (today’s Kadıköy), which had been demolished after the locals rose up against Valens in 365, in support of usurper Procopius.
360s -370s
The construction of a water supply system for the city of Byzantium began under Emperor Hadrian (117-138). It was expanded by Constantine the Great (306-337) and completed by Emperor Valens (364-378). That system of aqueducts and canals reached up to Thrace, being the longest in the antique world.
The water was brought to Constantinople via two lines, possibly in underground pipes, from outside lakes. The lines joined outside the walls near Edirnekapı. From there, the water was channeled along the ridges of the Sixth, Fifth, and Fourth Hills, before carried across the valley between the Fourth and Third Hills by the Aqueduct of Valens. On the Third Hill, the water was received by a large cistern, the Nymphaeum Maximum, from which it was distributed to a large area, including the district of the Great Palace.
The Aqueduct of Valens features a double tier of arches (between arches 18-73). It was originally built of limestone blocks. The stones were taken from the walls of Chalcedon (today’s Kadıköy), which had been demolished after the locals rose up against Valens in 365, in support of usurper Procopius.
The aqueduct was restored by a number of emperors until Andronikos I Komnenos (1183-1185). Later restorations in the Byzantine era altered the structure, for example, by adding bricks. It was later repaired by Sultan Mehmed II, and its course was slightly bent near the Fatih Mosque, constructed in 1463-1470. Arches 52-56 were built by Suleiman the Magnificent (1520-1566), while arches 41-45 date from the period of Sultan Mustafa II (1695-1703). The aqueduct continued to be in use until the 19th century.
Today, 921 m of the original 971 m survive. The missing 50 m section near the Fatih Mosque was pulled down in 1912.
Valens Aqueduct is one of the aqueduct bridges of Valens Aqueduct System bringing water from Thrace to Constantinople.
An aqueduct is a structure for constant supply of water into a city and its people. They consist of underground water channels, water pipes, tunnels, and aqueduct bridges. Valens Aqueduct - approximately 920 meters long - is one of the aqueduct bridges of Valens Aqueduct System bringing water from Thrace to Constantinople (Byzantine Istanbul), approximately 240 kilometers far from Istanbul.
In 330 CE, Constantine I (Constantine the Great) declared Constantinople as the new capital of the Roman Empire. Subsequently, the city’s population increased dramatically and the main need of the inhabitants was water. Therefore, the construction of the Valens Aqueduct started in 345 CE during the reign of Constantius II (337 - 361 CE). However, the construction of the aqueduct finished and started to function in 373 CE, during the reign of Valens I (364 - 378). This is the reason that the aqueduct is called Valens Aqueduct.
With the help of the Valens Aqueduct, clean water was provided to the baths and cisterns of Constantinople including the famous Underground Cistern (also called Sunken Palace). The aqueduct system was so important that the besiegers of Constantinople throughout its history would cut or destroy the Aqueduct of Valens first
Amazing Facts about Valens Aqueduct
Standing inside the historical peninsula of Istanbul, Valens Aqueduct is one of the aqueduct bridges of Valens Aqueduct System bringing water to Constantinople from Thrace.
Valens Aqueduct is one of the largest structures of Istanbul; it is 920 meters long and 30 meters high.
It took 28 years to build the Valens Aqueduct System and latest research on the aqueduct has suggested that - with its branches - it was 336 km long, nearly three times longer than the known length of any Roman water supply.
Today, Atatürk Boulevard - built in the 1950s - passes under its arches.
Valens Aqueduct repaired and restored many times both in Byzantine and Ottoman periods, and it functioned almost 1400 years until the 18th century.
How to get to the Valens Aqueduct
The easiest way to get there is to take M2 Metro and get off at Vezneciler metro station. Valens Aqueduct is only five minutes walk to the west from Vezneciler metro station.
What else is nearby Valens Aqueduct?
Located in the center of historical peninsula of Istanbul, Valens Aqueduct is also close to important landmarks of Istanbul including Pantokrator Monastery (Zeyrek Mosque), Şehzade Mosque, Vefa Kilise Mosque, and Kalenderhane Mosque.
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