The Waters of Rome: Parco degli Acquedotti, fountains and more

Aqueduct Marcia, with Acqueduct Felice riding on top, still carries water northward into Rome

Water may be the defining characteristic of Rome.  Clean, delicious water runs out of "nozzi" street drinking fountains all over Rome.  Some of the most beautiful sculptures of the Renaissance are the mostra or "show" fountains where each aqueduct pours its water into Rome from the distant hills.  Rome defined its empire by creating water systems wherever they extended their reach.  The Western Roman Empire and the city of Rome fell when the attacking Goths severed the aqueducts and cut off the water.  Rome's population quickly declined from more than a million to about 20,000.

Moses hands down the law at the point of entry for water from the Acqua Felice. This is a detail of a major fountain in Rome. The lion was brought from Egypt after Rome conquered and was later incorporated into the Renaissance sculpture.

A thousand years later the plans of the aqueducts were discovered in the Vatican Library and the popes were able to reconnect the fresh clean water supply. Acqua Felice was the first of the Renaissance acqueducts. Many of the original Roman ones were rebuilt and other new ones followed.

21st Century Rome still has fresh, clean, delicious water from the distant hills, still carried in part by the aqueducts that carried it during the Empire and Renaissance.  A major initiative of the newly formed Italian government from the 1870's to now is to provide clean running water for everyone through street drinking fountains throughout the city. Fans like myself have an app on our phones so we can find the nearest nozzi when we are ready for a drink.

Demonstrating a feature of Rome's nozzi

Nozzi near our house in Piazza Ettore Rolli

Today, we visited a park in southern Rome where some of the aqueducts of the ancient empire and the rebuilt acqueducts of the Renaissance still stand and are still used even now to bring water into the city. (The different spellings are used depending on which period the structure was built.)

I am delighted.  I know they did not set this stuff up just for me but I am that excited anyway.  I love rivers, ferry boats and running water.  Here--just imagine--the water runs into the city through fountains designed by Bernini and other superb sculptors.  Just right.  Only the best for water. Few fountains remain from ancient times since the stone was used for other purposes.

Today's adventure took us by metro nearly to the end of the line.  The station, Guilio Agricola, is a few hundred yards from the area where the Goths camped when besieging Rome. Several aqueducts passed their encampment at this point above ground level, making them vulnerable to intelligent attackers. The destruction of the Roman water supply ensured success in conquering Rome.

What was then the Goth encampment is now just part of suburban Rome, with 6-8 story apartment buildings, a highway, and ordinary life going on around.  Nothing to see, folks. Walking through the neighborhood is pleasant.  Built up in the 1970's as it appears from the architectural style, it's well laid out.  Folks doing their Saturday chores.  Kids playing soccer at the field next to the church.

Parco degli Acquedotti is massive when you walk behind the church and enter.  What hits your eyes is a series of Roman arches as far as you can see in either direction.  Nicely kept, rounded cement on top--definitely NOT ruins.

Aqueduct in its park. There's a toy drone flying above the man in the black coat, directed by the woman in turquoise. Have we mentioned that we want a drone of our own?

Farther into the park, taller arches are silhouetted against the sky, not continuous--definitely ruins.

Aqua Claudia -- its career of carrying water is over

We have been guided here by a great book and blog, which we recommend highly to everyone:
Rome the Second Time  (RST to their friends).

The book tells us that the well-kept arches in the pictures are the still-used Aqueduct Marcia from the time of the Roman Republic--about 140 BC more or less--and on top of the Roman work sits Acqueduct Felice, built during the Renaissance by Pope Sixtus V.  One is on top of the other.  You can see the old style building using blocks of stone called "tuff" on the bottom, and above that, the brick and concrete used by the Renaissance builders to repair the old and build the new.  The very top must be concrete maintained by ATAC, the Roman City Water system.  In town, we find plate covers in sidewalks which say Aqua Marcia. 

Sidewalk plate for fire dept water access

After you cross under the arches-in-good-repair, the broken arches of Aqua Claudia fill the sky.  Much taller.  All large blocks of stone.  In several places you can look up and see where two water systems rode along together, the lower channel for Claudia and the upper for Aqua Novis which joined Claudia for awhile at this point.

This piggybacking of water channels was Roman,
not Renaissance in this case.

The park holds the remains of 7 aqueducts but these are the ones we were able to find.  A stream runs through brick channels and looks to us like it was one of the underground aqueducts, but we could find no information about it.  Similarly, the ruins of some arches and pillars march along at an angle to Claudia but again our information is limited.  This information is known and I have read what I can about the routes of the aqueducts, but on the ground, it remains unclear what bit goes to what.  Building materials are helpful: use of tuff means an early structure, brick means a later one.  More study clearly indicated.

Nancy's watercolor of Aqua Claudia, 5x7

Wandering north, we cross under the train tracks, trying to find the next set of arches which we can see in the distance.  The path is pretty good and we see bicyclists and joggers going along.  We had our picnic above the train tracks where they cross a break in Aqua Claudia.  We get such a kick out of seeing the current and ancient infrastructure coexisting.  The train is the same one from Naples that we used on our return to Rome a few weeks ago--the slow train. We are walking generally north.

Naples train behind fence, ruin behind that

Cactus fence on path toward Torre del Fiscal (right background). A dry field! Maybe they grow artichokes?
This area lies between train tracks with no road in, just a bike path. Little rickety houses. Who lives here?

Our guides in RST would have send us south and back to metro, but we can see a path on the map and can see arches against the sky.  Trust them if you go.  We saw tiny farms and homes in the area between train tracks which are decidedly not on any tourist route.  Never any worry--chickens clucking, children playing.  Almost a pile-up between us and a family of dads and daughters on bikes. Eventually we found ourselves in the next park--Parco Torre del Fiscal.  Here we had all eras in one big structure:  Aqua Claudia and Aqua Marcia crossing each other with a medieval tower built atop.  And a modern farm snugged against one side.

Aqueducts Marcia and Claudia crossing with medieval tower built on top.
Sign says this is an archaeological site but tucked in back is a modern farm.

Despite our trusty smart phone mapping systems we were unable to figure out how to get back to the metro although we could find drinking fountains.  We finally found a bus stop.  Yay!  Even, after some searching. a bus stop that buses come to.  More yay!  A bus came, took us to metro. Home.

One great day in the country.

Words by Julianne, mostly.
Photos by Nancy, mostly.
Watercolor by Nancy, delightfully, says Julianne.