2,000 year old water supply system uncovered in Jerusalem

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Part of an ancient aqueduct built more than 2,000 years ago to transport water into the city of Jerusalem was uncovered during a recent construction project, according to the Israel Antiquities Authority.

A section of the so-called Lower Aqueduct was discovered in the modern-day neighborhood of Umm Tuba, in East Jerusalem, during efforts to construct a new sewer line. The Lower Aqueduct was originally built more than 2,000 years ago by kings in the Hasmonean dynasty, who ruled Judea and its surrounding regions from about 140 B.C. to 37 B.C., and preceded King Herod the Great.

The sprawling, 13-mile-long (21 kilometers) aqueduct carried water to the capital, and "operated intermittently until about 100 years ago," Ya'akov Billig, director of the aqueduct excavation with the Israel Antiquities Authority.

The Lower Aqueduct fed from the En Eitam spring, which is located near three ancient reservoirs known as Solomon's Pools that are about 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Bethlehem. As water passed through the channel, it flowed down a gentle slope to Jerusalem, passing through the modern-day neighborhoods of Umm Tuba, Sur Bahar, East Talpiot and Abu Tor.