Bridge · Wales · Still standing

Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

Dyfrbont Pontcysyllte

The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is a cast-iron trough aqueduct carrying the Llangollen Canal across the River Dee valley in northeast Wales. Designed by Thomas Telford and completed in 1805, the structure runs 336 yards with nineteen 13.6 m spans supported on hollow masonry piers and cast-iron arched ribs, with a towpath cantilevered along one side. It remains a navigable canal crossing and is a Grade I listed building and UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Recreate Bridge to Explore →

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons

Its prime

1805

Today

Still standing

As it stood in 1805

What Pontcysyllte Aqueduct looked like in its prime.

A long, narrow cast-iron canal trough 3.7 m wide runs level along the top of a continuous line of buff sandstone piers rising about 39 m above the valley. The trough is made from bolted, voussoir-shaped cast-iron plates with visible flanged joints and ribbed iron arches beneath. A narrow towpath is cantilevered at water level on cast-iron pillars with metal railings along the outer edge. The structure stretches as a straight ribbon across tree-filled valley scenery.

Step inside

6 places to explore in 1805.

The record describes 6 distinct spots at Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, the full exterior approach. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more photos, more angles and more of the immersive experience.

Approach from the north (Trevor Basin)On the towpath beside a passing narrowboatAlong the canal trough, longitudinal viewBow of a narrowboat on the troughBeneath a span, looking up at arches and piersSouthern approach toward Cysyllte

Build Your Own Castle