Roman Aqueducts Due to the growth of population in Roman cities, Rome needed an alternate water source. Not only was the water supply no longer reliable for the growing Roman population, it was also possible that enemies of Rome could poison the supply. To solve this problem, they built aqueducts. Aqueducts brought water from a source to a city. All around Rome one found vibrant springs and rivers. In 312 BC the Adile Appius Claudius undertook …showed first 75 words of 321 total…

…showed last 75 words of 321 total…the water channel. The specus was about the size of our present day doorway. The specus always had stone walls, stone floors, and a stone roof regardless if it ran underground or was built upon tiers. The specus was always covered. The purpose of the covering was originally to protect the channel from the sun. However, with the possibility of enemy intrusion through poisoning the water, the covering later became an important means of defense.