Alcantarilla Dam
The Alcantarilla Dam is a ruined Roman gravity dam in Mazarambroz, Toledo province, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain, dating to the 2nd century BC. The toponym "Alcantarilla" means conduit and is of Arabic origin: the Latin name is unknown. The dam is believed to be the oldest dam in Spain, and is possibly the oldest known Roman dam. It was high and at least long. The dam and reservoir were part of the water supply system of the city of Toletum (Toledo). They were constructed on a tributary of the River Tagus. The water was conveyed to the city by an aqueduct which passed through Layos. Structure The structure appears to have been similar to the surviving Proserpina Dam near Merida, an earth dam with a stone retaining wall. The upstream retaining wall consists of two parallel rubble-masonry walls about thick, separated by a concrete-filled space approximately wide. The upstream side of the wall was faced with cut stone blocks. Conservation The structure has been in ruins for a long time. There has been speculation that it was not strong enough to cope with a large volume of water. It was possibly breached in the Roman era. Another possibility is that the