The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is an aqueduct which carries the Llangollen Canal over the valley of the River Dee, east of Llangollen in north Wales.

The aqueduct is 1007 feet long, 11 feet wide, and 5 feet 3 inches deep. Constructed of cast iron troughs mounted on 19 masonry arches, and carries the canal 126 feet above the river (up to the ironwork).

Part of what was originally called the Ellesmere Canal, it was one of the first major feats of civil engineering undertaken by leading civil engineer Thomas Telford (supervised by the more experienced canal engineer William Jessop). The iron was supplied by Wiliam Hazeldine from his foundries at Shrewsbury and nearby Cefn Mawr . It was opened on 26 November 1805, having taken around ten years to design and construct and at a total cost £47,000.

There are no railings on the canal side, just the edge of the trough and a sheer drop.

See Also

• Canals of the United Kingdom