Aqueduct of Acre (Akko)
The Aqueduct brought running water to the old city of Acre, along a raised aqueduct. The source of the water was the springs of Cabri, 12KM away.
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Background:
The old city of Acre (Akko) required a steady flow of running water. In the earlier stage of the city, the adjacent Naaman (Belus) river supplied this flow, and was the symbol of the city as minted on the Greek coins.
However, when the population grew and the city moved to its present location, a design of an aqueduct was required. This water line was built on an aqueduct, bringing in the water in a straight line from the springs of Cabri, about 12KM away from the city.
The aqueduct supplied the water in several lines in the city, and one of them reached to vast underground cisterns the El-Jazar Mosque in the center of the old city.
History of the place:
An early aqueduct was built in the Hellenistic period. From this aqueduct, which was mostly underground, several sections were discovered, including a Kilometer long section near Ness Harim, and two more sections in Kibbutz Lochamei Hagetaot.
A new aqueduct was built in the end of the 18th C AD by Jezzer Pasha, the Ottoman builder of Acre. It was rebuilt by his son, Suleiman, in 1814AD. The aqueduct was in operation until 1948AD.
Location:
The aqueduct can be seen in several sections between Cabri and Acre. The famous section is near Kibbutz Lochamei- Hagetaot. In the North entrance to Acre stands one of the three towers that were part of the water system, which was used to regulate the water flow.
The springs of Cabri, the source of the water, can be reached from Nahariya (4KM east). The main source of aqueducts came from the springs in the ruins of the Arab village of El-Cabri, south of the modern Kibbutz of Cabri. This village was built over older layers (Roman, Byzantine, Mameluke).
Photos:
(a) Kibbutz Lochamei Hagetaot:
This photo shows the aqueduct in Kibbutz Lochamei-Hagetaot, about 6KM from the end of the water line in Acre.
Click on the photo to view it in higher resolution...
The next photo shows the aqueduct at the same location, with a double level structure.
A lower section that passes through the Kibbutz:
(b) Cabri:
Closer to the source of the springs, near Kibbutz Cabri, is a section from the aqueduct of Suleiman Pasha, built in 1814AD. The following photo shows a section which is 100M north to the monument of the convoy (1948), near the El-Cabri Arabic cemetery. This section is 500M away from the Cabri springs.
Map / Aerial View:
The plan of the aqueduct is shown in the following photo:
Links:
- You can also check the Caesarea Aqueduct which is a similar water project
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