Water supply to Tharros was from three main sources. The cistern system that collected rainwater; the wells that drew up groundwater, a small aqueduct that captured water from a well near to the church of San Giovanni in San Giovanni di Sinis, about one kilometre north of the town.

There are still a few ruins left of the aqueduct on the northwest slopes of Su Muru Mannu (fig. 1).

Fig. 1 - Location of the aqueduct ruins (A) in relation to the Su Muru Mannu hill (B) (from Google Earth. Review C. Tronchetti)

Reconstruction of the aqueduct route based on the remains sees a first stretch starting from the capture well in a north-south direction, and then turning directly towards the city centre in a SSE direction (figs. 2-3)

At the start, the aqueduct ran on high arches, to overcome the slopes of the hills, but only the bases of the pillars remain, at a distance of about 2.5/3 metres from each other. At the top of the hill, the pipe carrying the water was supported along a continuous wall.

Fig. 2 - The aqueduct; in the background the Su Muru Mannu hill

(photo by Unicity S.p.A.)

Fig. 3 - Stretches of the aqueduct (photo by Unicity S.p.A.)

The structure had a façade with alternate rows of bricks and sandstone blocks (fig. 4) and the water pipe was covered in hydraulic lime and crushed bricks.

Fig. 4 - The building structure of the aqueduct (photo by Unicity S.p.A.)

Traces of the aqueduct are lost inside the city, that must have run along arches or been supported by existing buildings. One of its end points must have been the castellum acquae, on the southern slopes of the Su Muru Mannu, that supplied water to the inhabitants via a public fountain.