It is located on Martim de Freitas sidewalk, in front of the Botanical Garden of the University of Coimbra, in the parish of Sé Nova, city and municipality of Coimbra, central Portugal
The São Sebastião Aqueduct dates back to a primitive Roman aqueduct that supplied water to the upper part of the town.
The Aqueduct was built around 1570 by D. Sebastião with the aim of taking water from the upper part of the city to the hill in front of it, and where at the beginning of the 17th century the Convent of Santa Ana would be built, the Aqueduct of São Sebastião extends over a kilometer reaching its highest point thirteen meters in height.
The current aqueduct is a work from the end of the 16th century under the reign of Sebastian of Portugal, the robust building is attributed to the Italian architect Filipe Terzi who took advantage of the existing layout of a Roman aqueduct at the disposal of the 16th century structure.
The original construction was altered in the 60s of the 20th century with the demolition of an arch and attached buildings in order to open a square and its access road.
Twenty arches resting on large pillars with stepped faces supporting the canal and covered by a barrel vault remained.
Taking advantage of the route and possibly the remains of the old aqueduct that connected the hills where the Monastery of Santana and the Castle of Coimbra were located, overcoming a depression in twenty-one arches.
The highlight of the ensemble is the stonework arch of honor flanked by two framed Latin inscriptions that refer to the construction of the aqueduct topped by a cornice, in which the coat of arms of Portugal is inserted, surmounted by a canopy resting on Doric columns, and crowned by a dome and lantern that houses two niches with images of Saint Sebastian and Saint Roch.
The Arch of Honor is made of stone masonry, and at its top stands out a set of two sculptures representing, on the north side, São Roque, and on the south side São Sebastião.
In 2000, restoration, cleaning and consolidation work was carried out on the structure of the aqueduct, and during these works, traces of polychromy were found, both on the canopy, particularly in the statues of the saints and the interior of the dome, in the letters of the side inscriptions, which gives us a completely different idea of the much more festive and spectacular primitive decorative program.
The Aqueduct was built around 1570 by D. Sebastião with the aim of taking water from the upper part of the city to the hill in front of it, and where at the beginning of the 17th century the Convent of Santa Ana would be built, the Aqueduct of São Sebastião extends over a kilometer reaching its highest point thirteen meters in height.
The current aqueduct is a work from the end of the 16th century under the reign of Sebastian of Portugal, the robust building is attributed to the Italian architect Filipe Terzi who took advantage of the existing layout of a Roman aqueduct at the disposal of the 16th century structure.
The original construction was altered in the 60s of the 20th century with the demolition of an arch and attached buildings in order to open a square and its access road.
Twenty arches resting on large pillars with stepped faces supporting the canal and covered by a barrel vault remained.
Taking advantage of the route and possibly the remains of the old aqueduct that connected the hills where the Monastery of Santana and the Castle of Coimbra were located, overcoming a depression in twenty-one arches.
The highlight of the ensemble is the stonework arch of honor flanked by two framed Latin inscriptions that refer to the construction of the aqueduct topped by a cornice, in which the coat of arms of Portugal is inserted, surmounted by a canopy resting on Doric columns, and crowned by a dome and lantern that houses two niches with images of Saint Sebastian and Saint Roch.
The Arch of Honor is made of stone masonry, and at its top stands out a set of two sculptures representing, on the north side, São Roque, and on the south side São Sebastião.
In 2000, restoration, cleaning and consolidation work was carried out on the structure of the aqueduct, and during these works, traces of polychromy were found, both on the canopy, particularly in the statues of the saints and the interior of the dome, in the letters of the side inscriptions, which gives us a completely different idea of the much more festive and spectacular primitive decorative program.
The Classification of the São Sebastião Aqueduct
The São Sebastião Aqueduct in Coimbra has been classified as a National Monument since 1910.
