Bekir Pasha Aqueduct, Ottoman aqueduct in Larnaca, Cyprus.
Bekir Pasha Aqueduct is an Ottoman structure that transported water across valleys through arches and underground channels. It combines visible arched sections with hidden engineering passages spanning considerable distance.
Ebubekir Pasha, Ottoman beylerbey of Cyprus in 1747–1748, paid 50,000 qirsh from his own fortune to build the aqueduct between 1747 and 1750, bringing water from the Arpera River and roadside springs to Larnaca. He placed it under the Ebubekir Paşa Vakfı, funded by a farm at Arpera, mulberry gardens and a vineyard. Restored in 1854 and 1876, it supplied the city until 1939.
The structure shows how Ottomans managed water distribution for daily use in the city. It served practical needs like fountains and mills that shaped residents' routines and community life.
The best access is from the old road toward Limassol, where sections of the structure remain visible. The site is accessible year-round, but watch for uneven ground and rough stone surfaces.
Between the overland arch spans, water ran through a long tunnel served by about 250 air wells. In 1878 the British traveller Sir Samuel Baker noted that these shafts (sıra kuyuları) were sunk at successively lower elevations, so the water reached Larnaca from Arpera by gravity alone.
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