The aqueduct

ITS ARCHITECTURE

Located in Buc, this interesting architectural work was built from 1684 to 1686.

The aqueduct consists of two series of superimposed arches:
– one 23 m high, buried under an embankment over which the D938 passes
– the other 21.5 m high, visible from the water line over a length of 580 meters. 19 keyed vaults support, at the top, a rectangular channel 1 m wide and 1.91 m high allowing the circulation of water. This canal is covered with stone slabs of 1.18 m wide.

This second section has been classified as a historical monument since September 22, 1952.

 

ITS HISTORY

Louis XIV demanded an increase in the number of basins and fountains to embellish the gardens of the château. This forced politicians and scientists to find new solutions to bring more and more water to Versailles and to improve its flow.

So Colbert asked Thomas Gobert to inspect the Saclay plateau to see if it was possible to collect water from the ponds and bring it to Versailles. Gobert was inspired by a telescope designed by Abbé Picard to level the land. The project is viable and is adopted. A memorandum was drawn up with plans, engineering structures, estimates and the choice of contractors.

The crossing of the Bièvre River proved to be the main difficulty in bringing water from the ponds of Saclay and Toussus-le-Noble (Etang Vieux, Etang d’Orsigny and Etang du Trou Salé) to the Gobert ponds in Versailles.

Gobert created a siphon and had two cast iron pipes installed, but the pressure was too high and the water escaped from the numerous junctions between the sections.

This siphon does not give satisfaction. So Gobert cleverly proposed to the king a more reliable solution that would leave to posterity a remarkable work: a stone aqueduct.

The realization of the aqueduct is carried out from 1684 to 1686 with the help of many craftsmen and companies with the assistance of the Swiss regiments of Stuppa and the battalion of Pfiffer.

The house, adjacent to the aqueduct, was completed in 1686. It was used as a home for the fountain attendant in charge of the regulation valves.

The water does not circulate since 1950.