The Romans rendered Patras a Roman colony in 31 BC. The city was an important gateway between Greece and Italy, and the Roman architecture dominated the city completely. Roman emperors and city benefactors funded many public buildings and projects in the city with the aqueduct being one of them; a necessary infrastructure for the water supply of a populous city like Patras. Most probably during Hadrian's reign (117–138) the Romans built a large water cistern at the springs of Romanos in Mount Panachaiko, in the form of an artificial dam, part of which is incorporated today in the modern day water-tank. Several large pieces of that wall still remain in the region. According to an inscription found, Nymphs were worshipped at the location of the Romanos springs. The aqueduct measured 6.5 km in length from the water cistern to the city's acropolis. For the greater part of this distance, the water passed through an underground pipe, passing over valleys and gorges on constructed archways, parts of which still remain today. According to foreign visitors of the city, the aqueduct was in a good condition still carrying water until the 17th century when the city incorporated a water pipe supply system, rendering its use obsolete.
