title: Acueducto de los Milagros
text: The Acueducto de los Milagros () is a Roman aqueduct in Mérida (Badajoz), Spain. It was built during the first century AD to supply water from the Proserpina Dam to the ancient Roman colony of Emerita Augusta. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the aqueduct fell into decay and today it is in ruins with only a relatively small section of the aqueduct bridge standing. The Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida, including the aqueduct, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993.
  
  Description
  Only a relatively small stretch of the aqueduct still stands, consisting of 38 arched pillars standing  high along a course of some . It is constructed from opus mixtum – granite ashlar blocks interspersed with red brick – utilising a double arcade arrangement. The structure originally brought water to the city from a reservoir called the Proserpina Dam, fed by a stream called Las Pardillas, around  to the north-west of Mérida.
  
  It is thought to have been constructed during the 1st century AD, with a second phase of building (or renovations) around 300 AD. In later centuries, the inhabitants of Mérida dubbed it the "Aqueduct of the Miracles" for the awe that it evoked.
  
  The aqueduct was one of three built at Mérida, the other two being the  long Aqua Augusta, fed by the Cornalvo reservoir, and San Lázaro, fed by underground channels. The aqueduct is preserved as part of the Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
  
  In the immediate vicinity, a small Roman bridge called Puente de Albarregas runs parallel to the arcades.
  
  See also 
  List of aqueducts in the Roman Empire
  List of Roman aqueducts by date
  Ancient Roman technology
  Roman engineering
  
  References
  
  External links 
  
  Aqueducts in Spain
  Roman aqueducts outside Rome
  Acueducto de los Milagros
  Acueducto de los Milagros
  Acueducto de los Milagros
  Acueducto de los Milagros
  Bridges in Mérida, Spain