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Title: The archæology of Rome, Part VIII
The aqueducts
Author: John Henry Parker
Release date: June 1, 2024 [eBook #73752]
Language: English
Original publication: Oxford: James Parker and Co, 1876
Credits: deaurider and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ARCHÆOLOGY OF ROME, PART VIII ***
PART VIII.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
THE
ARCHÆOLOGY OF ROME,
BY
JOHN HENRY PARKER, C.B.
HON. M.A. OXON., F.S.A. LOND.;
KEEPER OF THE ASHMOLEAN MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND ARCHÆOLOGY, OXFORD;
VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE OXFORD ARCHITECTURAL AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY,
AND OF THE BRITISH AND AMERICAN ARCHÆOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF ROME;
MEMBER OF THE ROYAL ARCHÆOLOGICAL INSTITUTE,
MEMBRE DE LA SOCIETÉ FRANÇAISE D’ARCHÉOLOGIE,
HONORARY MEMBER OF THE ROYAL INSTITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHITECTS,
AND OF VARIOUS ARCHÆOLOGICAL SOCIETIES, ENGLISH AND FOREIGN.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
=OXFORD:=
JAMES PARKER AND CO.
=LONDON:=
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE-STREET.
1876.
[Illustration]
THE AQUEDUCTS.
PREFACE TO THE AQUEDUCTS.
It is impossible to understand the archæology of Rome without studying
the Aqueducts. In every part of the City, and of the country round it,
there are remains of them; they are frequently mistaken for something
else, and called by other names, misleading those who have not given
attention to the subject. They are necessarily mixed up with the
_Thermæ_, for most of the aqueducts were made to bring water to those
great establishments. There was also a reservoir of water supplied by
the aqueducts under each of the palaces, larger houses and villas, as
may be seen in many parts of the Palatine, under the palaces of the
Cæsars. In their original state the Aqueducts must have been among the
grandest objects in Rome, and the most conspicuous in all directions.
The principal approach from the east passed between two fine arcades of
the aqueducts, one carrying three of them, the other two. These two fine
arcades were not more than a hundred yards apart; all the great roads
from the eastern side were brought into this space, and certainly, for
the last mile into Rome, must have had one of these arcades on either
hand: to the left, or south, the Claudian arcade, fifty feet high; to the
right, the Marcian, thirty feet high.
For the last half-mile, the Claudian arcade was also the boundary of
the palace gardens of the Sessorium, the residence first of the Kings
and afterwards of one branch of the imperial family (that of Verus or
Varius), who resided there for more than a century. That portion of the
arcade still exists for a considerable extent, forming the northern
wall of that garden, and at the same time part of the wall of the city,
Aurelian having adopted it, and incorporated it with his great wall. This
portion is thoroughly shewn in my Photographs, as it is a very important
part of the antiquities of Rome, and illustrates many points. It was the
place where the principal aqueducts entered Rome, and the whole ground
is full of remains of them with their reservoirs and filtering-places.
The inner side of the wall is the part necessarily shewn, because the
outer side is concealed by the arcade of the Aqua Felice, excepting
in places where the _specus_ of the Claudia and the Anio Novus appear
above it. Just outside of this garden, at the west end of it, is the
great foss which separated the Sessorium, or fortified palace, from
the other fortifications of the City, and in it are remains of the two
great reservoirs that were probably the Gemelli or Twins of Frontinus,
made originally for the Appia and the Anio Vetus side by side, and used
afterwards to receive the surplus water of the later aqueducts on a
higher level. We then have a considerable number of the Arches of Nero,
following a straight line for another mile to the west end of the Cœlian
Hill; where remains of the great reservoir are on a level with the
_specus_ carried on the top of this arcade, fifty feet above the ground
in that high situation, from which the water was distributed in all
directions, first on other arcades, three of which branched off from this
point, and afterwards in metal pipes when it was sub-divided; but for the
main supply no metal pipes then to be had were large and strong enough to
bear the pressure of a stream of water four feet deep and two feet wide,
running at the rate of five or six miles an hour, if not more. The direct
line went on over the Palatine to the Capitol, passing over the Forum
Romanum on the bridge of Caligula, of which, also, some remains are shewn
in my Photographs; the other two branches from the great reservoir over
the Arch of Dolabella, went one to the right to the Colosseum (to supply
the Stagna there), the other to the left to the Aventine, to supply the
private house of Trajan and the Thermæ of Sura.
The Porta Maggiore stood at the end of the long vista between the two
great aqueducts, and was itself made out of two of the arches of the
Claudian arcade, in the last of the angles that occurred at every
half-mile. The penultimate one was at the eastern end of the Sessorium
palace gardens, where this water entered Rome, and then, after passing
the angle to the north, with the usual _piscina_ and _castellum aquæ_,
or reservoir and filtering-place, turned again to the west, as far as
that gate where the Claudian arcade terminated. From this point the
Marcian turned to the north upon the great bank of earth which formed the
outer defence of Rome in that part, and continued along it for another
half-mile, as far as the Porta di S. Lorenzo, and beyond it to the
Prætorian Camp; then turning again to the west, it went across the great
inner foss between the outer bank, the great _agger_ of Servius Tullius,
which formed the inner line, where remains of it were found near the
railway station in 1871, with inscriptions on two of the _cippi_, stating
that the three aqueducts passed there. It is not quite correct to say
that the _arcades_ were carried there, because where the ground is high
the _specus_ are carried underground. This is the case between the Porta
Maggiore (the Porta Esquilina of Frontinus) and the Porta di S. Lorenzo
(the Porta Viminalis of the same). The _specus_ is seen on arches close
to each of the gates; but, between the two, it passed underground through
a sort of hillock, about midway between the two gates, as is mentioned
by Frontinus. The ground is high again near the Porta Chiusa at the
Prætorian Camp, and in the great bank or _agger_ of Servius Tullius.
These two great arcades are those chiefly known to visitors to Rome
as THE AQUEDUCTS; but the underground aqueducts are at least equally
interesting when understood. The Anio Vetus being near the surface can be
traced all over Rome; the Appia being very deep, is not so easily traced,
and can only be seen with certainty near its source and its mouth. There
are other arcades nearly as fine as these; but, as they do not come so
near Rome, they are less known; in the parts nearest to the City they are
either underground or destroyed. One of them is that called Alexandrina
by Fabretti; but the original parts of it are of the time of Hadrian and
Trajan. This runs from the source near Gabii and Labicum, now la Colonna,
to the place called _Cento-Celle_. Possibly some of the hundred cells
or vaults found there and supposed to have been all tombs, were really
reservoirs of water. At every great villa there are always remains of
these great cisterns for the supply of water, and this is about three
miles from Rome, where a great villa of Hadrian was situated. This arcade
extends for miles across the country between the two great roads, one
from Gabii, the other from Preneste (now Palestrina). Another fine arcade
is seen on the road to Albano, at the Tor di Mezza Via (or half-way
house). This has been ascertained to be the Aqua Aurelia, which goes to
the villa of the Quintilii on the Via Appia, and from thence into Rome
to supply the Thermæ of Commodus and Severus, of which also remains have
been found; the latter part of its course is chiefly underground.
It was very difficult at first to ascertain to which of the aqueducts
each of the remains belonged that were seen on all sides; and I found
it necessary to follow each aqueduct up to its source, and then down
to its mouth, in order to ascertain this. This work has taken me some
years, in connection with the other branches of the general subject of
the Archæology of Rome. It has now been done, with one exception,—the
aqueduct made to bring water to the Thermæ of Diocletian on the
Viminal,—which has not been traced; but there is great probability that
it was a branch from one of the older aqueducts, probably brought across
from the great reservoir where the Nymphæum of Alexander Severus was
situated, on which the Trophies of Marius were hung. This is on high
ground, and at a short distance only, so that it would be very convenient
for the purpose. We see that there are several branches from that point,
and one of them probably supplied these great Thermæ, for which purpose
more than one aqueduct would be tapped. It may be that the curious sort
of tower reservoir—long supposed to have been a tomb, a short distance
to the south of the Trophies of Marius—was the one for these Thermæ; in
either case, these reservoirs were supplied from the great old aqueducts.
I may almost say that wherever the aqueducts are visible, they can now
be seen in my Photographs, and in some places the remains have been
destroyed since these were taken, during what is called the _Restoration_
of the City Walls. Perhaps the finest and most interesting part of
the Aqueducts are the great cascades at the source of the Anio Novus
above Subiaco, in the bed of that river, situated in some of the finest
scenery in the world. Among later works the ingenious manner in which
the bed of the small river Almo is made use of to carry the water of
two other mountain streams, the Aqua Crabra and the Marrana, the water
of which never fails; and the manner in which the tunnel of the Aqua
Julia has been used again in the twelfth century, are the most curious
and interesting. This had hitherto escaped observation, and was not
easily traced. The Aqua Felice was unfortunately carried out in a very
rude manner; the plan of the Pope was a good one, but was spoiled by the
ignorance of the engineer.
The new aqueduct, the Aqua Marcia-Pia, restoring the celebrated Aqua
Marcia to use in Rome, is a work deserving of high commendation. It is
much to be regretted that my lamented friend the late Mr. Shepherd, to
whose energy and perseverance we are chiefly indebted for this, did not
live to see the completion of his work. Much credit is also due to Signor
Moraldi, the originator of the scheme, to whom the Company still pay a
premium, which he well deserves. His map[1] of the Aqua Marcia, of which
he kindly gave me a photograph, was of great service to me, as far as
it went; but I saw it was necessary to go further, and include all the
Aqueducts on the eastern side of Rome. I was fortunate in meeting with
Dr. Fabio Gori, who is a native of Subiaco, and has been interested in
the Aqueducts from his boyhood. He shewed me that Signor Moraldi had not
gone quite far enough, and that the real spring of the Marcia is about
a mile further from Rome than the one he supposed to be so, which was a
subsidiary spring, though of equally good water. At the original source
the stone _specus_ was found, having been long concealed by being a foot
or two under water. I saw it, and stood upon it, and had a photograph
made, so that there could be no mistake, and the engineer of the company
also saw it, and carried his aqueduct to that point; so that the real
ancient Aqua Marcia now comes into Rome again, and is getting rapidly
into general use, being much the best drinking water. The water supply
of ancient Rome has long been a subject of interest, and can now be more
perfectly understood than it ever could before. The series of Photographs
of them are a thorough illustration of their history, such as could not
have been made before that art was invented.
CONTENTS OF THE AQUEDUCTS.
PAGE
PREFACE iii
Introduction—Frontinus 1
I. AQUA APPIA.
Passages from Frontinus 3
Sources in the Lucullan fields 4
—— near the old Via Prænestina 5
The course underground 6
It entered Rome at the north-east end of the Sessorium ib.
—— passed along the Cœlian Hill ib.
Reservoir in the garden of the Villa Cœlimontana, now the Arch
of Dolabella 7
It crossed the valley to the Aventine on an ancient earthwork,
near the Porta Capena 8
to the Piscina Publica 9
Under the Aventine the _Specus_ is visible in a stone quarry
nearly under S. Sabba ib.
Wells to descend into it ib.
The branch added by Augustus entered Rome in the garden of the
Sessorium 11
—— near the Gemelli ib.
Torquatian and Pallantian gardens ib.
II. ANIO VETUS.
Passages from Frontinus 13
Sources—a branch from the river Anio ib.
_Specus_ in the cliff of the valley 14
—— visible in the “Valley of the Arches” above Tivoli ib.
—— and in the promenade of Carciano below it 15
—— Its course underground 16
Piscinæ at the fourth, and at the second, mile from Rome, on
the Via Latina ib.
Crossing of the Aqueducts at the Torre Fiscale 17
Castellum Aquæ near the Porta Furba, two miles from Rome 18
—— near the Via Appia Nova ib.
The _Specus_ faced with _Opus Reticulatum_ 19
_Specus_, or _spes_ (?) _vetus_, on the high banks ib.
Another branch on the bank near the Wall of Rome 20
And another branch along the Cœlian, and passing near the Port
Capena, to the Aventine 21
Appendix, _Spē_ or _Spc̄_, _Spes_ (?) or _Specus_ (?) 22
—— Facsimile from MS. at Monte Cassino 26
Passages relating to the word _Specus_ 27-31
III. AQUA MARCIA.
Passages from Frontinus 32
The Piscinæ 34
Source of the Marcia ib.
_Specus_ carried along the valley of the Anio 35
Principal source in the Acqua Serena ib.
Old _Specus_ under water, discovered in 1869 36
—— It crossed the river at S. Cosimato ib.
—— and again in the Valley of the Arches, above Tivoli, on a bridge ib.
_Specus_ and reservoir in the Promenade of Carciano, below Tivoli ib.
Reservoir faced with Cyclopean Masonry there 37
_Specus_ passes near Ponte di S. Antonio ib.
After reaching the City it is divided into several branches ib.
One along the Cœlian and over the Porta Capena to the Aventine 38
Another upon the old _agger_, and over the Porta Tiburtina to the
Prætorian Camp ib.
Excellent qualities of the Aqua Marcia ib.
IV. TEPULA.
Sources near Grotta Ferrata 39
_Specus_ joins the Marcia at the _Piscinæ_ 40
—— is carried into Rome on the Marcian arcade ib.
_Castellum Aquæ_ for it near the Porta Tiburtina (S. Lorenzo) ib.
V. JULIA.
Sources on Mons Algidus (near Tusculum), Frascati, and Grotta
Ferrata 41
_Specus_ passed near the Pagus Lemonius 42
—— on an arcade of rough stone ib.
—— then through a tunnel in the valley ib.
The Nymphæum of Alexander Severus, where the Trophies of Marius
were hung, was _not_ for the Aqua Julia, though usually called
so. It is at too high a level for that, and was for the Claudia
and Anio Novus united 43
_Cippi_ of _the three_ Aqueducts, found in 1869, near the railway
station 45
Remains of a reservoir near the Porta Chiusa, found in 1869 ib.
VI. VIRGO (AQUA DI TREVI).
Passages from Frontinus 46
Sources on the Via Collatina ib.
_Specus_ subterranean, but easily traced by the line of respirators 47
—— It follows the old road towards the Porta Maggiore 48
—— but turns to the north and enters Rome through the Pincian Hill,
under the Villa Medici ib.
—— It supplies the lower town and the fountain of Trevi ib.
—— Original termination in front of the Septa, near the Pantheon ib.
VII. ALSIETINA.
Passages from Frontinus 50
Lacus Alsietina, Lago di Martignano ib.
Aqua Paola 51
Lacus Sabatina ib.
Junction of two _specus_ at the Cariæ (Osteria Nuova) 52
Casale Bianca, additional springs ib.
In Tunnels to Rome 53
VIII. CLAUDIA. IX. ANIO NOVUS.
Passages from Frontinus 54
River Anio 56
Cascades at Valle-Pietra 57
Bridge of Communacchio ib.
Sacro Speco ib.
Monasteries of S. Benedict and S. Scholastica ib.
Subiaco ib.
Lacus—Lakes or Lochs of Nero 58
Villa Sublacensis ib.
Great dam at Piè-di-lago ib.
Bridge of S. Mauro ib.
_Specus_ of the Anio Novus, cut in the rock of the cliff ib.
Ruins of _piscinæ_ 59
Lowest loch circular 60
_Piscina Limaria_, forty-two miles on the Via Sublacensis ib.
_Specus_ of Claudia 61
Bridges at Vicovaro and in the Valley of the Arches, two miles
above Tivoli ib.
Cascade at Tivoli ib.
Promenade of Carciano ib.
Bridge of S. Antonio and Ponte Lupo 62
—— near the road to Poli ib.
The _Piscinæ_ 63
_Specus_ of the Claudia of stone, of the Anio Novus of brick over
it, on a stone arcade ib.
_Piscina_ at the Porta Furba 64
Other reservoirs ib.
The Neronian Arches ib.
Porta Maggiore, inscriptions on 65
Architect of the Claudia 66
Arcade on the Cœlian ib.
Reservoir over the Arch of Dolabella 67
Three branches from that high reservoir: 1. to the Claudium and
the Colosseum; 2. to the Palatine and Capitol; 3. to the Aventine,
over the Porta Capena ib.
Smaller reservoirs for subdividing 68
Rebuildings by Frontinus under Trajan ib.
Springs called _Cæruleus_ and _Curtius_ 69
The _Piscinæ_ 70
Appendix—The Nine Aqueducts of Frontinus 71
Tables of Dates, Names, Levels, Length of Channel, Supply,
Distribution 73, 74
Calculations 74-79
The Curator Aquarum 80
Repairs by the Popes ib.
Popular notions erroneous 81
These stone _specus_ necessary for the main stream, and leaden
pipes for distribution 82
Brass cocks and leaden pipes often stolen, as mentioned in a
letter of King Theodoric ib.
X. SABATINA, TRAJANA, A.D. 110, AND PAOLA, A.D. 1540.
Lacus Sabatina, di Bracciano, or Anguillara 83
This aqueduct connected with the Alsietina (VII.) ib.
The line traced backwards by the respirators from the terminus on
the Janiculum ib.
Procopius amazed at the quantity of water brought by this aqueduct
in the sixth century ib.
Restorations of the Popes 84
Inscriptions of Paul V. ib.
Cascade on the Janiculum, turns the wheels of the flour-mills ib.
_Specus_ in the wall of the garden of the Villa Pamphili-Doria 85
—— but chiefly underground, traced by the respirators ib.
XI. TRAJANA (?), HADRIANA (?), ALEXANDRINA (?).
Passage from Frontinus 86
Sources near Gabii and Labicum, now La Colonna ib.
Several springs were collected in a central reservoir, on which
an inscription of Hadrian was found by E. Q. Visconti ib.
One of these springs had petrifying qualities ib.
Singular effects of the petrifying stream 87
_Specus_ choked up with stalactite, and cascades petrified ib.
The same water used for the Aqua Felice, but the petrifying
stream excluded 88
A fine arcade for miles, from the source to Cento-Celle ib.
Part of it of the first century, other part of the third.
Alexandrina (?) ib.
Aqueduct of Hadrian mentioned by Spartianus, but not in the
Regionary Catalogue 89
Branch from the great aqueducts to the Mausoleum of S. Helena
(Torre Pignattara) and to the Villa of the Gordiani (Torre
de’ Scavi) 90
—— not connected with this aqueduct ib.
—— but also has _piscinæ_ of the first and third centuries ib.
Branch of Trajan to the Aventine from the Cœlian ib.
XII. AURELIA, A.D. 185. XIII. SEVERIANA, A.D. 190.
The Aurelia made by Marcus Aurelius 92
—— to convey water to the Villa de Quintilii ib.
—— continued by Commodus and Septimius Severus to their _thermæ_
in Regio I. ib.
Remains of _piscinæ_ outside of the Porta Latina ib.
Remains of the _thermæ_ inside of that gate ib.
Sources on the hill of Marino 93
_Specus_ partly underground, part on arcade at the Torre di
Mezza, Via di Albano ib.
Large reservoir at the Villa de Quintilii ib.
Others on the Via Appia, between that Villa and Rome ib.
—— at the Circus of Romulus ib.
—— at S. Urbano ib.
—— at the Nymphæum in the valley of the Caffarella (miscalled
the Fountain of Egeria) ib.
_Specus_ visible in the cliff of that valley, near the Dio Ridicolo 94
Remains of the _thermæ_ in the Monte d’Oro ib.
XIV. ANTONINIANA, A.D. 215.
This aqueduct enters Rome at the south-east corner 95
—— passes over the arch of Drusus ib.
—— along the inner side of the great bank on which the Wall of
Aurelian is built ib.
—— to the _piscina_ of the Thermæ of the Antonines or of Caracalla ib.
Fine _piscina_ and _castellum_ on the edge of the hill overlooking
the valley of the Caffarella ib.
Remains of others on the Via Latina 96
—— and one near the Porta Furba, at two miles from Rome, at the
foot of the great aqueduct ib.
A branch of the Anio Vetus (?) ib.
XV. ALEXANDRINA.
This aqueduct mentioned by Lampridius 97
—— Made to bring water to the Thermæ of Alexander Severus, near
the Pantheon ib.
—— Probably a branch from the great aqueducts near the Porta
Maggiore ib.
An inscription found near that point ib.
Remains of arcade of this period between that gate and the Minerva
Medica 98
Nymphæum of Alexander Severus, where the Trophies of Marius were
hung 99
Nymphæum, a hall of the Thermæ for women; Pantheum, a similar
hall for men ib.
Wall of Aurelian built against this tall arcade ib.
XVI. ALGENTIANA.
This aqueduct made to supply water to the Thermæ of Diocletian 100
Remains of a large _piscina_ were found on the site of the
railway station ib.
The water is said to have been brought by a branch from the
Marcia at the Porta di S. Lorenzo ib.
Others say it came from Mons Algidus, near Tusculum, and was
brought underground, with reservoirs on the tops of hills
in the Campagna, supplied by syphons ib.
XVII. AQUA CRABRA AND MARRANA.
These streams united are brought into Rome in the bed of the
River Almo 101
Sources of the Aqua Crabra, near Rocca di Papa ib.
Those of the Marrana near Marino ib.
The two united at the foot of the hill of Marino 102
_Piscina_ in the valley under Marino ib.
_Specus_ traced in the same valley near the quarries of _peperino_
or _lapis Albanus_ ib.
—— passes under the sources of the Aqua Julia ib.
The two streams united near a bridge on the road to Grotta
Ferrata, ten miles from Rome ib.
Part of the united water runs into the river Anio ib.
Another part is brought through the tunnel of the Aqua Julia (V.) ib.
—— then in a cutting to the bed of the small river Almo ib.
It is carried alternately in that deep bed when the ground is
high, and in a bank of clay when the ground is low 103
The stream is divided at a loch between Roma Vecchia and the
Torre Fiscale ib.
One branch follows the line of the great aqueducts towards Rome,
in the bed of the Almo ib.
It enters Rome in that bed, under the bridge on which the Porta
Metronia stands ib.
It then passes the Garden of Crassipes, now the Orto Botanico 104
—— turning to the north, under the Aventine, to the Piscina Publica ib.
—— passes through the Circus Maximus, and under several mills ib.
—— to the mouth of the river Almo in the Tiber, through an
opening left for it in the Pulchrum Littus ib.
This Aqueduct was made under Pope Calixtus II. in A.D. 1124 ib.
Another branch of it is carried by the side of the other branch
of the river Almo, in the valley of the Caffarella, and the
other _specus_, which is open on the top, has lochs in it there 105
XVIII. AQUA FELICE, A.D. 1587.
So called after Pope Sixtus V. (Felice Peretti) 106
Source under La Colonna ib.
Reservoir made under Gregory XIII., A.D. 1572-1585 ib.
The arcade and _specus_ were made under Sixtus V., but other
reservoirs were not completed until Urban VIII., A.D. 1623-44 ib.
The _fistula Urbana_ of marble ib.
The piers and foundation of the old arcade used ib.
The _specus_ enters Rome near the Porta Maggiore 107
The water is then divided into different branches ib.
Junction of this arcade with the old one of the Claudia 108
From the Porta Maggiore the main line is carried upon the same
high bank as the old Aqueducts ib.
It turns at the Porta di S. Lorenzo 109
—— and is carried on an arcade to the great _agger_ on the
Viminal, and to the fountain of the Termini, called that of Moses ib.
SUMMARY.
Frontinus mentions _nine_ Aqueducts 110
The Regionary Catalogue of the fourth century enumerates
_nineteen_ Aquæ in Rome ib.
Some of these were natural watercourses 111
Procopius in the sixth century mentions _fourteen_ only 112
LEVELS OF THE AQUEDUCTS 113
AQUEDUCTS.—LIST OF PLATES.
PHOTO-ENGRAVINGS.
PLATE
I. Source of the Aqua Appia, in a very ancient Stone-quarry of the
time of the Kings, on the bank of the river Anio.
II. Source of another Spring of the Aqua Appia in another ancient
Stone-quarry, (near to the former).
III. 1. THE AQUEDUCTS ABOVE SUBIACO.
2. —— River Anio, the Upper Lochs.
—— —— the third Loch and the Bridge over it.
IV. 1. —— Anio Novus, the third Loch.
2. —— —— The Specus.
V. —— Anio Novus—a Castellum Aquæ, and Line of the Specus cut in the
cliff.
VI. The Claudia, Anio Vetus, and Novus, and Marcia, in the Valley of
the Arches below Subiaco and above Tivoli.
VII. Two other Views of the Ruins of the Arcades of the Claudia and
Anio Novus (in the Valley of the Arches above Tivoli).
VIII. Aqueducts at Tivoli—Cascades of the Anio, with the Round Temple
of the Sibyl at the top.
IX. Aqueducts below Tivoli—The Marcia—a great Castellum Aquæ on the
Via di Carciano, B.C. 145.
X. Aqueducts below Tivoli—Aqua Marcia—Reservoir, or Castellum Aquæ.
Views of the two chambers.
XI. Aqueducts below Tivoli—1. Anio Novus—Castellum.
2. Marcia—Castellum rebuilt by Trajan.
XII. The Claudia and Anio Novus in the Campagna of Rome, near Roma
Vecchia, over the fine arcade, four miles from Rome.
XIII. The Claudia and Anio Novus passing over the Marcia, Tepula, and
Julia, at the Tor Fiscale, and view near the Porta Furba.
XIV. 1. The Marcia on the bank within the wall of Aurelian, at the
Porta Tiburtina.
2. Claudia and Anio Novus at the angle of the Sessorium.
XV. Aqueducts at the Porta Maggiore—
1. Marcia, Tepula, and Julia, entering Rome, passing through
the Wall.
2. Marcia, &c., within the Wall.
XVI. 1. Claudia and Anio Novus over the Porta Maggiore.
2. Anio Novus on the Cœlian, over the arch of Dolabella.
XVII. 1. Arches of Nero within the Porta Maggiore, crossing the great
inner _fosse_ of the Sessorium on a double arcade.
2. Aqua Marcia within the Porta Maggiore, as shewn in an
excavation in 1871.
XVIII. 1. The Claudia and Anio Novus, in the North Wall of the Gardens
of the Sessorium, now of S. Croce.
2. Nymphæum of Alexander Severus, where the trophies of Marius
were hung.
XIX. Great Reservoir on the Arches of Nero over the Arch of Dolabella,
on the Cœlian.
PLANS AND DIAGRAMS.
PLATE
I. Plan of the Sources of the Appia and Virgo, in the meadows of
Lucullus, on the bank of the river Anio.
II. The Appia at the Porta Capena, the specus passing through one
of the towers of the Porta Capena, now a gardener’s cottage.
III. The Appia under S. Sabba. The specus in an old stone quarry on
the Pseudo-Aventine.
IV. Mouth of the Appia under the Aventine, and at the Porta Trigemina,
now in a Cave under S. Alexio and the Priorato.
V. Aqua Appia—Reservoir in Garden of the Sessorium, now of S. Croce,
called the Thermæ of S. Helena.
VI. Anio Vetus.—Reservoir near the Porta Furba.
VII. Loch in the Aqua Julia, near the Imperial Villa, called the Sette
Bassi.
VIII. Aqueducts and River Almo, near the Porta Furba.
IX. The Seven Aqueducts at the Tor Fiscale. Plan and Section.
X. Piscina of the Anio Novus, entering Rome through a tower in the
wall of Aurelian in the garden of the Sessorium.
XI. The Aqueducts at the Porta Maggiore and the Porta Tiburtina.
Plan and Section.
XII. Nymphæum, where the Trophies of Marius were hung. Plan and
Section.
XIII. River Almo—Division into two Branches, now a Loch of the Marrana.
XIV. River Almo, now the Marrana.—Entrance into Rome under the Porta
Metronia.
XV. River Almo—Mouth in the Pulchrum Littus. View.
XVI. —— Plan.
XVII. Sources of the Aqua Appia, near the bank of the river Anio, in
a very ancient stone quarry.
XVIII. Aqua Appia, or Appian Aqueduct, crossing the valley from
the Cœlian to the Aventine upon the short Agger of Servius
Tullius, and over the Porta Capena.
XIX. Plan and Sections of the Aqueducts in a Cave in the Aventine,
under S. Sabba, with the Excavations made in 1875 and 1876.
XX. Plan and Section of the Aqueducts, from the great Reservoirs on
the Cœlian Hill, near the Arch of Dolabella and the Claudium,
to the Colosseum, and to the Drain under the road from the
Arch of Constantine to the Clivus Scauri.
XXI. Sections of the Specus or Conduits of fifteen different Aqueducts.
Plan of the Aqueducts on parts of the Cœlian and the Esquiline Hills,
from the great Reservoirs and Piscinæ called Sette Sale, on the
Esquiline, to the Colosseum; and the Three Branches from the great
Reservoir on the Cœlian, and over the Arch of Dolabella, and the
Piazza della Navicella, to the Aventine, the Palatine, and the
Colosseum.
Map of the Aqueducts on the Eastern side of Rome, from their Sources
above Subiaco, and on the bank of the river Anio, to Rome, and their
mouths in the Tiber.
—— Western side of Rome, from their Sources in the lakes on the hills,
called Alseatina and Sabatina, or Anguillara.
CHAPTER IV. PART I.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
In treating of the Aqueducts we have a trustworthy guide in a writer who
flourished in the time of the Emperors Nerva and Trajan, namely, SEXTUS
JULIUS FRONTINUS[2]. While he informs us of what improvements he made
during the time he had the charge of these important public works, he
also gives in his treatise a historical account of the several changes
which had been from time to time made in the means of supply of water to
the Imperial City, which kept pace with the growing wealth and population
of Rome. When he died they had probably reached perfection, and were
justly the admiration and surprise of all travellers[3].
His treatise is well worth examination, not only from an archæological
point of view, but as suggesting also many curious enquiries as to the
engineering abilities which the Romans possessed, compared with those
exhibited at the present day. In elucidating, however, the architectural
antiquities of the city of Rome, it will be necessary, as far as
possible, to limit the extracts from his treatise _De Aquæductibus_, to
those portions which refer either directly to existing remains, or which
indirectly explain them, by pointing out the principle on which the
several Roman aqueducts seem to have succeeded each other.
Frontinus tells us in his fourth chapter, that for 441 years after the
building of the city, or until B.C. 312, the people were content with
the water which they could draw from the Tiber, or from wells[4] or from
springs, of some of which the memory was in his time still held sacred
and honoured, for they were thought to afford health to the sick[5].
Passing to his own time, he says, “there now flow into the city:”—
I. Aqua Appia.
II. Anio Vetus.
III. Aqua Marcia.
IV. ” Tepula.
V. ” Julia.
VI. Aqua Virgo.
VII. ” Alsietina (which is also called Augusta[6]).
VIII. ” Claudia.
IX. Anio Novus.
Frontinus describes the above nine aqueducts in order, giving details as
to the source of the water in each, the quantity, and the distribution.
Such extracts as are calculated to throw light upon the existing remains,
are given in the course of the following remarks. Seven other Aqueducts
were added after the time of Frontinus at different periods, of which an
account will also be found in the second part of this Chapter.
I. THE AQUA APPIA (A.U.C. 441, B.C. 312).
“The _Aqua Appia_ was brought into Rome by the censor Appius Claudius
Crassus, afterwards called _Cæcus_ (the blind), who also caused the Via
Appia to be constructed from the Porta Capena to the city of Capua[7].”
“The Appian stream rises in the Lucullan fields on the Via Prænestina,
between the seventh and eighth milestone, and about 780 paces (or about
¾ of a mile) off on the left-hand side. The channel from its source
to the ‘_Salinæ_,’ which is a spot near the Porta Trigemina, measures
11 miles, 190 paces (about 300 yards) in length. For 11 miles, 130
paces, (about 200 yards,) the channel runs underground, and for 60
paces (about 100 yards) it is carried above ground on a substructure
and arcade (in the part) nearest to the Porta Capena[8]. At the ‘_Spes
(Specus) Vetus_,’ (the old _specus_ or conduit,) on the confines of the
Torquatian and Pallantian gardens, a branch called the _Augustan_ was
added to it by Augustus as supplementary, whence it received the name of
‘Gemelli[9]’....”
“The distribution of the Appian water begins at the bottom of the _Clivus
Publicii_ at the Porta Trigemina[10]; the stream having passed beneath
the Cœlian and Aventine Hills.”
“... The measure at the head of this could not be obtained because it
consists of two channels. At the Gemelli, however, which is under[11]
the _Spem (Specum) Veterem_, (the old conduit,) where it joined with the
Augustan branch, I found the height or depth of the water to be 5 ft.,
the width 1 ft. 9 in., which makes the area 8 ft. 9 in.: ... it should be
noticed that the water in many parts of the City was observed to be lost,
that is, by trickling away. Moreover we found some of it intercepted by
illegal pipes within the City; without the City, owing to the pressure,
that which was underground (at the head 50 ft.), received no injury[12].”
The Lucullan fields, in which are the sources of the Aqua Appia, are
nearly due east from Rome, on the bank of the river Anio, at about six
miles from the present gates of Rome, and three quarters of a mile off
the Via Collatina, now a cart-road. This is the old Via Prænestina, which
went through Collatia, now called Lunghezza, about two miles higher up
the river Anio, at the point where the smaller river Osa falls into it.
In this part the old paved road remains for some distance in use, both
before and after the entrance to Collatia, and was the more direct road;
the present carriage-road, now called Prænestina, was the Via Gabina, and
went through or near to Gabii, but was not so direct a line to Præneste
or Palestrina as the one through Collatia. The old road passes close in
front of the ancient stone quarries, on the bank of the Anio, in which
one of the springs or reservoirs of the Aqua Appia is situated; the
pavement of it remains, and is now used as a foot-path only.
There are several springs or sources for this aqueduct, and also several
ponds to collect the rain-water, made in the clay, the water from all
of which was collected into a central reservoir cut in the rock, with
a large well over it. There are also seventeen wells visible in two
lines, eight in one and nine in the other, converging and meeting in the
central reservoir. The soil is clay upon stone. The _specus_ is here a
large tunnel cut in the rock, and the wells descend into it. They may be
distinguished from above by the bramble-bushes which grow over and cover
each of the openings, and do not grow on the other part of the field;
each well is also protected by a wooden rail, to hinder cattle from
falling into it. The water still runs through in some parts. Near to this
reservoir is a tomb of very early character, similar to what are usually
called Etruscan[13] tombs, cut out of the rock.
As the length of its course was rather more than eleven miles, while the
distance by the Via Prænestina direct was only between seven and eight,
it is clear that it did not follow that road. It was carried to the south
towards the Via Labicana by a winding course, according to the levels of
the ground. The Aqua Virgo, whose source is in the same Lucullan fields
as the Appia, is carried to the north by another winding course of a
greater length, to supply the northern parts of the city.
The course of _the old Via Prænestina_[14] has undergone but little
change, and the 7th milestone is soon measured. A little beyond it, and
780 paces off on the left of the road (i.e. on the northern side), we are
brought to a point[15] where the sources of the Aqua Appia are still to
be seen in caves formed by ancient stone quarries, near a tenement called
_La Rustica_. One cave is of a triple form, with three springs, and the
soil above the stone is much mixed with clay. These three springs meet
at the mouth of the cave in one stream, which runs in the old _specus_
cut in the rock, but open at the top, and having the appearance of a mere
country ditch, half hid by the grass and weeds in the winter, and in
the summer months entirely concealed by them. This _specus_ runs across
a low meadow for about a quarter of a mile. It crosses the line of the
Aqua Virgo, the respirators of which cross this meadow in an opposite
direction; the sources of the Virgo are about a mile further from Rome,
on the same road. It then enters the rock again in a tunnel, and at
this point is the first _castellum_ or reservoir, with a large circular
well cut out of the rock, which forms the vault over it. There are the
grooves for sluices at each end of the reservoir, and an opening has been
made into the tunnel a little beyond this reservoir. The course of the
aqueduct is then in a tunnel entirely underground, in the direction of a
series of ancient caves, through which, or by which, it must pass, but
being underground it cannot be seen. These caves are evidently an ancient
stone quarry, but of later character than the one first mentioned. In the
earliest one, at the source, the stone has been split off the rock, not
cut; in the other caves, the stone has been well cut, and of these many
are to be seen, the openings being large square apertures like doorways,
but side by side in the face of the scarped cliff, not following each
other: a practice common in quarrying, where the circumstances require
it, down to the present day. Between the chambers are massive square
or oblong piers, left to support the vault and the earth above. At the
bottom of one of these chambers is water running from another spring,
and the shepherds state that there is an opening from it to the _specus_
of the aqueduct; but as the bottom is filled up to the depth of several
feet with broken stone, it cannot be seen. Some of the chambers of this
ancient quarry have been used as a burying-place, probably for the
neighbouring town of Collatia. The graves are cut out in the side of the
walls, like the _loculi_, and there are also chambers like the _cubicula_
of a catacomb. The tombs of this necropolis of Collatia are very ancient,
perhaps anterior to the Kings of Rome, and certainly not posterior to the
Republic. This stone has been cut out in large square or oblong blocks,
such as are usual in work of the time of the Kings; it is probable that
Appius Claudius made use of a quarry which he found, and that the ground
was not excavated for the purpose of the aqueduct only.
From this point the course was entirely underground, therefore no
traces are visible without some difficulty. Incidentally, as we have
seen, Frontinus notes, that at the head the water ran as much as fifty
feet below the surface, and was thus protected from being fraudulently
diverted. It could not have taken a very direct line, as the levels of
the crossing valleys must have necessitated here and there a circuitous
course; and moreover this is clearly implied by Frontinus, who says that
the total length from the source to the “Salinæ” was more than eleven
miles, while the distance in a direct line is less than nine miles. As it
had no _piscina_[16], it flowed on in an uninterrupted course to the spot
where it was distributed for the public service.
One branch seems to have entered Rome under the line of the Claudian
arcade, near the Porta Maggiore[17], and its course within the city is
not difficult to follow, since for certain purposes access has been made
in more than one place into the old _specus_, part of which is used to
carry the lead pipes of the Aqua Felice to the Hospital of the Lateran
and other places. From the surface where one of the shafts is situated
to the bottom of the channel, is a depth of twenty-five feet. No water
runs along it at present, except in the metal pipes from the Aqua Felice,
belonging to the modern system.
The direction of this channel, after it enters Rome, happens to be easily
seen above, as it is marked throughout its course, from the eastern
end of the Cœlian to the Arch of Dolabella, by the fine arches of the
Neronian branch from the Claudian Aqueduct erected almost over it. It is
very probable that one of the laws (referred to by Frontinus as having
been in existence long before his time) respecting aqueducts was in force
from the commencement, namely, that there should be no buildings of any
kind within ten feet on either side of the aqueducts; thus an open space
was probably existing at the time when Nero wished to carry water to his
magnificent reservoir at the north-western end of the Cœlian, and of this
he availed himself in rearing the splendid arcade which is called by his
name. It will be remarked, however, that the brick buttresses actually
came down to the flat roof of the original _specus_ of the Appian. The
top of that _specus_ was raised to a greater height by the engineers
of Sixtus V., and in this enlargement the underground supports of the
Neronian arches are cut through to give headway to the _aquarii_ passing
along the channel. They have however to stoop their heads as they pass
under each buttress.
The old tunnel _specus_ was discovered in the time of Sixtus V., (Felice
Peretti), filled up by clay deposit to the depth of three feet, or half
the height of the _specus_, as in other places, and the builders found it
easier to raise it, for the _aquarii_ to go along it, than to clear it
out. They therefore knocked away the flat tile-covering of the time of
Nero, and raised a vault of rubble-stone three feet higher.
From the great subterranean reservoir, still in use for the water of a
spring, near the Arch of Dolabella, to the edge of the western cliff of
the Cœlian is but a short distance, and here the _specus_ seems to run in
a bank dividing the vineyard or garden of the Villa Mattei from that of
the monks of S. Gregory, on which a wall has been built. At this point
subsequent alterations, and especially those under the Emperors Nerva and
Trajan, have buried to a great depth the actual remains of the original
aqueduct; but this later work occupies the same line, and must be
described. We first come to a large _piscina_ or filtering-place on the
cliff of the Cœlian, immediately above the Porta Capena. This _piscina_
is divided into two parts, one above the other; but both are below the
top of the cliff, and are faced with brick and reticulated work of the
time of Trajan. There are remains of two _specus_ running along against
the face of the cliff; of the upper one the lower part, or pavement, of
_Opus Signinum_, only remains, and this runs down in a sloping direction
from the upper reservoir to a lower one, a little to the south of it,
which is very extensive. This lower reservoir consists of several
parallel chambers, through which, or rather in front of which, another
_specus_ runs at a lower level; this appears to be horizontal. This
_specus_ goes on in the direction of the ruins of a building of various
periods, possibly the remains of the Ædes Camenarum, and passes then to
the south in the direction of the Thermæ of Severus and Commodus.
Another branch was evidently afterwards made from the upper reservoir
going towards the north for a very short distance, merely for one of
the usual angles; then, turning again to the west, in the valley below,
there is another large _castellum aquæ_, or reservoir of five chambers,
all as usual oblong and side by side. This is on lower ground, and is
built upon the wall of Servius Tullius, where it crosses the valley;
the upper part of this reservoir has been made into a house for the
gardener. The underground part of the chamber nearest to the Cœlian
is built of the large square blocks of tufa usual in the time of the
Kings, and belongs to the fortifications of the Porta Capena, over the
Via Appia, which here passed close under the Cœlian; the other chambers
appear, from the bricks, to be of the time of Trajan. From this point
to the Piscina Publica, the line of tall brick piers of Trajan can be
distinctly traced by the existing remains, passing across to the other
side of the road and of the stream here close to it[18]. The ruins of the
Piscina Publica, as rebuilt by Trajan, remain visible under the corner of
the Pseudo-Aventine, near S. Balbina, and from this the water was again
distributed in different branches. At this point, let it be observed,
and only at this point, is the valley which divides the Cœlian from the
Aventine sufficiently narrow to admit of agreement with the direct and
clear assertion of Frontinus, that here alone, throughout the whole
course, was it carried on a substructure and on arches for a distance of
one hundred yards.
Although there are no remains of the _specus_ now visible at this spot,
because the gate has been destroyed, there can be little doubt that the
channel for the water was carried _over_ the southern gate of _the city_
according to its extent at that time. This gate was called the Porta
Capena; and as the Appian aqueduct was allowed to fall into decay, it
gave rise to the descriptions both of Martial and Juvenal, who describe
it as wet or moist[19].
The excavations made in 1868 and 1869 under the direction of Mr. Parker,
with the help of the British Archæological Society of Rome and the Roman
Exploration Fund, have clearly shewn the _specus_ of the Aqua Appia and
those of two other aqueducts carried upon the _agger_ of Servius Tullius
across the valley from the Cœlian to the Aventine, with branches to the
left running into the subterranean chambers of the Piscina Publica. These
underground chambers are of the time of the Republic, the walls are built
of rubble stone as usual at that period, and there are small openings
through these walls for the circulation of the water, although the upper
part has been rebuilt in the time of Trajan, as the remains of the wall
are faced with the brickwork usual in his time. The lowest _specus_ is
cut out of tufa rock _under_ the wall of Servius Tullius, which is built
of the usual large blocks of tufa.
The principal branch went underground to the cave reservoir at its mouth,
on the level of the quay of the Marmorata between that and the Salaria,
just outside of the old Porta Trigemina; the old _agger_ in which that
gate was situated still forms the southern or lower boundary of the wharf
of the Salaria. Part of the course of this earliest _specus_, that of
the Appia, can be traced and seen in a subterranean stone quarry nearly
under S. Sabba. The _specus_ is six feet high and two feet wide, and
it is filled up to nearly half its height by solid clay, evidently the
deposit left by the water. The old _specus_, long after it had been
out of use, seems to have been employed by the quarrymen: as it was a
tunnel in the tufa rock just high and wide enough for a man to walk in,
by cutting away one side they made it wide enough for a horse and cart
to carry the stone, and they raised the vault as high as was convenient
for the purpose of making an entrance into the quarry. The series of
wells descending into the old _specus_ from the gardens above remain at
intervals, with notches for steps cut in the rock to enable a man to
go up and down when required. The course of the _specus_ is cut off by
the road to the Porta Ostiensis, but probably that road was originally
carried over it[20] at the crossing; it then passed through another
large subterranean quarry nearly under S. Prisca, to the cave reservoir
at its mouth[21].
Before arriving at the two large reservoirs just outside of the garden
of the Sessorium, now Sante Croce, the _specus_ of the Appia must have
passed by another smaller reservoir at the same low level, near the ruins
of the apse of a hall, miscalled the temple of Venus and Cupid. This
seems likely to have been the point at which the branch _specus_, coming
from the north, entered Rome, and it was then carried on to the two large
reservoirs outside this garden, supposed to have been the _Gemelli_[22].
Below the “Salinæ” or salt warehouses on the bank of the Tiber, and near
the “Porta Trigemina,” the water was “distributed.” This was also close
under the Clivus Publicii, or the slanting zig-zag road leading up from
the wharf to the top of the hill.
So far the general course can be traced; but the exact point of entrance
into Rome could not be fixed without excavations, which have not as yet
been made. There are, however, some _data_ given by Frontinus which
should not be overlooked, as they bear incidentally upon the course of
some other of the aqueducts.
First, it should be remarked, that the water of the Appia was augmented
by an additional stream. This was not accomplished till the time of
Augustus. The source of this latter[23] was on the same side of the Via
Prænestina, but a little nearer to Rome (near the sixth milestone) we are
told, and its course was, like the main stream, entirely underground. It
was more direct, as its length was less than six miles and a-half, while
the original stream, by its windings, required about eleven miles to
complete the same distance[24].
It joined, however, the Appia _at the “Spes (Specus) Vetus,”_ and at the
Gemelli[25], which was _under (infra) the “Old Specus,”_ it could be
measured. This is an important landmark; it is well at once to observe
that the usual interpretation of the passage as referring to a “Temple
of Spes,” and the statement that a temple occupied the site of some
ruins which are marked thus in a few maps, (in most, _Templum Veneris et
Cupidinis_) does not seem to fit the circumstances. It is proposed to
read in both these two instances “Specus Vetus.” The expression occurs,
altogether, five times in Frontinus, and it will be most satisfactory
therefore to consider the passages together, which will be done more
conveniently in connection with the next aqueduct described.
The Torquatian and Plautian, or Pallantian gardens, seem by the context
to have occupied a spot on either side of the point of junction of the
two streams. The Torquatian gardens are not mentioned elsewhere, and
with respect to the Plautian[26] (which is only conjectural, and has the
authority of neither of the early MSS.), it has been suggested to read
_Pallantian_, which gardens are mentioned twice elsewhere by Frontinus in
connection with the Specus Vetus, besides once in such a way as to imply
the same[27].
The Torquatian gardens probably occupied the space between the outer
wall and the modern “Via di Porta Maggiore,” and were probably those
of Titus Manlius Torquatus, a member of an important patrician family;
Livy mentions at least three generations of that name. This ground
shews numerous remains of aqueducts and reservoirs, and here also is
the fine building of the third century called the Minerva Medica,
which was probably the _nymphæum_ of some _thermæ_ of that period[28].
The Pallantian gardens is a natural name for those belonging to the
Sessorium, or the Sessorian fortified Camp and Palace[29], and occupied
the low ground near it. They would therefore be to the south of, but
adjoining to, the Torquatian gardens.
II. THE ANIO VETUS (B.C. 272).
“Forty years after the Appian aqueduct had been completed, and
in the year A.U.C. 481 (B.C. 272), Marcus Curius Dentatus,
who bore the office of censor with Lucius Papirius Cursor,
contracted to bring into the city the water of the Anio,
which is now called the Anio Vetus, from the spoils taken of
Pyrrhus[30].
“The Anio Vetus takes its rise beyond Tibur (now called
Tivoli), outside the gate, at the twentieth milestone, where it
parts with some of its water for the use of Tibur. Its course
has in length, in consequence of the difficulties caused by
the levels, 43 miles. Of this for 42 miles and 779 paces, the
stream is underground, and for 221 paces (about 350 yards) on a
substructure above ground.
“Near the fourth milestone within the new road (_infra novum_)
the Anio Vetus crosses between the arches from the Via Latina
into the Via Lavicana, and has (there?) a _reservoir_ (or
_piscina_). Thence just within the second milestone it gives
a part of its water into the _specus_, which is called the
Octavian, and this comes in the direction of the New Road to
the Asinian Gardens, whence it is distributed through that
neighbourhood; but its direct channel, following the _specus_
(or conduit) coming within the Porta Esquilina, _along_ the
_Spes (Specus?) Vetus_, is drawn off for distribution in the
city, through the high channels[31].
“It held the sixth place in height, but would have been
sufficient for even the higher parts of the city, if it had
been carried across the valleys and the low ground, where
requisite, upon substructure, arches, and buttresses[32].”
Passing on to the second aqueduct, namely, the stream taken from the
River ANIO (and which was called the ANIO VETUS to distinguish it from a
later diversion from the same river), we find that Frontinus is also very
distinct in many of his details; a few only he leaves to conjecture.
The point where a branch was taken from the river Anio can be traced[33].
There was a reservoir by the side of the river, of which some ruins
remain; but it was nearly destroyed a few years since by some peasants
in their ignorant and too eager search after hidden treasure which they
expected to find there. The _specus_ is cut in the rock as a tunnel in
the cliff of the valley of the Anio, just below the level of the road;
it follows the line of the cliff, of the river, and of the road: for
they are all the same, the only opening through the rocky mountains of
limestone in this part, obviously made by the river itself. It follows
this line as far as the valley called the “Valle degli Arci,” or of the
Arches, where three later aqueducts cross the river on arcades about
two miles above Tivoli. At this point several aqueducts are visible
crossing the valley on arcades, each on a separate arcade, not three on
one arcade and two on another, as near Rome. The one nearest to Tivoli
is the Marcian, and at the foot of one of the piers of the arch, which
here crosses the road, the _specus_ of the Anio Vetus is visible, partly
underground, but the upper part above ground, on the right-hand side of
the road in going from Tivoli. It then is carried in a tunnel through the
hill, but appears again on the other side with a large reservoir, and
runs gradually downwards in a winding course round part of the hill.
It is not easy to distinguish to which of the aqueducts belongs any one
of the numerous reservoirs, the ruins of which are conspicuous objects
on the roads up to Tivoli on the other side towards Rome, especially
along both sides of that called the “Promenade of Carciano,” for the
distance of about three miles from Tivoli. The _specus_ and reservoir of
the Anio Novus are on a natural terrace above that road, and the Marcia
below it; these have passed through Tivoli, winding round that end of
the hill. The Claudia passed upon a great arcade the valley of the Arci,
and another valley in the direction of Gerocomio. The Anio Vetus was
carried in a tunnel through the hill, and appears on the other side near
Tivoli, at a considerably lower level than the others. The road passes
across the _specus_, and is made upon the surface of the vault, which
is visible about four miles and a-half from Tivoli. A little further
on there are two large reservoirs belonging to it, near a modern villa
called Gerocomio, built by the Cardinal Santacroce in the year 1579, now
a farm-house only, but on the site of an ancient villa, of which some
remains are built into the walls. One of these reservoirs or _piscinæ_
(?) appears to be unaltered, the buttresses remain and apparently the
vault; but it is covered with herbage and shrubs, which conceal it. The
other has been turned into a cottage or an out-house of the villa, and
this is of later date than the other. The Anio Vetus, the Marcian, the
Claudian, and the Anio Novus, all have to be conveyed down this lofty
hill from the high ground on which the remains above mentioned are
situated, to the valley below. The river Anio itself rushes straight
down the celebrated cascades by a fall of about a hundred feet; but the
channels of the aqueducts follow a winding course, which allowed of the
descent towards Rome being very gradual.
This road or promenade of Carciano is rather high on the side of the hill
above the villa of Hadrian, looking towards Rome. The dome of S. Peter’s
is distinctly visible from it. The road is on a ledge on the side of the
cliff, and the aqueducts run along the steep side of the hill or cliff,
until they come to the valley of a small stream winding down to the Anio;
along the cliff of this they are then carried. The Anio Vetus being at a
considerably lower level, is more difficult to trace than the others; but
it seems clear that after the later aqueducts had arrived at the point
where the Anio Vetus emerges from the hill, they all followed the same
line, winding along with the small stream, and their _specus_ or channels
cut in the cliffs as far as they could be made available. The Anio
Vetus has been discovered at the left hand of the modern road to Rome,
and to the right of the promenade of Carciano. It passed, upon a lofty
bridge called the Ponte di S. Antonio, over a torrent, with the Marcia.
Afterwards upon another bridge called Ponte delle Mole di S. Giovanni,
and over the Ponte Lupo it went with the others. Near Gallicano (or the
ancient Pedum) are two _cippi_ of Augustus in two wells of his _specus_;
one is in the country called Le Sette, and another at Obrego[34] dell’
Ermito. The others have all been followed, and an account of them will be
found under their respective heads.
In order to avoid the many small valleys occupied by streams which run
parallel to each other from the hilly ground on the south, down to the
river Anio on the north, (the general course of which river is west and
east,) the course was kept along the higher ground, and in fact wound
round the heads of those valleys in order to retain a level, gradually
becoming more and more depressed, till, by the time it reached Rome,
the base of the _specus_ (according to the computation of Piranesi), was
55 ft. above that of the Appian[35]. The whole course is underground, as
has been said, except for 221 paces (about 360 yards); for this short
distance it was carried on a substructure above ground. It is reasonable
to suppose that this exception to the subterranean course was, as in the
case of the Appian, within the present boundary of the city.
Before it reached Rome, two circumstances have especially to be noted.
Just within the fourth milestone we are told it had a reservoir and
_piscina_ or filtering-place, and at the second milestone it parted[36]
with some of its water, which was conveyed to Rome in a separate channel.
This fourth milestone was clearly on the Via Latina, as Frontinus in
the previous paragraph had referred to some _piscinæ_ at the seventh
milestone on the same road; and it appears, although the sentence is
exceedingly corrupt, that the course of the Aqueduct left the Via
Latina at this point, and crossed towards the Via Labicana “amongst the
arches[37]” at the fourth milestone. The _specus_ is here visible, and
appears to be perfect; it is very near to the Torre Fiscale[38], between
that and the Osteria, called the Tavolato (which itself appears to be
made out of another, but a later, reservoir belonging to the aqueducts,
as many of the houses in the Campagna have been). The vault of the old
_castellum aquæ_ or _piscina_ is now covered with turf, but the side of
it forms a sort of cliff like the edge of a quarry.
This place, where the Anio Vetus leaves the Via Latina, is near the great
junction and crossing of the aqueducts, over which the tall medieval
tower called the Torre Fiscale has been built. Here six aqueducts meet
and cross each other. The Marcian arcade, with three of these, makes one
of its many angles, and the lofty Claudian arcade, with two more, is
carried over it. The expression that it passed amongst the arches is a
very natural one, to any person who knows the locality, as there are many
arches at this point. It then goes on to another angle and crossing of
the great aqueducts, where there is a gate called Porta Furba, about two
miles and a-half from the Porta Maggiore. There is a _castellum aquæ_ of
the time of Nero, with an ancient _piscina_ under it, and a fountain of
Sixtus V. by the side of it. At the second milestone it parted with some
of its water into the _specus_ called the _Octavian_, which enters Rome
at the Asinian gardens, following the direction of the new road.
By referring to the maps it will be seen that the original line of the
Via Latina united with the Via Appia within the outer wall and before
reaching the old southern entrance of the city (the Porta Capena); but,
in joining this latter road (the most convenient course to pursue in the
then state of the fortifications), the Via Latina swerved rapidly to the
south-west. Had it been continued in a direct line, it would have reached
the Cœlian Hill, near the Porta Asinaria, as the Via Appia Nova still
does, following the line of the old Via Asinaria.
At this second milestone also is another _castellum aquæ_[39], mentioned
by Frontinus as two miles from Rome. This is near the Porta Furba; it is
entirely buried, but the vault of it is not many feet underground. In the
spring of 1871, some excavations were made under my direction in a large
vineyard hard by, and another subterranean reservoir was found near the
road to Tusculum and Frascati, with a _specus_ cut in the rock going in
the direction of that road, and apparently passing under it, on the line
of a cross-way to the Via Appia Nova, a short distance only. On the other
side of that is the “Albergo dei Spiriti,” near the junction with the
Via Latina; and, in the garden at the back of that house, a _specus_ was
found in a stone quarry, the vault of which had fallen in and brought the
_specus_ to view. It seems to have passed underground along the southern
side of that ancient Via for a short distance, and then crossed it to a
_piscina_, of which there are remains at the foot of the bank on which
the road runs in that part. It then goes along the edge of some higher
ground, and for a short distance underground again towards a by-lane
(_diverticulum_), parallel to the Via Latina; remains of a brick arcade
can be seen on the bank of that lane, which is a deep foss-way, and
goes on to Rome about a mile distant. It is cut by the railway before
it arrives at the wall of Rome. It then passes through that wall and
underground again as far as the arch of Drusus, over which it passes; and
thence on an arcade, part of which only remains, to the great _piscinæ_
at the back of the _thermæ_ of Caracalla[40].
The Via Appia Nova was probably made in the time of Frontinus, and is the
road which he calls Via Nova. The part nearest to Rome was previously
called the Via Asinaria, and extended from the Porta Asinaria to the
junction with the Via Latina, at three miles from Rome, which name was
then dropped. The new road continues parallel to the Via Appia Antiqua as
far as the eleventh milestone, and there forms a junction with it. Both
of these roads are now open. The railway to Capua and Naples passes near
to this point of junction. The short Via Lateranensis, going out of the
Porta Lateranensis (excavated in 1868), ran into the Via Asinaria, and
so joined the Via Appia Nova, which has tombs of the first century along
the line, and none of any other period. Those which were of stone have
been used as a quarry by the farmers to build the low walls that line the
road on both sides, the foundations only being left in the banks; but
those which were built of concrete faced with brick, would not pay for
the trouble of destroying them, and have therefore been left standing
in their places. One of these, a very fine one, faced with brick of the
time of Trajan, with moulded pilasters, remains nearly perfect near
the seventh mile, just where a path turns off to the left across the
fields to the _piscinæ_, which are near the line of the old Via Latina
in this part, about half-a-mile from the Via Appia Nova, and forming
the carriage-road to Albano through Marino. It left Rome by the Porta
Asinaria as it now does by the modern Porta S. Giovanni, which is close
to the old gate, but at a much higher level. The Via Latina crosses it
in a diagonal line, and runs nearly parallel to it as far as the Torre
Fiscale, that is, for about a mile gradually diverging from it.
Wherever the exterior of the _specus_ of the Anio Vetus is visible, it is
faced with _Opus Reticulatum_. The reservoirs of this Aqueduct are of the
same construction, and this may serve to distinguish those on the slope
of the hill at Tivoli from the other aqueducts there.
“The water of this straight branch,” says Frontinus, “coming within the
_Porta Esquilina_ along the _Spes [specus] Vetus_, was carried down into
the city in the high streams[41].”
This _specus_ is on the high bank of the Tarquins, the outer and lofty
line of defence on the eastern side of Rome. On this the wall of Aurelian
was afterwards built. After its entry into Rome, the Anio Vetus was
divided into several branches, in the same manner as the later aqueducts
were.
The right-hand branch, in crossing the Campagna, appears to have run
nearly under the Marcian arcade, which was afterwards built on the same
line and nearly over it. As we approach near to Rome, there are remains
of a reservoir built of large stones a little way down the road, about
a hundred yards from the Porta Maggiore. It enters Rome under the wall,
almost on the level of the ground; the upper part of the _specus_ was
visible in 1868, but in 1869 was studiously concealed by a modern brick
wall. It is visible again inside the wall, on the other side of the road,
going into the vineyard in which the Minerva Medica stands, while one
branch went to the great reservoir near to it, westward of the gate.
Another branch passes along the bank under the wall of Aurelian, and is
not visible again until it reaches the Prætorian Camp, where a portion
of it was excavated in May, 1868, built of large stones of tufa, under
the Porta Chiusa. It may then be traced all round the three sides of the
Prætorian Camp, and near the north-east corner there was, in 1868, an
opening into it, now closed by a modern wall. It is distinctly visible in
several places, especially on the north side of the Camp, where the wall
of Tiberius remains perfect, faced with the fine brickwork of his period,
whereas the _specus_ under it is faced with _Opus Reticulatum_, probably
of the time of the Republic. The wall of Tiberius distinctly stands on
the old _specus_. There was an opening into it here also in 1868; but
this was also carefully walled up in 1869 under the influence of the
Garibaldian panic, which had a bad effect upon the Roman authorities at
that period. Remains of a reservoir or _castellum aquæ_ were also found
on the surface of the ground on the bank near the Porta Chiusa, with the
present wall of Rome built right across it, but this part of the wall has
been rebuilt of old materials, and is not exactly in the same line. There
are remains of several other reservoirs on the bank at intervals outside
the wall in the modern road, and in many places all along the eastern and
southern sides of Rome.
Beyond this, near the Porta Nomentana, are the ruins of another reservoir
or _piscina_ on the surface of the ground, against the wall. From near
the Porta Chiusa another branch went along the old road, which passed
through that gate across the inner foss to the Thermæ of Diocletian,
where a part of the _specus_ and two _cippi_, with two inscriptions upon
them, naming this aqueduct the Anio Vetus, were found in the year 1861,
when the railway was made[42]. These _cippi_ are now in the Vatican
Museum.
Another branch went from the reservoir near the Porta Maggiore before
mentioned, across the road into the bank on which the arches of Nero
stand, near the Lateran, and passed under them apparently into the old
_specus_ of the Appia, which runs parallel to and nearly under the
arches on the other side. Two small _specus_ or stone pipes can be still
seen (in 1872) passing obliquely into that bank; and, as they came from
this large reservoir and _piscina_, (or from this direction,) they
seem to have belonged to two aqueducts at different levels. A branch
of the Marcian may have been brought to the same filtering-place for
distribution, and the surplus water carried into the old _specus_ at the
lowest level, which was evidently used for receiving and carrying off the
surplus water of all the other aqueducts in the same line.
The fifty yards outside the wall added to the three hundred yards between
the Cœlian and the Aventine, make up the three-hundred-and-fifty yards
above ground, mentioned by Frontinus. In this valley we found it again,
in 1869, parallel to the Appia, sometimes on the _agger_ or bank of
Servius Tullius, which was used as a substructure for it, in other places
on an arcade built up against the tufa wall of Servius Tullius, and faced
with reticulated-work.
APPENDIX.
ON SPĒ OR SPC̄.
For the supposed Temple of Spes, the ruins of an apse in the gardens of
S. Croce, of “Venus and Cupid,” (as it is marked in most maps, and as
“Speranza Vecchia” in others,) was fixed upon by Piranesi, who carefully
examined all that he could with a view of mapping out his aqueducts,
according to the knowledge possessed in his time. This building was no
doubt a hall belonging to the Sessorian Palace. Others, again, have
suggested the so-called temple of Minerva Medica, but this again is a
_nymphæum_, or _pantheum_, and not a temple at all. Besides, a further
difficulty lies in one being too far south, while the other is too far
north.
Canina, in his account of the results of the excavations at the Porta
Maggiore[43], and of the tomb of Eurysaces the baker there discovered,
just outside of the gate, gives a plan in which he inserts a temple
just inside the gate on the southern side, which he calls the Temple
of Spes[44]. It is quite possible that this was a Temple of Spes.
There certainly was a temple on the site indicated, where the modern
guard-house stands; and during excavations carried on there, fragments of
a temple of the time of the early Empire were found, consisting chiefly
of a fine cornice of travertine.
When, however, the words of Frontinus have to be applied, the
difficulties of the theory of his referring to a temple are increased.
In the case of the expression last referred to, “_following the specus
(spes)_, or, according to one manuscript, _the old specus_, which is
obviously the sense,” it is very difficult to imagine what circumstances
there were in connection with a temple which could warrant the use of
such words; and even in the instance mentioned, where we were noticing
the Appian aqueduct, “the expression, the Gemelli, which is a place
under the _old specus_ (Spe̅s̅ Vetus),” is somewhat singular. Granting
that a temple once existed just within the wall of the city (which, from
the context, must have been its position if any) it is singular that he
should use it as a landmark when describing the junction of two streams
of water. The remaining three expressions are simply “at the _old specus_
(Spe̅s̅ Vetus[45]).”
With these difficulties to contend with, it has been thought well to
seek a different solution, and this is found in the reading of “Specum
Veterem” for “Spe̅m̅ Veterem,” i.e., the “old _specus_.” With this
reading, it naturally follows that it would refer to the old _specus_,
or the _specus_ of the Appia and the Anio Vetus; and it is singular
that the first time it occurs in Frontinus, the Codex Urbinas[46], only
second in authority to the Codex Cassinensis, has the reading “Anienem
Veterem,” instead of “Spem Veterem.” What was the true reading of the
Codex or Codices from which these two copies were made, it is impossible
to say; they are the earliest we have, and it is clear from several
other instances that the scribes did not copy with much knowledge of the
matter in question: then it was easy to mistake _Spc̄_ for _Spē_. That
it was the Specus Vetus which was meant, must rest therefore upon the
circumstances which allow of its application to the passages named, and
it remains to shew that this is the case.
In the instance under discussion, the water of the Anio is said to flow
along its own _specus_, and therefore it would not be probably possible
to find an interpretation more suitable as far as this case is concerned.
The conduit of the water of the Anio Vetus had “emerged,” as the other
aqueducts emerge, near the Porta S. Lorenzo, from the higher ground
between the Porta Maggiore and that gate: it must consequently have
been carried on a substructure from that point on the outer bank of the
original fortifications of Rome, that is, on the high bank on which the
aqueducts were carried, and on which the wall of Aurelian was afterwards
built, to the inner bank, on lower ground faced with the tufa wall of
Servius Tullius. The names of the gates are matters of dispute, and are
quite immaterial; the levels of the ground decide the question[47].
In another place, Frontinus says[48] that several streams of water, and
first the Marcia, were carried to the Aventine from the _specus_ (_a
spe-cu_), that is from the old _specus_ he had before mentioned on the
Cœlian, and obviously from the west end of the Cœlian. The Temple of Spes
of Canina and others at the Porta Maggiore, is at least a mile from the
Aventine. The only way of giving an intelligible meaning of the passage
is that the author refers to the old _specus_ he had before mentioned, as
leading along the Cœlian to the Porta Capena. In the excavations made in
1868 and 1869, on the line of the wall of Servius Tullius from the Cœlian
to the Aventine, the conduits of three _specus_ were found, two of which
must have passed over the arch of the Porta Capena, in order to cross the
Via Appia, there a deep foss-way. Two conduits were seen in each of the
pits that were dug at intervals along the line, and at the junction with
the Piscina Publica under the Aventine they were all three perfect; the
lowest one is there cut in the tufa rock under the wall, the other two
are on the wall, and partly cut out of it.
Piranesi has preserved a sketch of the _specus_ of the aqueduct, which he
supposed to be the Anio Vetus upon its substructure; but he gives no clue
as to the exact spot whence that sketch was taken[49]. In its character
the masonry is very similar to that of the Marcian, but there are minor
differences sufficient to shew that it belongs to an earlier age.
Those who have paid attention to the manner in which ancient books have
been transmitted to modern times before the invention of printing,
and who are familiar with the use of records and of other medieval
manuscripts or transcripts, well know how full of abbreviations they
are, and how difficult it often is for the editor to fill up these
abbreviations, if he does not happen to know the word intended. The name
of _specus_ for the conduit of an aqueduct was essentially a technical
word. The first transcribers of the text of Frontinus were not Romans,
and did not know the term: hence they filled up the abbreviation _spē_,
or perhaps originally _spc̄_, with _spem_ or _spei_, instead of _specum_
or _specûs_. The same thing may have occurred in the text of Lampridius
(as mentioned in a note on a preceding page).
The Abbot of the monastery on Monte Cassino (now a public school and
public library) has kindly given me tracings of all the passages in
that manuscript in which this abbreviation occurs, and I have had them
reproduced by photography and phototype on the page annexed. Opposite
to this the same passages are given in the Italic characters, and a few
words that are necessary to complete the sense in Roman characters. This
is followed by an English translation of these passages, and by some
extracts from Livy and other authors in explanation.
[Illustration: FACSIMILE FROM THE MANUSCRIPT AT MONTE CASSINO[50].]
FRONTINUS DE AQUÆDUCTIBUS.
EXTRACTS REFERRING TO THE ABBREVIATION SPE̅S̅ FOR SPECUS.
I. _iungitur ei ad s .. em ueterem[51] in confinio ortorum torquatianorum_
et ... novum ramus Augustae, hac tres ... ad Viminalem usque
portam deveniunt. I. 5.
II. _ibi rursus emer_
_gunt prius tamen pars julie ad spē ... veterem excepta, castelli celii_
_montis diffunditur._ I. 19.
III. _partem tamen sui claudia prius_
_in arcus que vocantur neroniani ad spē ueterem transfert_ hi directe per
Caelium montem juxta templum divi Claudii terminantur. I. 20.
IV. _rectus vero ductus secundum_
_spē veniens intra portam exquelinam in altos rivos per urbem diducitur._
I. 21.
V. _ad gemellos tamen que locus infra spē ueterem_, ubi jungitur
cum ramo Augustae. II. 64.
VI. _sed postquam nero im_
_perator claudiam opere arcuato ascus[52] (?) excepta usque ad templum_
_divi claudii perduxit_, ut inde distribuetur. II. 76.
VII. _quibus nunc plures aque et imprimis_
_marcia reddita amplo opere a spē in auentinum usque perducitur._ II. 87.
_Translation of the Extracts from the Treatise of Frontinus on the
Aqueducts, containing all the passages in which the abbreviation Spē
occurs._
I. [The Augustan branch] is joined to it [the Aqua Appia] at the old
_Specus_ [or old Spes (?), temple of Hope], in the border of the
Torquatian gardens[53]. I. 5.
II. [The three, Marcia, Tepula, Julia] there emerge again; first,
however, part (of the water) intercepted from the Julia is poured at
the old _Specus_ (or at the old temple of Spes[54]), and so into the
reservoirs on the Cœlian Hill, near the temple of the divine Claudius. I.
19.
III. First, however, the Claudia transfers part of its [water] into the
old Specus [or at the temple of Spes], on the arches called Neronian[55].
I. 20.
IV. But the direct conduit [of the Marcia, &c.], passing by the old
Specus (?) of the Appia (at a higher level, or following the old
Hope?)[56], coming within the Porta Esquilina, [the water] is drawn off
in the high streams through the City. I. 21.
V. [The Aqua Appia], however, at the _Gemelli_[57], which place is below
the old _Specus_ [or below the old temple of Hope (?)], is joined with
the Augustan branch. II. 64.
VI. But after the Emperor Nero had carried the Claudian (water), which
he diverted, on arched work to the temple of Claudius [or the Claudium],
at the _specus_[58] (or at the Temple of Hope?), that it might be
distributed thence. II. 76.
VII. By which many waters, especially the Marcia, being supplied in great
abundance, are conducted from the _specus_[59] (or from the temple of
Hope?) on to the Aventine. II. 87.
_Passages in which the Temple of Spes occurs in Livy._
“At the time when this disaster happened, Caius Horatius and
Titus Menenius were in the Consulship. Menenius was immediately
sent against the Etruscans, elated with their victory. He
also was worsted in battle, and the enemy took possession
of the Janiculum; nor would the City, which besides the war
was distressed also by scarcity, have escaped a siege (the
Etruscans _having passed the Tiber_), had not the Consul
Horatius been recalled from the country of the Volscians. So
near indeed did the enemy approach to the walls, that first the
engagement was at _the temple of Spes_, in which little was
gained on either side; again at the Porta Collina, in which
the Romans gained some small advantage, and this, though far
from decisive, yet by restoring to the soldiers their former
courage, qualified them the better to contend with the enemy in
future[60].”
“At Rome a dreadful fire raged during two nights and one day;
everything between the Salinæ (or salt wharf) and the Porta
Carmentalis was levelled to the ground, as were the Æquimælian
and the Jugarian streets. The fire catching the _temples_ of
Fortuna, of mater Matuta and _of Spes_, on the outside of the
gate, and spreading to a vast extent, consumed a great number
of buildings, both religious and private[61].”
“After this, in pursuance of a decree of the Senate, and an
order of the people, an assembly of election was held by the
city prætor, in which were created five commissioners for
repairing the walls and towers, and two sets of triumvirs: one
to search for the effects belonging to the temples, to register
the offerings; the other to repair the _temples_ of Fortuna and
mater Matuta within the Porta Carmentalis, and likewise _that
of Spes_ on the outside of the gate, which had been consumed by
fire the year before[62].”
“He agreed with contractors for building a theatre near the
Temple of Apollo, and for embellishing the Temple of Jupiter in
the Capitol, and the columns around it; he also removed from
those columns the statues that stood incommodiously before
them, and took down the shields and military ensigns of all
sorts which were hung upon them. Marcus Fulvius made contracts
for more numerous and more useful works—a haven on the Tiber,
and piers for a bridge across it, on which piers Publius Scipio
Africanus and Lucius Mummius, censors, many years after, caused
the arches to be erected; a court of justice behind the new
bankers’ houses, and a fish-market, surrounded with shops for
private sales; also a forum and porticus, on the outside of the
Porta Trigemina; another porticus behind the dockyard, and one
at the _Temple of_ Hercules; also a temple of Apollo Medicus,
behind that _of Spes_, near the bank of the Tiber[63].”
It will be observed that all these passages apply to the well-known
Temple of Spes near the bank of the Tiber, of which there are
considerable remains now in the church of S. Nicolas in Carcere, and do
not apply to a Temple of Spes at the Porta Maggiore.
The word _specus_ is used by Vitruvius in the sense of a covered
water-course:—
“But if there should be mounds in the middle between the
walls and the fountain-head, it must be so contrived that the
water-channel (_specus_) be dug under the earth, and poised on
the top[64].”
And at a later period by Hirtius:—
“Alexandria is almost wholly undermined with water-courses,
and has a _specus_ extending to the Nile, by which water is
conveyed into private houses[65].”
III. THE AQUA MARCIA (B.C. 145).
“127 years afterwards, that is, from the building of Rome 608
years, when Servius Sulpicius Galba and Aurelius Cotta were
consuls, as the aqueducts or conduits (_ductus_) of the Appian
and Anio were much decayed by age, (and also intercepted
fraudulently for private purposes,) the business of repairing
and reclaiming the said aqueducts was entrusted by the senate
to Marcius, who was then acting as Prætor. And because the
increase of the population of the city seemed to demand a more
ample supply of water, instructions were given to him by the
senate that he should carefully examine how far there were
other streams which he might be able to bring into the city[66].
“He therefore restored the two old conduits, and introduced a
third, _which he caused to be erected with ‘squared stones,’
and larger aqueducts, and carried through them the water which
he had obtained for the public service_[67]. Hence it received
the name of the ‘Marcian’ from himself, as the author of it.
“The Aqua Marcia has its origin on the Via Valeria at the
thirty-sixth milestone, three miles off in the _diverticulum_
(or cross-road), on the right-hand to those going from Rome. On
the road to Sublacum, now called Subiaco (_Via Sublacensis_)
also (which was paved for the first time under the Emperor
Nero), at the thirty-eighth milestone, for the space of two
hundred paces on the left-hand side the water lies like a pond,
bubbling up in innumerable springs from beneath the stony
hollows, and is very green in colour.
“The length of the course from its head to the city is 61
miles, 710 paces;—by an underground channel 54 miles, 247½
paces, on structure above ground 7 miles, 463 paces. Out of
this, in many parts away from the city, in the upper part of
the valleys, it is carried on arched substructure for 473
paces; nearer the city, from the seventh milestone, on a
substructure for 528 paces. In the rest of the work it is
carried on an arcade for 6 miles, 472 paces[68].”
“The Marcian ranks fifth in height, and is at its head even in
level with the Claudian[69].”
“In the year of the building of the city, 719 (i.e. B.C. 44),
Agrippa repaired the three aqueducts—the Appian, the Anio
Vetus, and Marcian—and took care to supply the city with many
fountains[70].”
“[Temp. Nervæ, (A.D. 96)] the Marcian having been enlarged
was carried across from the Cœlian [i.e. its _specus_] to the
Aventine[71].”
IV. THE AQUA TEPULA (B.C. 126).
“In the year 627,” writes Frontinus, “after the building of
the city, when Plautius Hypsæus and Fulvius Flaccus were
consuls, the censors, Cneius Servilius Cæpio and Lucius Cassius
Longinus, took care to bring into Rome and the Capitol the
stream called the Tepulan, from the Lucullan Fields (which some
call the Tusculan[72]).
“The Tepula has its source on the Via Latina at the tenth
milestone, two miles off on the right of those going from Rome.
Thence it was brought by a separate channel into the city[73].”
V. THE AQUA JULIA (B.C. 34).
“Afterwards Marcus Agrippa collected the natural waters of
another stream, at 12 miles from the city on the Via Latina,
(2 miles off on the right of those going from Rome,) and so
intercepted the stream of the Tepula. To the newly-acquired
water the name of Julia was given, from the finder of it;
nevertheless the distribution was so divided that the name of
Tepula was retained[74].
“The course of the Julia runs for the length of 15 miles, 426½
yards. In work above ground 7 miles; out of this in parts
nearest to the city from the seventh milestone (it is carried)
on a substructure for 528 yards; the rest on arched work for 6
miles, 472 yards[75].”
III., IV., V. THE AQUÆ MARCIA, TEPULA, AND JULIA.
“Of these [Aquæ], six within the seventh mile, on the Via
Latina, are taken up into covered _piscinæ_, where, as though
breathing again after their course, they deposit mud. The
Julia, the Marcia, and the Tepula, are joined there; of these,
the Tepula, (which had been intercepted, and joined to the
stream of the Julia,) now receives from the reservoir of the
same Julia its proper quantity, and flows out in its own
channel, and under its own name.
“These three are carried from the reservoirs on the same
arcade.
“The highest of them is the Julia, lower the Tepula, then the
Marcia. These come down towards the Viminal, running together
beneath the ground, on the same level as the Collis Viminalis,
as far as the gate. There they again emerge.
“First, however, a part of the Julia is, at the _Spes Vetus_,
taken out and distributed in the _castella_ on the Cœlian Hill;
but the Marcia, after the Pallantian Gardens, throws off part
of its water into a stream called the Herculanean. This conduit
through the Cœlian, being of no use for the houses on the hill
because at too low a level, comes to an end above the Porta
Capena[76].”
THE PISCINÆ.
To this point, Frontinus tells us, the three aqueducts tend[77], while
from this they are carried on the same arcade into Rome. The ruins
of these remain visible. Some of them are situated a little way off
the south side of the Via Latina, others on the east side of the Via
Appia Nova. Of these, two belonging to the Claudia and Anio Novus are
subterranean, and are now only to be distinguished as mounds of earth,
looking like tumuli. Others are above ground, near that part of the Via
Latina [now the road to Frascati and Tusculum], and close to the _Torre
di mezza via_, or half-way house from Rome to Frascati, just beyond the
sixth milestone of the modern road. Others are at or near the Villa of
the time of Hadrian, called _Sette Bassi_ (which is supposed to be a
corruption of Septimius Bassus), near the same point. All of these are
between seven and eight miles from the City; they are the chief landmarks
in tracing the course of the three aqueducts now to be explained, and
each of the three comes from its own separate source. The Marcia, the
lowest on the arcade, has its origin at the greatest distance from Rome.
The Tepula and Julia have their sources comparatively close to the city.
The Marcia takes its rise from the Simbrivine Hills, as far removed
beyond Tibur to the east as Tibur is from the city, while the latter two
find their way from springs in the volcanic region around the lake of
Albano.
III. MARCIA.
The source of the Marcia is plainly visible, the exact description of
Frontinus pointing to the spot without leaving room for doubt. In one of
the numerous little valleys which run down on the north side of the River
Anio, feeding this stream with their rivulets, the Marcian has its rise.
The lake of S. Lucia[78] in that valley is so called from a small village
situated some distance up the slope; along the bottom of this valley the
Via Valeria passes. This lake is usually, but erroneously, considered as
the source of the Aqua Marcia.
The exact position of the source is about two miles from the village of
Marano, but on the other side of the river, on the right of the valley to
one looking towards the mountains, and there are still at times pools of
water forming here from the springs which emanate from the overhanging
hills. The water now falls into two or three rivulets, which run at the
bottom of the valley into the river Anio.
The aqueduct, however, when it reached the high road from Rome to
Subiaco, along the north bank of the Anio, turned abruptly to the west,
followed the course of the road back towards the city, chiefly passing
the further or hill side of it, but winding somewhat according to the
nature of the ground. After following the road for some seven or eight
miles, it crossed the river (close to the monastery of S. Cosimato) and
then pursued for some six or seven miles the southern or right bank of
the river Anio. Here, at a spot scarcely more than a mile from Tivoli
(_Tibur_), the course of the aqueduct left the line of the river, and
wound its way in a south-westerly direction towards the _piscinæ_ before
referred to; at times on a substructure, and in a few places, where the
valleys were deep, on arches, but for by far the greater distance beneath
the surface.
The line of the Marcia can be clearly traced along its whole length. The
principal source, called Acqua Serena, is a beautiful spring gushing out
from the mountain under the present carriage-road, about seven miles and
a-half before arriving at Subiaco, clear as crystal and very abundant; it
forms a small lake in the valley, and fully realizes the description of
Martial. The old _specus_, which had long been concealed by being a foot
or two under water and overgrown with weeds, was brought to light in 1869
by the engineer of the Aqua Marcia Pia, in making his new works for the
restoration of this beautiful water to use in Rome. He drained the lake
a little, and by that means made the _specus_ visible[79]: this _specus_
is then carried to the cliff of the valley of the Anio (into which the
water from the small lake falls), and then follows the course of the
valley and the river, until it comes to the monastery of S. Cosimato, a
mile from Vico-Varo: here it crosses the river on an arcade of brick.
It there leaves the present road, and then is carried in the cliff on
the other side of the river until it arrives within two miles of Tivoli,
where it again crosses the river (here a deep ravine) on a fine arcade
parallel to that of the Anio Novus, and at a very short distance from it.
There are very fine and picturesque ruins of both these arcades in the
valley called the Valley of the Arches. It then continued in the cliff
by the side of the present road, which is on a ledge of the rock or hill
overlooking the Anio, as far as the old town of Tibur and the Cascades,
behind the present town of Tivoli: to avoid these it follows a serpentine
course, winding round the end of the hill, and has a fine reservoir about
half a mile beyond the town, on the side towards Rome, below the level of
the Promenade of Carciano, by the side of which are considerable remains
of a large reservoir or _piscina_, with the _specus_ running into it and
from it. This large building is divided down the middle by an arcade,
into two nearly equal parts. Some of it is faced with _Opus Reticulatum_
of a peculiar pattern. On the exterior, there are remains of niches and
fountains, a villa of some importance having been built at this spot
to take advantage of the abundant supply of excellent water[80]. The
_specus_ then runs near the cliff below the level of the road to another
extensive reservoir and _piscina_ about a mile further on. There are
considerable remains of a large building erected on a steep slope just
under the cliff, with no upper wall, as the cliff itself supplied its
place; but there is on the lower side a fine wall of considerable extent
and height, built of large square or oblong stones of the construction
called Cyclopean Masonry[81], in this instance differing little from that
of the Walls of the Kings in Rome, except that the stones are rather
larger, the building-material being not tufa, but a kind of calcareous
stone of the country, dug on the spot. This wall has been supposed to be
a portion of the fortifications of the ancient city of Tibur, but for
this there does not appear to be the slightest evidence or probability.
It is simply the natural construction of the material at hand, and
therefore the cheapest wall that could be built for the purpose. No
cement is used, because none was required; these large blocks of stone
require none, and some chippings are used to fill up interstices, as
usual when no cement is used. Again the wall turns the corner at both
ends; it is not part of a large wall but is complete in itself, as the
facing of one side of the reservoir and filtering-place, the interior
of which is built of the usual concrete of rough stone and mortar, and
lined with cement of the kind which holds water, _Opus Signinum_, used
for all the aqueducts. The end is faced with _Opus Reticulatum_, and
there are remains of niches against the wall at intervals. It was also
more ornamented, because it was intended to be the one seen chiefly;
the other side, being near the edge of a precipice, would only appear
from a distance, and the large stones were therefore more effective in
that situation. There is no reason to doubt that the whole was built
together at the time that the Marcian Aqueduct was made, and it was
probably restored by Augustus. It may be doubtful whether some caves in
the cliff, which formed part of the reservoir, were natural or were cut,
and the stone dug out from them. It is altogether a very picturesque and
interesting structure. There may be a question also whether there was not
a branch from this reservoir to the Villa of Hadrian at the foot of the
hill, perhaps a mile lower down.
The _specus_ of the Marcia is visible at the Ponte di S. Antonio over
that of the Anio Vetus; and again, but alone, at the Ponte di S. Pietro,
and it passes the Ponte Lupo with the Anio Novus, Claudia and Anio Vetus.
It then continues, chiefly underground, to the great _piscinæ_ before
mentioned, and thence on the arcade into Rome.
After reaching the City, the branch mentioned by Frontinus, c. 87, as
being carried across the valley from the Cœlian to the Aventine in the
time of Nerva, seems to be the one found during the excavation in 1868,
passing over the Porta Capena at a higher level than the Appia, but
still at a much lower level than the lofty arcade of Trajan, of which
only the bases of the series of piers crossing the valley now remain.
The aqueducts following this line had all to cross the Via Appia, here a
foss-way, on the arch of the Porta Capena. This southern branch of the
Aqua Marcia is probably the one that can be traced along the side of the
cliff of the Pseudo-Aventine, after it had been repaired and brought
again into use, for it must be remembered that at one time, as Frontinus
says, it ended at the Porta Capena.
The conduit and arcade were rebuilt by Augustus, as recorded on the
inscription on his arch at the Porta S. Lorenzo, and in the sixth decree
of the Senate, on the subject of the aqueducts. This branch arcade of
Augustus is there expressly named as distinct from the others, all
needing repairs at the time of this edict. The consuls are charged to see
to “the repairs, at the expense of the city, of the streams, conduits,
and arches, of the Julia, Marcia, Tepula, Anio; also of those streams and
arcades which Augustus Cæsar had rebuilt.”
A branch of the Marcian aqueduct was carried along the _agger_ into
the Prætorian Camp. Some leaden pipes were found there in 1742, with
an inscription upon them, recording that they were of the time of the
Emperor Macrinus (A.D. 217). This probably indicates either a renewal
of the pipes, or an additional supply of water. The garrison in that
camp was twelve thousand men, and a large supply of water must have been
required for their use[82].
The excellent qualities of the Marcian water are mentioned by several
of the classical authors, and were celebrated for a long period; they
were known in England in the time of Shakespeare, as appears from the
following passage in CORIOLANUS, _Act_ ii. _Sc._ 3—
_Brutus loquitur._—“What stock he springs of,
The noble house of the Marcians; from whence came
That Ancus Marcius, Numa’s daughter’s son,
Who, after great Hostilius, here was king:
Of the same house Publius and Quintus were,
That our best water brought by conduits hither;
And Censorinus, darling of the people,
And nobly named so, being censor twice,
Was his great ancestor.”
There is a slight anachronism here. Coriolanus lived in B.C. 489, and the
Marcian aqueduct was constructed in B.C. 145, more than three hundred
years after his death. Marcius Censorinus also, who was twice Censor (the
only Roman who filled that office twice), lived B.C. 294.
In the thirteenth century, the church of S. Bibiana is incidentally
mentioned as being near the arcade of the Marcian aqueduct[83]. In some
excavations made in the year 1871, a portion of the Marcian arcade, built
of the usual large squared stones, was shewn, passing under some high
ground to the north of the Porta Maggiore, within the wall of Aurelian,
in a direction to join the bank on which that wall is built, and passing
between the Minerva Medica and the wall in that part. This is very near
the church of S. Bibiana.
IV. TEPULA.
The sources of the Tepula and the Julia are in the valleys on either side
of the promontory on which the modern town of Marino stands, the ancient
Castrimœnium (under the village of Rocca di Papa). That of the Julia is
on the south side, and almost close under the crater now the Alban Lake.
The Tepula rises near the bottom of the valley which comes down from the
hills in the neighbourhood of Grottaferrata, and along which the Via
Latina passes. This lies somewhat nearer to Rome than the source of the
Julia; but the Julia joined it before it had advanced far, and thus the
expression of Frontinus, “Marcus Agrippa intercepted the Tepula[84],” is
explained. The waters, therefore, flow into the same series of reservoirs
and cisterns which received the Marcian after they enter Rome.
Under the account of the Julia, the _Aqua Crabra_ is mentioned. This is
the little stream into which the water of the Julia and Tepula falls;
which is united at the foot of the hill on which the town of Marino
stands, to another stream called the Marrana, and the united water is now
generally called by the latter name only[85]. Frontinus mentions several
reasons why it was not made use of for supplying the city with water; but
it was brought into Rome in the twelfth century as a small mill-stream.
Frontinus also says that the Tepula had its source at ten miles from Rome
on the Via Latina, with two more miles to the right on a cross-road[86].
Ten miles on the Via Latina brings us near to Tusculum, at the tenth
mile is the Casino de Ciampino, from which starts a cross-road to the
right; and at two miles from that point we arrive at the springs called
Fontanaccio, before reaching Grotta Ferrata, but close under that
village. It follows that the source of the Tepula was at this place, now
called Fontanaccio. The spring comes out under a cliff of the rock of
lava near the road, and has a modern washing-cistern in front of it; but
behind this the ancient work can be seen, with openings into a reservoir
in the cliff. This is probably contemporaneous with the time that the
conduit of the Tepula was made. The supply of water is small, but of good
quality.
As the Aqua Tepula supplied only the Regiones in the northern part of the
city, it seems to have passed into the _castellum_, the remains of which
may still be seen in the city wall near the Porta S. Lorenzo, evidently
built upon an old _agger_ before the Aurelian wall was erected[87]. It,
however, has been a house as well, the lower part only being used as
the reservoir for the water, and the upper part, which is large and
important, for chambers. The front of this house, or _castellum aquæ_,
still forms part of the city wall. It has been much disfigured, and the
old drains walled up during the _restorations_ (!) of 1869.
On the level of the first floor, in which is part of the reservoir,
is a row of corbels to carry a wooden gallery or _hourd_, probably an
external passage for the use of the Aquarii, behind which the _specus_
runs at the same level. Immediately above the line of the corbels which
carried the floor of the gallery or balcony, is a row of large arches;
but these are merely the arches of construction found in most walls of
the period. At the south end of this line of corbels, which mark the
extent of the _castellum_ in that direction, there is an angle, and the
wall recedes a few feet. In this angle is the _specus_, corresponding in
form and dimensions with that of the Aqua Tepula in other parts; it can
be seen entering into the reservoir behind the line of corbels. Within
the wall are the usual marks of a reservoir of water: the tartar deposit
remains visible in the corners of the chambers cut through by the wall
of Aurelian, or by the engineers of the Acqua Felice, whose _specus_
runs behind it on the bank within the wall which formed the front of
the house. The _specus_ of the Acqua Felice is here at rather a higher
level than the Marcian arcade, with the three _specus_ upon it, although
at the “Sette Bassi,” five miles from Rome, and near the _piscinæ_, it
is at a lower level. On the bank just above the level of the ground are
the water-drains (hidden by the restorers in 1869) for carrying off the
superfluous water into a large subterranean drain which runs under the
gateway, and which is still in use for purposes of irrigation.
V. JULIA.
Frontinus states that the source of the Julia was at twelve miles on the
Via Latina, with two more miles added on a cross-road to the right[88].
The twelfth mile is at Frascati; from thence, by a cross-road to the
right, we arrive at the bridge of the Squaricarelli, and at the copious
springs called the Fontanile, exactly two miles from the starting-point
at Frascati. This must, therefore, be the source of the Aqua Julia.
The swampy ground in which the source of the Angelosa or Aqua Julia is
found, is full of springs, like the Lucullan fields, from which flow the
Appia and the Virgo, and from it run also the streams called di Monte
Fiore and la Marrana di Marino.
This ground is on a high level on the Monte Fiore e dell Aglio (the Mons
Algidus of the ancients), or “The hill of flowers or of garlic;” and
the springs come from the gardens of the modern Villa Aldobrandini, at
Frascati. Canina cleared out the ancient _specus_, which had a curved
vault, almost oval (_a capanna_).
This source of the Julia is on the left-hand side of the road from Grotta
Ferrata to Marino, about a mile above the former, and nearly the same
distance below the latter. The water gushes out from the foot of the
rock and passes under the road to a _lavacrum_, or washing-place, at a
lower level on the opposite side of the road, and then falls into the
Aqua Crabra, which passes at the foot of the cliff many feet lower down.
A part of the water of the Julia, before it goes into the _lavacrum_, is
carried to the right in a _specus_ to Grotta Ferrata. This is ancient,
but has been restored to use, so that it looks modern. Below Grotta
Ferrata, the _specus_ has been destroyed in many parts; but remains of it
may be seen close to the ancient fortified villages called Pagus Lemonius
(on the maps Castellaccio, a small castle). It is ten miles on a branch
of the ancient Via Latina, and between the present roads to Frascati
and Grotta Ferrata. In a part of the fortifications of this village is
a _castellum aquæ_, or reservoir of the Julia, and near it part of the
_specus_, on an arcade on the brow of the hill. This _specus_ is built
of rough stone, and faced with a rude early kind of _Opus Reticulatum_,
more rude indeed than might have been expected at its date (B.C. 34), and
not nearly such good work as the Muro Torto, but more like the Emporium.
The reservoir is of the same character, but part of the _specus_ in the
fortifications is carried on brick arches which agree with that date; the
brickwork is not of the time of Nero, to whom it has been attributed.
A _specus_ of rough stone follows the line of the hill to the Marrana,
after the junction of that stream with the Aqua Crabra, close to the
point where the water from that stream enters a tunnel of the Aqua
Julia. After it emerges from this tunnel, it arrives at the _castellum_
or _piscina_ in which the water of the Julia was received before it was
carried on the Marcian arcade. This _piscina_ is about two miles nearer
to Rome, close to the point of junction between the roads to Frascati and
Marino, through Grotta Ferrata, and near to the other _piscinæ_.
Frontinus says that the AQUA CRABRA flowed past the head of the Julia,
but was excluded from it by Agrippa[89]. We find this stream coming
from that part of the hill on which the village called Rocca di Papa is
situated, passing near the head of the Julia at Fontanile, now Angelosa,
and sometimes mixing with the springs there. It has one of its sources in
the grounds of the Villa Torlonia, at Frascati. All these three streams
now fall into the river Anio.
Near Rocca di Papa an arcade, or bridge of ten arches, of silex or flint,
covered with brick, passes over the Aqua Crabra to carry some aqueduct,
probably a part of the Julia. This arcade is called Arcioni, [‘the
arches.’]
There are some remains of another reservoir within the wall of Rome, on
the bank between this and the Porta di S. Lorenzo, which seems to have
belonged to the Julia: the _specus_ of the Marcia, with that of the
Tepula and remains of that of the Julia over it, are visible on an arcade
a little beyond, close to the gate. The lower part of a fine brick wall
with bold buttresses, of the usual character of a _piscina_ or _castellum
aquæ_, are visible, and this faces the present Wall of Rome, almost
touching it, so that this has been built since the _piscina_, but that
not being exactly in the same line it could not be used. The _piscina_ of
the Tepula being on the outer side of the bank or _mœnia_ came into the
line of defence of Aurelian, and was used as part of his wall; that of
the Julia, being on the inner side of the bank, was too much within the
line to be used.
The Castellum Aquæ Juliæ, or chief reservoir of the Julian Aqueduct, is
usually, but erroneously, said to have been the one situated on high
ground near the church of S. Maria Maggiore, where the picturesque ruins
stand, usually called the “Trophies of Marius,” because those trophies
were hung under two of the arches there, until they were removed to the
Capitol. A lofty arcade carrying a _specus_ at a high level passes across
the valley, from the reservoir near the Porta S. Lorenzo to this point.
This arcade is of the first century, built of the fine brickwork usual at
that period, and agrees with the time of Frontinus; but the only aqueduct
that was high enough to have carried water to that spot was the Anio
Novus.
This great reservoir was rebuilt by Alexander Severus, and called a
Nymphæum, being given as such on one of his coins. This name is rather a
vague one; but it is evident, from some excavations made in 1871, that
there were extensive _thermæ_ of the Emperors of the third century near
this place.
From this lofty reservoir the distributing channels may be seen branching
off in different directions, one going to the Thermæ of Titus, towards
the reservoir called the Sette Sale, another going in a different
direction.
This Nymphæum (?) is on lower ground than the outer wall, though still
on ground so high that the only water that could reach it was that of
the Claudia and Anio Novus, of which part of the arcade remains between
it and the reservoir on the high bank. From that point the ground
descends gradually and gently along the line of the _agger_ of Servius
Tullius either way, and still more towards the interior of the city. The
aqueduct, therefore, could not pass underground and then _emerge_ in this
part. The Porta Esquilina of the inner wall was on the same level, or
nearly so. The Porta Tiburtina of the inner wall was near the _thermæ_ of
Diocletian, with a gradual and gentle descent to it along the line of the
_agger_. The only possible explanation of the text of Frontinus is that
the same names of the gates in the inner wall were applied to those in
the outer wall on the same roads.
A piece of leaden pipe, with an inscription upon it, was found at the
Porta S. Lorenzo, which gives the names of Dolabella and Silanus as
Consuls; this fixes the date at A.D. 10, and shews that the Marcian water
was conveyed in leaden pipes at that point in the time of Augustus. The
stone _specus_ was carried over the gate, as we see by the remains of it
in the wall, and the inscription upon it recording repairs by Augustus.
The one upon the leaden pipe is given by Gruter[90].
Another leaden pipe was found by Panvinius on the site of the Prætorian
Camp, with an inscription, given by Gruter[91], which records that it
conveyed the Marcian water to that point.
Three aqueducts are mentioned in other inscriptions found during the
excavations near the railway station in 1869[92]; the _three_ aqueducts
intended can hardly be other than the Marcia, Tepula, and Julia.
The upper one only was excavated; but if the noble Roman princes who
conducted this excavation had dug a little deeper, they would probably
have found the other two _under_ the one that they had discovered. These
three _specus_ must have been carried along and in the _agger_ of Servius
Tullius.
To reach that part of it on the side of which these _cippi_ are found,
they probably went along the side of the road that passed on the south
side of the Prætorian Camp, on which was the gate called Porta Chiusa.
Close to this gate remains of a large reservoir were found in the
researches of 1869 on the bank, with the Wall of Rome carried right
across it; but this part of the wall is medieval, built of old materials,
and it is probable that, originally, the front wall of this reservoir
was included as part of the wall of the city, in the same manner as that
of the Tepula near the Porta S. Lorenzo. This reservoir, with the Porta
Chiusa by the side of it, and the road from it to the _agger_, at the
place where the _cippi_ were found, is now in the garden of the Baron
Grazioli.
VI. AQUA VIRGO (B.C. 21).
This Aqueduct was made by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa to supply water to his
Thermæ, on the south side of the Pantheon, which was the hall of entrance
to them.
Frontinus writes:—
“The same (M. Agrippa) when he had been consul for the third
time, and when C. Sentius and Quintus Lucretius were consuls,
that is, thirteen years after he had brought down the Julia, he
brought the ‘VIRGO’ also, the water of which was collected in
the Lucullan fields[93].
“The Virgo begins on the Via Collatia, at the eighth milestone,
in some marshy places: a cemented wall [_signino[94]
circumjecto_] being placed round it, to retain the bubbling
waters; the source was increased by many other additional
supplies. It comes for a length of 14 miles and 105 paces.
Out of this,—by a subterranean stream 12 miles, 865 paces;
above ground for 1 mile, 240 paces, of which it runs on a
substructure in several places for a distance altogether of 540
paces; on arched work 700 paces. The channels of the additional
supplies of the subterranean stream make 1 mile, 405 paces[95].”
The Virgo has no reservoir, i.e. Piscina ... “The arches of
the Virgo have their commencement beneath the Lucilian (or
Lucullan?) gardens. They end in the Campus Martius, along the
front of the Septa[96].”
The Virgo was the seventh in height as to level (c. 18).
The road now called Via Collatia, or Collatina, where the Aqua Virgo has
its origin, is between the present roads to Tivoli and Palestrina; it
turns off to the left or north of the highway now called Via Prænestina,
just beyond the ruins called Torre de’ Scavi or de’ Schiavi, about three
miles from the city. But this is an alteration; the old road from Rome to
this point in a foss-way may be traced _behind_ the tower in the meadows,
with the subterranean aqueduct running under and in the southern bank of
it, as traced by the respirators or ventilating shafts. There are remains
of very ancient tombs at intervals all along the line of this old road,
which goes straight towards a postern-gate midway between the Porta
Maggiore and the Porta di S. Lorenzo. This must be the Via Collatia of
Frontinus.
Close to this road, at eight miles from Rome, near the ruins of Collatia,
there are several springs in marshy ground, from which the water is
collected in a series of reservoirs, just below the level of the ground,
the vaults over them being sometimes above ground; from these small
reservoirs separate short conduits run to the same point, the great
central _castellum aquæ_, part of which is a cave in a rock, with a
larger semicircular basin built out in front of it, over which passes the
cross-road from the Via Collatia to Salone.
The line of the _specus_ can be distinctly traced from this reservoir
near its source to the city by the respirators over the wells. The
smaller _castella_, or cisterns, at the sources are also still in use.
About four miles from Rome, on the road now called Via Collatia, or
Collatina, a portion of the Aqueduct was rebuilt under Benedict XIV. in
1753, as stated on an inscription upon it. It is here carried across a
shallow valley, on an _agger_ built of rough concrete faced with brick,
for about a quarter of a mile. At the further end is a conduit-head,
or a modern _castellum aquæ_. This is a small oblong building with a
semicircular head erected under Pius VI. in 1788, by Joseph Vai; and the
conduit was continued by him for the length of 175 feet, also stated in
an inscription upon it[97].
From this point there is a branch to the south for a short distance, with
two respirators visible in the field; but this, though appearing like an
additional source, is only a branch leading to an old fountain of a villa.
The main line comes from the north along the bank of the Via Collatia, as
shewn by the respirators, at regular intervals of about a hundred yards.
These are mostly round masses of concrete with round heads; but some are
dwarf pyramids, one of which, numbered “40,” has been rebuilt in 1866.
The surplus water is carried into a brook which runs by it, and receives
its chief supply from it.
The _specus_ or conduit of the Aqua Virgo passes along the line of the
old road in a direct line west, towards the Porta Maggiore, until within
about half a mile from that gate; then it makes a great detour to the
north, passing under the modern Via Tiburtina, and eventually enters Rome
through the Pincian Hill a little to the north of the Spanish steps,
and there is a reservoir for it at the end of a short street called
the Via del Bottino. It then goes to the present fountain of _Trevi_,
passing at the back of the houses in the Via del Nazareno, where it may
be seen in several of the courtyards. In one of these, on the left hand
of the street, is an inscription recording its repair by Claudius[98];
in another, on the right, is an ancient lavatory below the level of the
street. A branch passes under the Via dei Condotti carried in leaden
pipes, enclosed in a brick _specus_; this branch is the one that led
to the Thermæ of Alexander Severus, which were situated to the north
of the Pantheon. The main line supplied those of Agrippa, for which
this aqueduct was made. The Aqua Virgo chiefly supplies the fountains
and houses in the Campus Martius, or lower city, and the main stream
terminated originally in front of the Septa[99], considerably to the
south-west of that fountain. In some excavations made in the summer
of 1871, a portion of it was found in the Piazza di S. Ignazio. This
original termination was at the north end of the Septa, very near the
Pantheon.
This aqueduct was restored by Pope Hadrian I., A.D. 772-795, after it
had been damaged by the Goths. It was afterwards repaired by several
subsequent pontiffs, especially by Boniface IX., A.D. 1389, and by
Nicholas V. in the fifteenth century. It now supplies the fountains in
the Piazza Colonna, erected in 1574; at the Pantheon, restored in 1711;
several others of the seventeenth century; and that of the _Trevi_,
erected by Benedict XIV. in 1730.
Near the source of the Virgo passes an abundant stream, also called
Marrana; but this has mineral properties, and was therefore carefully
avoided in forming the aqueduct for the Virgo. Pliny says[100] that
there was a stream which was abhorred by the Virgo, and for that reason
the water was called the Virgin. This stream was called by him _Rivus
Herculaneus_, some say for its salubrious qualities, because Hercules
was the god of health; others because it was a strong stream. There is
little doubt that this is the stream here described. The same name of
Herculanean is given by Frontinus to the stream now called Marrana[101]
in two places, because it was also a strong stream.
VII. THE ALSIETINA (A.D. 10), AFTERWARDS MADE THE AQUA PAOLA.
Frontinus says of this water, “What could have induced
Augustus, that most careful of emperors, to bring in the water
of the ALSIETINA (which is called Augusta) I do not well know;
for it is not pleasant to the taste, and therefore of no use
for the people. It may be, however, that when the work of
the Naumachia approached completion, in order not to divert
the more wholesome water, he introduced this for the special
purpose, and gave the surplus to the adjacent gardens and
territories.
“It is the custom, however, in the Transtiberine Regio, when
the bridges require mending, and there is no water forthcoming
from the city side, to make use of this for supplying the
public springs, as a matter of necessity.
“It begins in the Alsietine lake on the Via Claudia, at the
fourteenth milestone, about six miles and a-half off on the
right hand. Its course is in length 22 miles, 172 paces, and
over arched work 358 paces[102].”
“It is the lowest of all as regards the level, supplying only
the Transtiberine Regio, and the places adjacent[103].”
“The manner of beginning the Alsietine aqueduct is not
described in the commentaries, nor can it now be found with
certainty; it begins from the Alsietine lake, and then about
the _Cariæ_ receives water from the Sabatine lake also, as the
Aquarii regulate. The Alsietine gives 392 quinariæ[104].”
The lake formerly called “Lacus Alsietina,” now called Lago di
Martignano, is situated on the hills on the western side of Rome, between
the Via Aurelia and the Via Claudia, (not far from the old carriage-road
from Florence to Rome). It is about 679 ft. above the level of the sea;
and as Rome is only 204 ft. at the Porta Maggiore, the lake is 475 ft.
above the level of Rome at that high point. There is another small lake
about a quarter of a mile from, and a little above the level of, the
Alsietina, called Strachia Capra, which has recently been drained by
a tunnel in imitation of the _emissario_ from the lake of Albano. The
water in the Lacus Alsietina has also been very much lowered in the same
manner[105]. In consequence of this reducing of the level of the water,
the _specus_ of the aqueducts are now brought to view, being on the bank
and above the present level of the water, so that they can distinctly be
seen and entered into[106].
To begin with the highest, the _specus_ of the Aqua Paola begins in the
upper lake, and forms a junction with the water from the Alsietina Lake,
near the bank of the latter, at the south end of that lake. The _specus_
of the Alsietina of Augustus is a tunnel cut in the rock[107]. The Lacus
Sabatina[108] is at the elevation of about 523 ft., and therefore 156
ft. below the Alsietina. Augustus drew an additional supply of water
from this lake, and this portion only of the aqueduct of Augustus was
restored by Trajan. The water for this was not drawn from the lake
itself, but from the springs that supply the lake on the western shore,
the side most distant from Rome. Some of the work of the time of Trajan
is visible there. The _specus_ of the Alsietina has been traced to the
point of junction with the Aqua Paola (this water having been restored
to use by Pope Paul III., A.D. 1540), and it still supplies the district
of the Trastevere. It does not appear that Trajan used the water of
the Alsietina at all, but the engineers of Pope Paul evidently did so;
a tunnel, or _specus_, from that lake having been made in the time
of Pope Paul, the entrance to which remains, with the grooves for a
flood-gate[109]. After the junction with the Aqua Paola, the old wells
can no longer be traced; their place is supplied by the constructions
called _respirators_, each of which is a small square structure
surmounted by a pyramid. These are evidently built over the wells, and
very rudely constructed of the stone of the country, worked rough.
When we arrive at the Osteria Nuova,—which is near the site of the
ancient city of Cariæ[110], mentioned by Frontinus, and the old village
of S. Maria in Celsano, the point of junction of the Alsietina and
Sabatina,—there are evident marks of another junction of aqueducts there.
The house itself, now used as an _osteria_ or hostelry (_auberge_), is
made out of an ancient Castellum Aquæ, as is frequently the case with
similar houses in the country round Rome, and sometimes even within the
walls. At about half a mile from this _osteria_, in a hollow, is a white
house called Casale Bianco; and close to this is a fountain, supplied by
a spring which runs into a _specus_. This water, being one of the sources
of the Aqua Paola, passes through the hill at a considerable depth. At
about half the distance between this and the _osteria_ is a remarkable
passage for the Aquarii into the tunnel by a very steep descent, passing
sideways across the _specus_ of the Aqua Paola, and going on to a much
greater depth to the Aqua Alsietina[111]. This passage is 150 ft. in
length from the surface of the hill, and 70 ft. in perpendicular depth,
with ninety steps, of which only a few at the top are visible; the others
are covered with earth. The water still runs through the upper _specus_,
and is still in use, but not through the lower one[112].
From the valley beneath the sloping passage for the Aquarii, near the
Osteria Nuova, Nibby[113] traced the Alsietina as a tunnel cut in the
tufa rock, a part of which he saw near an oil mill. The _specus_ then
followed the low ground from the tenements of S. Niccola, Porcareccina,
Maglianella, and from the Villa Panfili, to the principal gate of the
monastery of _S. Cosimato_ (or SS. Cosmas and Damian in the Trastevere),
where it is stated by Cassio[114] that the _specus_ was found in 1720,
about thirty feet underground. The Naumachia of Augustus is said to have
been near this monastery.
The complaints of Frontinus appear to have been listened to by the
Emperor, and great changes and improvements were made in this aqueduct
under his direction, in the time of Trajan; this is in fact the same
as the Aqua Trajana (see X.), and the water still comes from the Lacus
Sabatina, but not from the Alsietina. In going from Rome, the respirators
can be followed across Monte Mario, and near the high road that passes
over Ponte Molli, to the point of junction about ten miles on the road
to the Cariæ [now Osteria Nuova]. Here the respirators cease; but their
place is supplied by a line of old wells descending into the subterranean
_specus_, which follows the line of the _old road_. This is not always
the same as the new one. The other branch, which supplied the Naumachia,
was the only one made in the time of Augustus. Paul V. repaired this
aqueduct along the whole line, restored it to use, and put up in various
places inscriptions recording this, in which he calls it the Aqua
Alsietina[115]. The last of these is on his fountain at the mouth of the
aqueduct, where the water still gushes out in great abundance, as it did
in the sixth century, when it was observed by Procopius; this is on the
Janiculum, above S. Pietro in Montorio, the highest ground in Rome.
VIII., IX. THE CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS (A.D. 52).
“Afterwards Caius Cæsar, (Caligula,) who succeeded Tiberius,
considered seven aqueducts scarcely sufficient for public
purposes and private amusements, and began two new aqueducts in
the second year of his rule as Emperor, when Aquilius Julianus
and P. Nonius Asprenas were consuls (i.e. A.D. 38), in the year
of Rome 789, which work Claudius in a most splendid manner
finished and dedicated, on the calends of August, in the year
of the city 803 (i.e. A.D. 52), when Sulla and Titianus were
consuls[116].
“To one, which was brought from the springs of Cæruleus and
Curtius, the name of _Claudia_ was given. This one is next in
order of excellence to the Marcian.
“The other, because two streams of the Anio had begun to flow
into the city, so that they should be more easily distinguished
by their names, began to be called _Anio Novus_. It ruins all
the others[117]. To the former Anio the cognomen of _Vetus_ was
added[118].
“The Anio Novus and Claudia are carried from the _piscinæ_ upon
higher[119] arches, so that the Anio is the highest of the two.
Their arches come to an end after the Pallantian Gardens, and
thence they are carried down in pipes for the use of the city.
“But first of all the Claudia transfers a part of its water
on to the arches which are called the Neronian, at the _Spes
(Specus) Vetus_. These, being continued in a direct line
along the Mons Cœlius, are terminated close to the temple of
Claudius. They disperse the quantity which they had received
either about the ‘Mons Cœlius’ itself, or in the Palatine, in
the Aventine and the Transtiberine Region[120].”
VIII. THE CLAUDIA.
“The Claudia begins on the Via Sublacensis[121], at the
thirty-eighth milestone, about 300 yards off the road towards
the left. There are two very large and beautiful springs,
one called Cæruleus, from its blue appearance, the other
Curtius[122]. It receives also the spring which is called
Albudinus, of such excellence, that when there is need of
adding it to the Marcia, the latter loses none of its quality
by the addition. The spring of the Aqua Augusta, because the
Marcian seemed to be sufficient for itself, was turned aside
into the Claudian; nevertheless it was retained as a protection
for the Marcian, but so that the Augustan might be added to
the Claudian, if the channel of the Marcian was not capable of
receiving it[123].
“The channel of the Claudia is 46 miles, 406 paces in length;
of this, 36 miles, 230 paces is by a subterranean course: on
work above ground 10 miles, 176 paces, and out of this on
arched work, in many places in the upper part, 3 miles, 76
paces; and near the city from the seventh milestone, by a
substructure of channels for 609 paces, on arched work 6 miles,
491 paces[124].
“The Claudian was the second in height as to level[125].”
IX. THE ANIO NOVUS.
“The Anio Novus, at the forty-second milestone, on the _Via
Sublacensis_, at _Simbruinum_[126], is taken out of the
river, which, since it has about it cultivated land in a rich
territory, and so very loose banks, flows muddy and turbid
even when uninfluenced by violent rains; and therefore at the
very entrance of the channel is placed a cistern for the mud
(_piscina limaria_), so that the water on its way from the
river to the _specus_ should settle and become clear. From this
cause also when heavy showers come down, the water flows into
the city in a muddy state.
“There is joined to it the _Rivus Herculaneus_[127] which rises
on the same road at the thirty-eighth milestone, in the same
neighbourhood as the springs of the Claudian, on the other side
of the river and the road. This is very pure by nature, but
when mixed it loses the advantage of its freshness.
“The channel of the Anio Novus is in length 58 miles, 700
paces. Out of this 49 miles, 300 paces is by a subterranean
channel;—on work above ground 9 miles, 400 paces; out of this
on substructure or on arched work in several places in the
upper part 2 miles, 300 paces, and nearer the city, from the
seventh milestone, on a substructure of channels 609 paces, on
arched work 6 miles, 491 paces. These are the highest arches,
elevated in some places 109 feet[128].
“Nor was it enough for our Emperor [Nerva] to have restored an
abundant and pleasant supply of water in the other aqueducts;
he thought he saw his way to getting rid of the bad qualities
_even of the Anio Novus_, he therefore ordered the _source to
be changed from the river_, which was now left alone, and taken
instead _from the lock in which_ the water was most pure, and
which _is situated above Nero’s villa on the lake_ (_super
villam Neronianam Sublaquensem_[129]);” i.e. at Subiaco, now a
medieval castle and a modern town.
“But the water of the Anio Novus often spoilt the rest, for
since it was the highest as to level, and held the first rank
as to abundance, it was most often made use of to help the
others when they failed. The stupidity, indeed, of the Aquarii
was such that they introduced this water into the channels
of several others where there was no need, and spoilt water
which was flowing in abundance without it. This was the case
especially as regards the Claudia, which came all the way for
many miles in its own channel perfectly pure, but when it
reached Rome, and was mixed with the Anio, lost all its purity.
And thus it happened that most of the streams were not in fact
helped at all by the addition of the extra water, through the
want of care on the part of those who distributed it[130].”
THE NERONIAN ARCHES.
“Amongst those abuses which seemed to require reform, may
be mentioned what took place regarding the supply to the
Cœlian and Aventine hills. These hills, before the Claudian
was supplied to them, were accustomed to use the Marcian and
Julian; nevertheless, when the Emperor Nero gave them the
Claudian raised to a greater height on the series of arches
extending to the Temple of Claudius, where it was distributed,
the older streams, instead of yielding an increased supply,
were lost altogether. He made no new castella [for the
Claudian], but used those which were there, and which
retained their names, although the water brought to them was
different[131].”
THE RIVER ANIO.
The highest source of the river Anio, or Aniene, is in a gorge in the
highest part of Mount Cantaro, about 63 miles from Rome. This spring
never fails in the hottest and driest weather, and is always cool; it
is situated in the close or (_serra_) of St. Antonio, and is called
_La Canala_, or the canal at the gate of the small castle or fortified
village of Filettino. Pliny says[132] that it rises in the territory
of Treba[133]. In going from Filettino towards Trevi the road has an
ancient pavement, and on the left-hand side is a magnificent substructure
of Cyclopean character called _Mura Saracine_, against the cliff. In
1857 Signor Gori saw some of the large stones of this fine ancient
substructure thrown down to the banks of the stream, to make the
foundations of a small bridge across it. The stream receives several
accessions from other springs in its course, two from a cave called
Pertusu, the small limpid stream called Suria, on the hill of Trevi,
and another called Capo d’Acqua. The Anio thus augmented falls in two
cataracts, or cascades, near Pertusu, and passes under the Ponte delle
Tartare with much violence. This bridge is a natural arch of rock formed
by the force of the water piercing it. The river then passes on through
a gorge in the mountain-pass in small waterfalls, especially at a place
called Pendema, where in 1855 an ancient mosaic pavement and a wall of
reticulated masonry were found.
At the two bridges of Communacchio (_comune acqua_), where an
amphitheatre of mountains and the castle of Valle-pietra are situated,
another stream coming from the mountains of the Trinitá and Autore, the
highest in that district, joins the Anio.
In the basin of Valle-Pietra, two fine cascades fall over the massive
rocks and unite in a single stream. From the bridge of Communacchio
a road leads to Arcinazzo, situated in a large plain, surrounded by
the mountains, with several roads leading into it. One of these from
Palestrina, passing by Piglio, is an ancient paved road, and some persons
consider that an arcade of Cyclopean masonry, near Guarcino, carried an
aqueduct to the _thermæ_ there. On the south-west side of this plain
are the ruins of an imperial villa, commonly called of Nero; but two
inscriptions found there upon leaden pipes in 1860, shew that it was of
Trajan[134]. Great quantities of marble were dug up here in the time of
Pius VI., A.D. 1795.
The river passes below the monastery of S. Benedict, called the Sacro
Speco, and a little lower down, the monastery of S. Scholastica, both
of which stand on the brink of a precipice, over which the Anio makes a
large and picturesque waterfall, and passes under the bridge of S. Mauro
or Piedilago, where the rocks approach so closely as to leave only a
narrow passage, which was formerly closed by a gigantic wall, forming a
long lake or lock. The stream now passes through the ruins of the wall,
the demolition of which was caused in 1305 by two ignorant monks, who
pierced a hole at the foot of the wall, the result being that the whole
country was inundated up to the walls of Rome, and serious mischief done,
as recorded in the anonymous chronicle of the monastery[135].
On the banks of the lake are the ruins of a villa of early character,
called Casa de’ Saraceni and Carceri, with a _nymphæum_ and baths. At
Pianigliu, are other ruins on an enormous scale.
Subiaco is more than two thousand feet above the level of Rome, and
all the foregoing description applies to the part of the river above
Subiaco. In all this upper part of the stream, the river Anio has very
much the character of a large mountain-torrent rushing through the rocks
with great violence. It usually appears to be a clear stream of beautiful
water, excepting in time of floods, when the clayey soil is brought down
into the stream and makes it muddy. To guard against this evil, Nero made
his great lakes, which do not correspond at all to the usual English
idea of a lake, by which is commonly understood a considerable sheet of
water, like the Swiss lakes or the lakes of Westmoreland, Scotland, and
Wales. The Roman word _lacus_, and the modern Italian _lago_, may mean
a lake of this description also; but it includes a reservoir of water
of any kind. We are expressly told in the _Breviarium_, at the end of
the Catalogue of the Regionaries, that a _lacus_ is a well, _puteus_,
and the numerous _lacus_ of that Catalogue are the same as the _castella
aquarum_ of Frontinus, within the walls of Rome. These justly-celebrated
lakes of Nero are in fact portions of the river Anio, intercepted in a
gorge of the rocks about a mile above Subiaco, and are formed by cutting
away some large pieces of the rock on each side in large masses, and with
these building a great high and massive wall across the stream, forming
an effectual barricade or dam to stop the water and raise it to the level
of the top of this great wall. There were three of these walls across
the stream, over each of which the river fell in tremendous cascades.
The first loch (_lacus_) commenced at the Mola di Ienne, where the first
great wall of enclosure is situated. The second at the cascade of the
river, under the great monastery of S. Benedict, and called “the Sacred
Specus,” from a cave in which the saint is said to have lived, extends
to the bridge called Ponte di S. Mauro, where the _specus_ of Trajan
commenced. The third is from the Ponte di S. Mauro, through a gorge,
where the wall of enclosure is visible. Here was the Piscina Limaria of
Claudius, and the _specus_ of the Anio Novus originally commenced at the
Emissarium, restored by Cardinal Barberini. This was made by Claudius,
but was abandoned by Trajan, because the earth from the adjoining fields
had fallen between the river and the _specus_.
The Villa Sublacensis of Nero was below the level of the upper lake or
loch, as mentioned by Frontinus. This was just above the present bridge
called S. Mauro or Piè-di-lago, which seems to be made upon the two ends
of the dam. This dam, wall, or barricade, was quite 150 feet above the
surface of the water in ordinary times. The bridge is still 144 feet
above the water by measurement, and the _specus_ is nearly ten feet
higher. This _specus_ or conduit is cut in the rock of the cliff on the
side of the valley, at the level at which the water originally stood in
this lake or loch; the wall was a few feet higher, in order to force a
portion of the water to pass through the _specus_ before the rest fell
over the cascade. There are ruins of the _piscinæ_ on the bank where
the _specus_ began, and of the villa of Trajan on both sides of the
loch, with the well-known brickwork and _Opus Reticulatum_ as facings
for the walls. These magnificent cascades still remain, being a natural
formation; but as the bed of the river is very deep, they are much
concealed by the banks, and the shrubs upon them. The great walls or dams
of Nero and Trajan being brought out to the edge, the cascades falling
over them must have had a much finer effect, although the natural site is
extremely grand and most picturesque; in fact it is celebrated among all
the landscape painters of Italy, the scenery about Subiaco being among
the finest of its kind of river and mountain scenery that is known. The
enormous reservoirs or lakes, or lochs of Caligula and Claudius (commonly
called of Nero), cover the space between the natural cascade and the
outer wall of rock artificially constructed, over which the water was
made to fall. When the ignorant monks in the fourteenth century made an
aperture in the great wall or dam, the force of the water soon enlarged
it, and washed the whole structure away, leaving the great masses of
stone or rock, of which it had been built, scattered in the stream below
as if they were natural rocks, where they still remain. The object of the
monks was to release their fields adjoining to the monastery above the
falls from a temporary flood.
The _specus_ is nearly six feet high, and only sixteen inches wide; the
men must have cut it standing sideways. There are apertures into it at
intervals now open, and there probably always were such openings for
the use of the _aquarii_ to keep the course clear. The _specus_ which
Frontinus calls _subterraneus_, although that is _literally_ true, does
not mean exactly what we now call a tunnel; but this _specus_ is cut
in the rock of the cliff, with a few feet of stone only as an outer
wall to it, and in this manner it is continued along the edge of the
valley of the river Anio for many miles, always on the left side of
the river in going towards Rome. An old road runs by the side of it,
not now used for carriages, but remaining as a cart-road only; this
must be the Via Sublacensis of Frontinus. Another road runs along the
right-hand side of the valley, and is the one now in use: this is the
Via Sublacensis Neroniana of the time of the Empire. The valley varies
in width very much, in some parts it is three or four miles wide; this
is the case where the springs of the Marcia and the Cerulean Lake gush
out from the rock under the _diverticulum_ of the Via Valeria or present
carriage-road, on the right-hand side of the valley.
The lowest of the three lakes of Claudius above Subiaco was circular, the
rock being cut away to a half circle on each side of the stream; into
this great basin the grand cascade fell from the second lake. The lowest
lake or loch was comparatively not very deep. It seems most probable that
the lowest reservoir was intended to serve for the Aqua Claudia. The
_specus_ has not at present been traced quite so far; but it is found
a little lower down, above the modern paper-mill. This is more than a
hundred feet below the level of the Anio Novus. It may be that this was
one of the springs that fell into the Anio, and was intercepted for the
aqueduct. It is probable that the same was the case with the Anio Vetus,
as we know it was with the Marcia; but as the water from the springs
sometimes ran short in dry seasons, the Anio Novus was taken from the
river itself, a part of which was turned into it from the great lake or
loch. For this reason that water was always more abundant than all the
rest, and was used to supply the deficiency in case of need, as Frontinus
tells us. This _specus_ can be entered and examined; it is here a tunnel
made in a rock of soft stone, with fissures filled with clay. The
_specus_ is lined with brick, and covered with large flat tiles, placed
at an angle, so as to form a roof sloping down to the two sides from the
ridge in the middle. There are inscriptions recording repairs by Cardinal
Barberini, nephew of Urban VIII. This _specus_ is that of the Anio Novus,
constructed by Claudius; that of Trajan is about half-a-mile above the
town of Subiaco, and on the right-hand side of the river Anio, not on the
left, as the Anio Novus is.
The thirty-eighth milestone on the Via Sublacensis was found by Fabretti
_in situ_, and the thirty-eighth milestone in the Via Valeria, now at
Arsoli, is said by Gruter[136] to have been formerly at _La Sonnoletta_,
or _ad fontem Somnulæ_: so that the two sources of the Claudian water,
called Cæruleus and Curtius, were at the lake now called S. Lucia, in the
territory of Arsoli; and the source called Albudinus is the _first_ of
the four springs now called _Acque Serene_, while the other springs of
the same name formed the _Aqua Marcia_.
The _Piscina Limaria_, referred to by Frontinus as erected by Claudius
for filtering the stream, at the entrance of the Anio Novus, at the
forty-_second_ mile[137] on the Via Sublacensis, is visible at the
_Parata della Cartiera_ of Subiaco. This _piscina_ is not covered over,
but open at the top, and is excavated in the rock of the bed of the river
Anio, with a great declivity and with four cascades to throw down the
sand, wood, and weeds brought down the river, and so to purify the water;
but as it was still liable to become muddy in the time of floods, Trajan,
according to Frontinus, excavated another _specus_ in the rock of the
mountain near the Ponte di S. Mauro, where the great wall of the lake was
situated[138].
The _specus_ of the Claudia seems to have been carried on the right-hand
side of the valley as far as Vicovaro, about half-way to Tivoli, and then
across the valley on an arcade, and carried on under the Anio Novus, and
above the Marcia and Anio Vetus. All of these seem to be at different
elevations on the side of the hill to the left of the valley, until they
arrive at another valley crossing this, called the Valley of the Arches,
about two miles from Tivoli, where they were carried across upon arcades.
On these ancient arcades, or out of the materials of them, modern bridges
have been made, both at Vicovaro and in the Valley of the Arches. The
ruins of these splendid arcades are among the finest and most picturesque
ruins of the Roman empire.
After passing the bridges across the valley of the Anio, the Anio Novus,
Marcia, and Anio Vetus are continued along the side of the hill in what
may still be called the cliff of the valley of the Anio, to _near_ the
cascades at Tivoli, at different levels, the Anio Novus considerably
higher than the others. To avoid the cascades here the aqueducts wind
round the end of the hill. In going out of Tivoli to the promenade of
Carciano, on the side towards Rome, there is a large college of the
Jesuits on the left hand, the _specus_ of the Anio Novus passing under
this, and through a wine-cellar. About a quarter of a mile out of the
town, two _specus_ are visible on the side of the hill above the road or
promenade, and these may be traced at short intervals for miles, with
openings into them in several places. The lower one is the Marcian,
passing in a more direct line, and further from Tivoli, and is generally
cut in the rock as a tunnel; the upper one is the Anio Novus, and is in
some places faced with brick or with _Opus Reticulatum_, where it has to
cross an opening. The Aqua Marcia here passes at a lower level below the
road, with reservoirs at intervals, as already described.
At about three miles below Tivoli, and half-a-mile after passing one of
the great reservoirs of the Marcia at the lower level, the Anio Novus
is carried on an arcade across a valley and a small stream, at a place
called after the arcade Arcinelli. The great Villa of Hadrian is nearly
under this at the foot of the hill, perhaps a mile lower down. This
was supplied with water by branches from the aqueducts, but without
interfering with the main streams, which went on at the high level still
at least five hundred feet above the level of Rome. From this high
level the aqueducts led gradually down in a serpentine course, crossing
several narrow valleys or gullies through the hills, along which some
mountain-stream flows far below. At two important points, the aqueducts
have to be carried across such valleys or gullies on fine arcades or
bridges. The one nearest to Tivoli is called the bridge of S. Antony,
from a small chapel made in the Middle Ages, probably in the fourteenth
century, out of a portion of the _specus_ of the Marcia, in one of
the chambers of a _castellum aquæ_ belonging to it, the rest of which
has been destroyed. The _specus_ of the Anio Vetus under it has also
been destroyed, but the arcade is preserved for the use of horses and
foot-passengers. This bridge is about eight miles from Tivoli. There is
no carriage-road to it, but a tolerable path for horses or donkeys; it is
one of the finest and most picturesque objects on the whole line of the
Aqueducts, and is about 100 ft. above the water in the stream below which
is called the _fosse_ of S. Antony. This valley or gorge in the mountain,
with the bridge across it, is not easily seen from any distance; but
the site may be indicated by a medieval castle with a tall square brick
tower, which is a conspicuous object for miles. This is distinctly seen
from the bridge, and as it stands at the mouth of the valley, that object
must be seen from thence on looking up the valley. This bridge is a
really grand work; it is 373 ft. long, 16 ft. wide, and about 104 English
feet high. The dome of S. Peter’s at Rome is visible at a long distance
from the hill above the medieval castle.
Following the direction of the aqueducts towards Rome for about a mile,
along a very rough cross-country path, we arrive at a good carriage-road
from Rome to Poli, and about a mile beyond that is another magnificent
structure, as fine and more perfect than the last, called Ponte Lupo,
one of the greatest works of all the Roman aqueducts. There are not
so many open arches as at the bridge of S. Antony, but a greater
extent of substructure and wall at each end, and the height above the
mountain-stream is even greater. Several of the arches seem to have been
filled up for greater strength, at an early period; it is all work of
the first century. Here the two _specus_ of the Claudian and the Anio
Novus are perfect, one upon the other, and serve as a lofty parapet to
the road for horses, which passes across the valley along the side of
them, the _specus_ occupying about one-third of the width of the bridge.
The two _specus_ seem to have been first brought together at this point,
and afterwards continue one upon the other for the rest of their course
into Rome, interrupted only by the _piscinæ_ and _castella aquarum_ at
intervals.
There are ruins of another arcade across the valley at a lower level by
the side of this grand bridge, only a few yards from it, which can only
be that of the Marcia. The Anio Vetus appears to be carried across under
the Claudia and Anio Novus at a much lower level, and it is probably for
this reason that the arches are closed instead of being left open. They
pass upon four other bridges over the streams of S. Gregory and of the
Inferno, before they arrive at the _piscinæ_. They all four meet at this
point, and then diverge again for miles. This splendid work is about
ten miles from Tivoli, half-a-mile from the carriage-road, five or six
miles from the Villa of Hadrian, and out of the line of the direct road
to Rome, but very near the road from Rome to Poli. After passing these
great works, the aqueducts are continued at their respective levels in
the direction of La Colonna and of the _piscinæ_, and are carried in
tunnels through the hill, but these tunnels do not appear to be of any
great length; they merely pass through part of one side of the hill. They
bring us to the _piscinæ_, which are about six miles from Rome, where the
arcades begin, and from this point the Marrana follows the same direction
in the bed of the Almo, winding about but never very distant from the
arcades, and always receiving the surplus water. This stream is here
divided into two branches, one of which goes through Rome and into the
Tiber at the Pulchrum Littus; the other passes through the valley of the
Caffarella, and falls into the Tiber near the church of S. Paul beyond
the walls, as is explained under the head of the Aqua Crabra and the
Marrana.
The _specus_ of the Anio Novus is always faced with brick or with _Opus
Reticulatum_; it is carried _upon_ the Claudian arcade, and the one
_specus_ always rests upon the other: what applies to one applies to both
after the first junction. The aqueduct of Claudius has a stone _specus_
carried on a stone arcade for the last five miles into the city. It
was begun by Caligula, and carried on by his successor; this portion
was completed in fourteen years, a very short period for so enormous an
undertaking. The Anio Novus was the most abundant of all the aqueducts,
as stated by Frontinus[139].
The arches of aqueducts, stretching for miles across the open country
and entering Rome at the eastern angle, are the first objects to attract
the attention of strangers on approaching the city. These are the arches
of the Claudian aqueduct, built of large square stones, with the angles
chamfered off, and carrying the streams of the Aqua Claudia and of the
Anio Novus.
Of the _Piscinæ_ mentioned by Frontinus, the ruins of one remain at the
place now called Porta Furba, where the aqueducts just mentioned meet
again about two miles from the city. The lofty Claudian arcade passes
over the Marcian arcade at this point, at one of the numerous angles,
as it had previously done at the Torre Fiscale. From the Porta Furba to
Rome, the Aqua Felice is carried against the side of the Claudian, or on
the piers of the Marcian, as most convenient, frequently crossing from
one to the other on arches over the road. The _specus_ of the Felice
is built in the roughest manner of old materials taken from the other
two arcades. The Anio Vetus also passes underground at the Porta Furba.
Immediately after the entrance of the Claudian _specus_ into Rome at the
extreme east end, in the gardens of the Sessorian Palace (now S. Croce),
there are remains of at least four reservoirs or _castella aquarum_
before it reaches the Porta Maggiore[140].
Nero was the immediate successor of Claudius, A.D. 54-69, and carried on
the conduit into the city, on what are still called the arches of Nero,
which are faced entirely with brick, and some of the most beautiful
brickwork in the world. So gigantic a work as these aqueducts could not
have been completed in the lifetime of a single emperor, however large
the number of slaves he may have employed upon it.
THE NERONIAN ARCADE.
The arcade of Caligula and Claudius, which is entirely of stone,
terminates at the Porta Maggiore, the Esquilina of Frontinus. The work
of Nero includes the arches within the city from the wall close to the
Porta Maggiore to the great _castellum_ on the Cœlian, over the arch of
Dolabella. The _specus_ of the Anio Novus is easily distinguished from
the _specus_ of the Claudia, as the latter is of squared stone.
The arcade of the Claudia has been considerably repaired with brick, and
the arches filled up in several places with brickwork of the time of
Septimius Severus and Caracalla, A.D. 193-217. This may be distinctly
seen in that part of the arcade which is between two and three miles from
the city, near the Porta Furba. It was again repaired by Pope Hadrian I.
in 780, and several times by other Popes.
The remains of these two aqueducts, one above the other, are admirably
seen in their course along the top of the Porta Maggiore; and at this
spot their relative levels with regard to the Marcia, Tepula, and Julia,
are also clearly exhibited, the latter entering the wall close to the
gate, and almost at right angles to it. Thus, at one view, we are able
to see the _specus_ of five out of the nine aqueducts, mentioned by
Frontinus, actually remaining. A sixth, the Anio Vetus, also passes under
the Walls of Rome at the same point; the _specus_ is half underground,
and now concealed by the _restorations_ made in 1869.
An inscription upon the face of the _specus_ itself in the wall of the
city over the archway, records that Claudius the son of Drusus, caused
to be brought into the city the water of the Claudian conduit, from the
springs called Cæruleus and Curtius, from 45 miles distance; also the
water of the Anio Novus, from 62 miles, at his own expense[141]. These
dates here given correspond with the year 798 of Rome, or A.D. 45.
Great repairs were made by Vespasian and Titus to the Claudian aqueduct.
The distance from which the Anio Novus is brought, according to this
inscription[142], is 62 miles, which agrees with Frontinus[143].
The architect of the Claudian is believed to have been Claudius Annius
Bassus, mentioned by Tacitus as chief engineer at Carthage under Marcus
Silanus, the father-in-law of Caligula. The remains of the tomb of Bassus
may be seen near Vicovaro. The tomb of another architect and his family,
on the side of the _agger_ upon which the arcade of Nero stands, near the
Porta Maggiore, was excavated in 1865. From its situation immediately
under the _Neronian Arcade_ against the bank on which it stands, there
seems no doubt that this Tiberius Claudius Vitalis, whose name is
inserted on the front of the tomb, was the architect of the arcade; and
it does infinite credit to him, for it is one of the finest pieces of
brickwork in the world.
This arcade, commonly called the Arches of Nero, carried the _specus_ of
the Claudia[144] and Anio Novus combined. It first crosses the foss on a
double arcade, one upon the other, to give more height across this wide
and deep inner trench; it is then carried on a high bank, and therefore
on a single arcade only to the Lateran, and on another bank across the
foss between the Lateran and the City to the Cœlian, and along the north
side of S. Stefano Rotondo to the reservoir and _piscina_ over the arch
of Dolabella. This arch was the principal entrance to that part of the
Cœlian in which the _Claudium_, or courts and temple of Claudius, were
situated. There are magnificent ruins of a large _castellum aquæ_ over
this arch, faced with the beautiful brickwork of Nero; in part of this
the small church of S. Thomas in Formis has been made.
Another large subterranean reservoir remains perfect on the west side
of this lofty brick _castellum_ of Nero. This consists of three large
vaulted chambers under the garden between the church of the twelfth
century and the small monastery of the Redemptorists, now (1872) all
belonging to the Villa Mattei, or Celimontana. There is, through the
crown of each of the vaults, a circular opening, or well, closed by a
stone, which can be moved at pleasure for letting down buckets into the
water; it is still used for the purpose of irrigation. From the low
level of this reservoir, it must have belonged to the Aqua Appia. By the
side of the garden over this, and above ground, in a line with the Arch
of Dolabella, is a wall of the first century, faced with reticulated
masonry, probably part of the _castellum_ of that period, as new
reservoirs have been built there for each successive aqueduct that came
to this point. The highest, being that of Nero, was 50 feet above the
level of the ground.
Thence the water was distributed in different directions, one branch to
the Claudium[145], and thence again to the _stagnum_ or pool originally
of Nero, but afterwards retained under the Colosseum; a second to the
Palatine, passing down the western side of the Clivus Scauri opposite
to the church of SS. John and Paul. Then, after making one of the usual
angles, it was carried across the valley on the arches attributed to
Nero, but in this part really after his time, the lower portions of some
of which remain. The third branch was to the Aventine. The plan for this
was not carried out until the time of Trajan, when a lofty arcade was
made across the valley from the Cœlian to the Aventine, passing over the
Porta Capena above the Aqua Appia, which had previously been made in the
same line, and with new reservoirs for it, generally by the side of the
old subterranean ones. One great reservoir under the Cœlian occupies a
considerable part of the space between the cliff and the present road,
and is now turned into a gardener’s house. The excavations made there
in 1868 have been described in the account of the Appia; the piers of
the tall brick arcade of Trajan remain on both sides of the road leading
direct to the north end of the ruins of the Piscina Publica, on the other
side of the Marrana, under S. Balbina; the upper part of this great
building is of the time of Trajan. On the side of the Cœlian are remains
of another large _castellum_, of two stories, of the same period. There
are also remains of this aqueduct on the brow of the Aventine Hill, near
the church of S. Prisca, in front of the monastery, now in a vineyard
opposite to the Palatine, and overlooking the Circus Maximus.
The water both of the Anio Vetus and of the Anio Novus was of inferior
quality, and was used chiefly for watering gardens, and for the more
common purposes in the city; the Anio Novus, being higher than any of
the others, and the water very abundant, assisted all the rest. Trajan
endeavoured to improve the quality of the water by excluding the more
turbid sources, and using only the most pure, as we learn from Frontinus,
who was the person charged with the execution of the work[146]; and this
inscription was put up, IMPERATOR CAESAR NERVA TRAJANVS AVGVSTVS.
The waters of the Claudian and Anio Novus are stated by Frontinus[147] to
have been united after their entrance into the city, and then distributed
to all the fourteen Regiones. Several subdivisions must therefore have
been made at different points, and, wherever a division or a junction
took place, a _castellum aquæ_ was required. The union of the two streams
was probably made in the large reservoir at the angle of the Sessorian
gardens and City wall near the Porta Maggiore. Another great division
was over the Arch of Dolabella; one branch was afterwards carried on
by Domitian to the Palatine upon the lofty arches, some of which still
remain, and into his reservoir at the south-west corner of the Palatine
Hill, part of the baths or _thermæ_ of his palace. The branch over the
Via Appia to the Piscina Publica and the Aventine was not made until
the time of Trajan and Hadrian. A great deal of work was done to the
aqueducts at that period. The amazement of the people at seeing copious
streams of water pouring over the arid heights and slopes of the
Aventine, is recorded by a contemporary author. This was the branch of
which a portion remains near Santa Prisca. The branch from the Palatine
to the Capitol, of which two of the tall piers remain[148], was made by
Caligula; this is sometimes called a bridge across the Forum. To convey
the water to the other Regiones, the older conduits or _specus_ were
probably used.
In the fourth century, there were great complaints of the stealing of the
Aqua Claudia by the farmers through whose lands it passed, and several
strenuous decrees against this practice were issued by the Emperors
Arcadius and Honorius, A.D. 400. Similar edicts were issued repeatedly by
these Emperors, and by Constantine[149].
The springs called Cæruleus and Curtius, to which (when united in this
aqueduct) the name of Claudia[150] was given, as Frontinus tells us, are
situated in a valley on the south side of the river Anio, thirty-eight
miles from Rome, and eight miles below Subiaco (which is forty-six miles
from Rome), and not more than half a mile from the source of the Marcia.
Several streams issue from the rock under the present carriage-road, a
_diverticulum_ or branch of the ancient Via Valeria, and form a beautiful
small lake of very clear water having a distinctly bluish tint. Another
of these springs, the Albudinus, is still considered as equally good with
the Marcia, or nearly so. The Anio here flows at the opposite end of this
small valley, and both the lakes are now emptied into it. This valley
is in the territory of Arsoli, so called from a neighbouring village on
a height overlooking it, and the lake of S. Lucia. The spring called
Curtius is another of these streams.
This valley is admirably calculated for the sources of aqueducts; the
ground is full of springs of beautiful water, and the watery meadows have
only to be dammed up a little to form lakes or reservoirs. Probably the
water from these springs, which now runs into the river, was entirely
intercepted and carried into Rome in the aqueducts. The Anio is in
general such an abundant stream, that these additional springs would
scarcely be missed, although in time of severe drought the water did
sometimes run short[151].
The _piscinæ_, mentioned by Frontinus, were large subterranean reservoirs
and filtering-places, at seven miles from the old City or from the inner
gates, and six from the outer gates: the portion of Rome outside of the
walls of _the city_ was considered as the suburbs only, until the time of
Aurelian, when the City was made to extend to the outer wall, then newly
raised and fortified, but this was long after the aqueducts were made.
The present appearance of these two _piscinæ_ of the Claudia and the
Anio Novus is merely that of earthen mounds or tumuli. They are situated
about midway between the old Via Latina, which now in this part is made
into a carriage-road to Frascati, and the Via Appia Nova. The distance
from one road to the other is about a mile, and the _piscinæ_ are about
half-a-mile from each. The stream, which was originally a branch of
the Almo, and now conveys the water of the Marrana and the Aqua Crabra
united, runs near them, and received the surplus water from all the
aqueducts on this line. It is divided into two parts near the _piscinæ_,
one branch going through the valley called the Caffarella, and falling
into the Tiber near the church of S. Paul’s outside of the walls; the
other keeps near the arcades and reservoirs, and coming through Rome,
passes on the south side of the Cœlian. This branch had come from the
_piscinæ_ nearly parallel to the aqueducts; it winds about a good deal,
but is never distant from the line of the latter, now on one side and
then on the other. A further account of this will be found under the head
of the Marrana, in the second part of this chapter.
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER IV. PART I.
THE NINE AQUEDUCTS IN THE TIME OF FRONTINUS.
Having sketched the general history of each one of these aqueducts,
and the circumstances under which they were erected, it remains to
refer briefly to some of those details which Frontinus has handed down
to us, of the mode of management of the water. These details apply
equally to the whole series. First of all, the position which he and his
predecessors in office held was a very important and honourable one.
He had the entire responsibility of the water supply, and the absolute
control of seven hundred men employed to attend to their proper working,
to clean the _piscinæ_, and to repair the channels and pipes when needed.
Of these, 240 were appointed by the City, and the remaining 460 by the
Emperor. The channels in which the main stream of water was carried, and
the reservoirs (_castella_), and the _piscinæ_, were always lined with a
particular kind of cement, called _Opus Signinum_.
It has also been observed that the base of the channel is constantly
broken up by inequalities, or dips, if they may be termed so, as
if purposely introduced to agitate the water in its course, and,
consequently, to aërate it. No doubt also the inequalities, provided
they were rugged, would tend to check the passage of any earthen matter
held in solution by the water. Of most importance, however, and shewing
still more remarkably the engineering qualities of the builders of the
Aqueducts, were the ventilating-shafts which were introduced at proper
intervals. Such shafts were often used as wells also, to let buckets
down for water, and steps were cut on the sides for the _aquarii_ to
descend and remove obstructions. At about every half-mile the _specus_
forms an angle to break the force of the water, and at such points there
is usually a reservoir also. Advantage was taken of these angles for
the later aqueducts to be carried over the older ones, as at the Torre
Fiscale and the Porta Maggiore. These precautions, combined with the
system of _Piscinæ_, rendered the water constantly fresh, pure, and
wholesome.
From some considerable remains of the _Piscinæ_, the system can be
clearly made out. The building consisted of four chambers, two beneath
and two above. Supposing, for the sake of illustration, in the annexed
diagram, the letters [Illustration: A B C D] represent the four chambers.
The channel of the aqueduct, coming at a tolerably high level, enters the
chamber A. Thence the water passed (possibly over a large waste-pipe)
into the chamber beneath, B. Between B. and C. there were small holes
communicating through the wall (possibly provided with fine grating).
Through the roof of C. there was a hole, and the water passed upwards,
of course finding the same level in D. at its exit, as in A. at its
entrance; on leaving the _piscina_ the water was carried off into another
_specus_. By the aid of sluice-gates the water could be transferred
direct from chamber A. to chamber D. Access was obtained by an opening
to the chambers beneath, and the mud was from time to time cleaned out.
Curious details of the sluices, &c., have been found; but it is not easy
to determine their age, as the aqueducts have undergone so many repeated
alterations.
As a typical example of the size of the _specus_, or channel of the
Aqueducts, the Marcian may be taken, which measures in the opening five
Roman feet in height, two and a-half in breadth, and the thickness of the
wall on each of the two sides one foot. The roof of the Marcian being
surmounted by the Tepulan and Julian, no great solidity was needed; but
so far as can be ascertained, the roofs were generally of considerable
thickness, to prevent, as much as possible, the heat of the sun spoiling
the coolness of the water. The channels and general structure of the Anio
Novus and Claudian were larger in every respect, those of the Tepulan and
Julian somewhat smaller, as shewn by the accompanying diagrams.
It will be seen that the period of the construction of the nine aqueducts
which have been described, embraces some four centuries, as Frontinus was
employed in surveying them towards the close of the first century after
Christ, and the first aqueduct was commenced more than three centuries
before the Christian era. If we omit the Alsietina, which was on the
other side of the river, and which ought scarcely therefore to be taken
into account, the order of level follows almost exactly the order of
construction, the only exception being that of the Virgo. This increase
of height of level as each new aqueduct was added, is pointed out by
Frontinus in his eighteenth chapter.
It will be perhaps convenient to have the several aqueducts already
described represented in a tabular form, shewing the dates when they were
made, and the order as to level, together with the distances which they
traversed.
The aqueducts, especially those which were mostly underground, it will be
observed, made long detours, as compared with the direct line of road;
as, for instance, in the first on the list, the distance by road was but
eight Roman miles, but that by the channel of the aqueduct was eleven
miles. The total length of all the channels of the aqueducts, constructed
in less than four centuries, was upwards of 285.610 Roman miles, of which
242.697 miles were cut beneath the surface, and 42.918 miles carried on
substructure, arched or not, as the case required, above the surface of
the ground.
| LENGTH OF CHANNEL.[152]
Order as | Above Under
DATE. No. to Level. NAME. | ground. ground.
-----------+-------+--------+----------------+------------+-------------
| | | | _m._ _p._ | _m._ _p._
B.C. 312 | I. | 8th | AQUA APPIA | 0 60 | 11 130
| | | | |
” 263 | II. | 6th | ANIO VETUS | 0 221 | 42 779
| | | | |
” 145 | III. | 5th | AQUA MARCIA | 7 463 | 54 247½
| | | | |
” 126 | IV. | 4th | ” TEPULA | 7 0 | 6 0
| | | | |
” 34 | V. | 3rd | ” JULIA | 7 0 | 8 426½
| | | | |
” 21 | VI. | 7th | ” VIRGO | 1 240 | 12 865
| | | | |
” _c._ 10 | VII. | 9th | ” ALSIETINA | 0 358 | 21 714
| | | | | ? in channel
| | | | |
A.D. 33 | VIII. | 2nd | ” CLAUDIA | 10 176 | 36 230
| | | | |
” 33 | IX. | 1st | ANIO NOVUS | 9 400 | 49 300
-----------+-------+--------+----------------+------------+-------------
_Totals according to computation of Frontinus_ 42 918 242 692
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Of the above, six are carried to Piscinæ on the Via Latina.
{ V. JULIA }
The three { IV. TEPULA } carried from the same reservoir
{ III. MARCIA } on the same series of arches.
The two { IX. Anio Novus } carried on higher arches, which end
{ VIII. Aqua Claudia } after the Pallantian gardens.
The one II. Anio Vetus, has a reservoir on the
Via Latina.—(_Fron._, c. 19.)
SUPPLY.
As given in the Measured
No. Commentaries. at the head.
----------------+-------------+-------------+
| _quin._ | _quin._ |
I. APPIAN | 841 | 1825 |
| | |
II. ANIO VET. | 1541 | 4398 |
| | |
III. MARCIAN | 2162 | 4690 |
| | |
IV. TEPULAN | 400 | 445 |
| | |
V. JULIAN | 649 | 1206 |
| | |
VI. VIRGO | 652 | 2504 |
| | |
VII. ALSIETINE | —— | —— |
| | |
VIII. CLAUDIAN | 2855 | 4607 |
| | |
IX. ANIO NOV. | 3263 | 4738 |
| | |
----------------+-------------+-------------+
12,363 24,413
SUMMARY OF DISTRIBUTION.
Outside Inside No. of
No. City. the City. Regiones served. Castella.
----------------+---------+---------+-------------------------+---------
| _quin._ | _quin._ | |
I. APPIAN | 5 | 699 | II. VIII. IX. XI. XII. | 20
| | | XIII. XIV. |
| | | |
II. ANIO VET. | 573 | 1508½ | I. III. IV. V. VI. VII. | 35
| | | VIII. IX. XII. XIV. |
| | | |
III. MARCIAN | 261½ | 1472 | I. III. IV. V. VI. VII. | 51
| | | VIII. IX. X. XII. XIV. |
| | | |
IV. TEPULAN | 114 | 331 | IV. V. VI. VII. | 14
| | | |
V. JULIAN | 206 | 548 | II. III. V. VI. VIII. | 17
| | | X. XII. |
| | | |
VI. VIRGO | 200 | 2304 | VII. IX. XIV. | 18
| | | |
VII. ALSIETINE | 392 | —— | { Outside the city and | —
| | | { the XIV. in the |
| | | { Naumachia. |
| | | |
VIII. CLAUDIAN | 685 | | { United within the |
| | 3498 | { city, and distributed | 92
| | | { throughout the XIV. |
IX. ANIO NOV. | 728 | | { Regiones. |
| | | |
----------------+---------+---------+-------------------------+---------
3164½ 10,360½ 247
| DETAILS OF DISTRIBUTION.
|
| Imperial. Private. Public.
-------+----------+---------+---------
| _quin._ | _quin._ | _quin._
I. | 151 | 194 | 354
II. | 66½ | 490 | 503
III. | 116 | 543 | 439
IV. | 42 | 237 | 50
V. | 18 | 196 | 383
VI. | 509 | 338 | 1167
VII. | 354 | 138 | —
VIII. }| 1793 | 1506 | 1012
IX. }| | |
-------+----------+---------+---------
3049½ 3642 3908
| DETAILS OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE.
|
| Castra. Public Works. Munera. Laous.
-------+----+---------+----+---------+----+---------+-----+---------
| | _quin._ | | _quin._ | | _quin._ | | _quin._
I. | 1 | 4 | 14 | 123 | 1 | 2 | 92 | 226
II. | 1 | 50 | 19 | 196 | 9 | 88 | 94 | 218
III. | 4 | 41 | 15 | 41 | 12 | 104 | 113 | 253
IV. | 1 | 12 | 3 | 7 | — | — | 13 | 32
V. | 3 | 69 | 10 | 181 | 3 | 67 | 28 | 65
VI. | — | — | 16 | 1380 | 2 | 26 | 25 | 51
VII. | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | —
VIII. }| 9 | 149 | 18 | 384 | 12 | 107 | 226 | 482
IX. }| | | | | | | |
-------+----+---------+----+---------+----+---------+-----+---------
19 325 95 2312 39 394 591 1327
Buecheler, in his edition of Frontinus, pp. xi., xii., xiii., explains
the mathematical part of chap. 78 differently from Poleni and
Dederich[153].
In order to regulate these several aqueducts, so that deflection in any
part should be easily ascertained, means were provided for estimating
the abundance of the water, and in this respect for its minuteness and
clearness the treatise of Frontinus stands unrivalled, when compared
with any work of ancient or even modern times. The mode of measurement
is to take the area of a vertical section of the water flowing along
the _specus_,—the object being to test each aqueduct by itself, and to
see whether its proper supply was given or not. Had he been called upon
to estimate the actual supply of the water, and not the relative, other
points would have had to be taken into account, namely, the average fall
of the aqueduct, from which to gather its velocity. On this, however, he
does not touch. It must be borne in mind, also, that when Frontinus was
appointed, the system had been long in force, and he had to follow the
traditions and rules of his office. He made no revolution, he was simply
a reformer. He tells us that in examining the books belonging to the
office, he found certain measures given to certain aqueducts; these he
had to verify, and a great part of his work is taken up in the account
of his operations. To begin with, he is much troubled as to the measures
employed. The _digitorum modulus_ (i.e. a pipe with a given measured
orifice) is uncertain. There is the square digit and the round digit
(in other words, a square pipe of which each side is one digit, and the
round pipe of which the _diameter_ is one digit). As an instance of his
accurate and clear expression, it may be worth while to quote his words
on this point[154]:—
“The measurement of the _Moduli_ is taken either by digits or
inches. In Campania and in many places in Italy, the digit is
used; in Apulia, the inch[155]. The digit, as all agree, is the
sixteenth part of a foot; the inch, a twelfth part. But just as
there is a different usage of inches and digits, so also there
is no uniformity in the simple computation of the digit itself.
There is one which is called the square digit, another the
round digit. The square digit is _three-fourteenths greater_
than the round; the round is _three-elevenths smaller_ than the
square, because the angles are taken off.”
In this we obtain a key to most of his calculations[156], because they
depend throughout upon the computation of the area of the circle.
The base measure chosen was the “quinary,” so called (according to the
most natural derivation) because its diameter was five quarter-digits.
And to this basis are reduced some twenty different _moduli_, to which
the names were given of senary, septenary, octonary, denary, duodenary,
and so on up to centenary. The reduction of these seems to be tolerably
accurate according to the system which he pursues, and making allowance
for transcribers’ errors. But either the relation of the circumference
to the diameter of a circle had not been worked out to the same extent
to which it has been in later times, or Frontinus considered the ratio
adopted sufficient for his purpose. One of his calculations stands thus:
he is measuring the Appian at a point where it is joined by a later
branch; it had been assigned in the register as giving 841 quinaries: he
says—
“I found the depth of the water five feet, and its breadth one
foot and three quarters, which gives an area of eight feet and
three quarters. This is equal to twenty-two _centenaries_ and a
_quadragenary_, which make 1,825 _quinaries_, or 984 quinaries
more than is given in the Commentaries[157].”
Each centenary is shewn elsewhere to contain 81 quinaries and a fraction,
and therefore 22 would give 1,792 in quinaries and a fraction. The
quadragenary is marked to contain 32 quinaries and a fraction. Together,
therefore, the 1,825. Now the area of each quinary, according to the
system of Frontinus, would be the square of its diameter (i.e. 1¼ digit),
multiplied by ¹¹⁄₁₄ (the ratio already ascertained). This equals ²⁷⁵⁄₂₂₄,
which, multiplied by 1,825, produces 2,240½ digits (nearly). Finally, the
area of 8¾ square feet, reduced to square digits, gives 2,240[158].
This calculation illustrates his mode of computation from absolute
measure of the water; but the ordinary way was to affix the _moduli_,
which were of brass, or rather of bronze, to certain openings. Provided
the _modulus_ was placed perfectly level, the water flowed at its
ordinary rate; and when the _moduli_ were sufficient to prevent the water
rising in the reservoir or channel, and, on the other hand, not too
numerous or too large to reduce the mean level of the water, the sum of
them represented the amount of water.
We next come to the question of distribution. On examining the registers,
Frontinus says that he found that there were assigned to the nine
aqueducts 12,755 quinaries; but it appeared that the distribution
amounted to 13,470 quinaries. To account for this discrepancy, the whole
were re-measured. In the annexed table the measures of each aqueduct
are given separately, and by adding together the results of each, as
calculated from the data which Frontinus gives of the water measured at
the head, the total, as the table shews, comes to 24,413 quinaries. The
fact was that in process of time some of the channels had fallen into
decay, and the water was wasted. In other and more numerous cases, it
had been abstracted by persons for their own use without authority; in
addition to which there were no doubt errors in the computation, which
had crept into the books, and if we are to believe Frontinus, these
errors had been turned to the profit of his predecessors.
In the table of distribution will be seen the number of quinaries
distributed outside the wall of the city; next, the Regiones which they
serve within the city; thirdly, the measure of water so distributed
within the city, and the number of _castella_, or reservoirs, used
for that purpose. These reservoirs, at least such as remain, will be
described in the several Regiones in which they occur. That over the arch
of Dolabella on the Cœlian Hill, and the so-called Castellum Aquæ Juliæ
on the Esquiline, are the most prominent. Many, no doubt, were of much
smaller size, and merely large cisterns, as the total number was 247.
The supply of 13,470 quinaries is thus accounted for. Outside Rome 3,164
quinaries were distributed, inside 10,306; of that outside Rome 1,718
quinaries were used “in the name of the Emperor,” that is, to supply the
imperial villas and gardens, &c., while 2,345 were charged to private
persons. Inside Rome 1,707 were charged to the Emperor for his palaces,
&c., while private persons used 3,847 quinaries, leaving 4,401 quinaries,
which were for the “Public Service.” These, together, account for the
9,955 distributed within Rome.
In the details of the distribution, we learn how much water was employed
in the palaces, &c., in the service of the Emperor and his household
(_nomine Cæsaris_), how much was carried into houses for the use of
private persons, and how much was used in public buildings and the
public reservoirs or fountains which were established in all convenient
positions, and generally accessible to the population.
It may, perhaps, be interesting to examine more carefully the
distribution for the “Public Service.” We have four classes of
recipients, and we know from Frontinus how much was served to each class
from each aqueduct. There were first of all 19 _castra_ or barracks, in
which the army were kept when not out on service, and in which also the
guards were stationed. These required in all 279 quinaries. There were
next, 95 different Public Establishments which used 2,401 quinaries, and
39 theatres and places of entertainment (_munera_) which used 386 more.
Lastly, there were 591 open reservoirs (_lacus_) for the service of all
comers, using 1,335 quinaries. These reservoirs were what we usually
speak of as fountains, and some hundreds are in use to this day, many
probably on the site of the older ones. There were very stringent laws
respecting their use. Heavy penalties were inflicted upon anyone dipping
a dirty bucket or other vessel into the reservoir; there were also laws
respecting the “overflow,” as the fountains of course were constantly
running. These were the most important to keep in order, as all the
poorer classes depended entirely upon them for their supply of water.
The more wealthy had water brought into their own private reservoir in
the court, with buckets and windlasses for drawing the water to the upper
story, and this is the case to the present day[159].
These details, while giving us an insight into the social state of
the city, go to shew how thoroughly the supply of the water was
under control. The pipes supplying every one of these 744 points of
distribution were all registered, and their sizes being known, the system
of computation, as explained by Frontinus, was brought into play: thus
every part was checked, and any irregularity could be traced to its
source.
It may be asked what amount of supply, in gallons, would the water
represent, in order that a comparison can be made between the supply
of towns at the present time, and that of Rome at the time at which
Frontinus wrote. The answer is not easy. As said before, we have not
sufficient data for an accurate determination; still we may attempt an
approximate estimate. It is easy to compute the section of water given
by the 24,805 quinaries. This being just upon 120 square feet, we can
form some notion of the vast quantity, if we picture to ourselves a
stream twenty feet wide by six feet deep, constantly pouring into Rome
at a fall six times as rapid as that of the river Thames. It has been
computed by a French engineer that, together with one or two additional
aqueducts which were added between the time of Trajan and Aurelian, the
supply of water to Rome was 332,306,624 gallons _daily_. If we assume
the population to have been a million souls—and it is scarcely probable
that there were more—we find that the rate was 332 gallons per diem for
each person. In our own day we consider 40 gallons sufficient, and many
think this excessive, including the use of water in manufactures, &c. No
wonder, with the facilities for drainage which the rapid Tiber afforded,
and with this plentiful supply of really good water, the great city was
rendered, in spite of overcrowding and an unhealthy situation as regards
its neighbourhood, comparatively free from those epidemics which are so
fatal in all densely-populated towns.
One part of the system which Frontinus seems to have been the first to
adopt was this: he had 247 _castella_, or main reservoirs, from which
the pipes were carried to the smaller cisterns and fountains, and he so
arranged the supply of water to these that the several aqueducts could
be interchanged. A net-work was established, so that when one channel,
from whatever cause, failed, whether from requiring to be cleansed or
repaired, another could supply its place. But this was not all. He tells
us, cap. 87, that many of the parts of the city which were dependent on
one source for their supply, were, by careful distribution of the water,
able to avail themselves of a second in case of need; and he gives as an
instance that the Marcian was made available in the Aventine, by being
carried across from the Cœlian[160]. He also speaks of the improvements
which were made in keeping the water pure. Hitherto a very slight shower
had made many of the streams muddy, although at their source they were
pure[161].
The least pure, however, before the time of Trajan, were the Anio Vetus
and Anio Novus. This arose from the banks which, being soft, gave way,
and the stream, even in fair weather, thus became muddy. He points out
that hitherto, by the mixture of the waters which had been adopted to
prevent failure in supply, proper skill had not been shewn, and these new
streams were allowed to destroy the purity of others[162]. His object,
therefore, was to keep the pure streams separate, and in addition to
that, arrange that they should be used for drinking purposes only; while
the water which was less grateful to the taste, and which was subject to
be at times muddy, should be used for cleansing the city, or watering the
gardens, or other ordinary purposes, which it might fulfil equally with
the fresher and purer water. In considering the supply of water to our
large towns, which is one of the great problems which at the present time
has to be solved, it is not too much to say that—the plan adopted by the
Emperor Trajan, by the advice of Frontinus, the head of the _aquarii_,
and of that department of the government of Rome which had charge of
the aqueducts, the importance of which in that climate can hardly be
over-estimated—is worthy of more attention than it has received[163].
THE CURATOR AQUARUM.
The care of the aqueducts was assigned by Augustus to a Curator Aquarum,
of whom Marcus Agrippa was the first, and held the office for life.
Frontinus, to whom we are indebted (as we have seen) for nearly all
that we know respecting the early history of the aqueducts, held this
office under Domitian, A.D. 94; he remained in office under Nerva, wrote
his treatise at that time, and died under Trajan, A.D. 107. The office
continued to exist till the third century, in the time of Diocletian,
when it was superseded by the magistrates called _Consulares Aquarum_,
a title changed in the fifth century into _Comes Formarum Urbis_. These
several magistrates had 700 servants, charged with the superintendence,
repair, and distribution of the water from the aqueducts, divided into
_familia publica_ and _familia Cæsaris_; the former, comprising 240
persons paid by the State; the latter, 460 paid by the Emperor. Agrippa
supplied the city with 700 _lacus_, 105 fountains, 130 _castella_ for
distributing waters, and 170 gratuitous baths for public use. These
structures were adorned with 400 marble columns, and 300 statues of
marble or bronze. After the devastations caused in the Gothic wars, under
Vitiges and Totila, only the most important aqueducts were restored,
either by Belisarius or Narses. Ruin and neglect again undid much of what
had then been restored to use. At the beginning of the ninth century, the
only aqueducts supplying water were the Appian [I.], and Marcian [XII.],
then called Jobia or Iopia, by corruption from “Jovius,” the name assumed
by Diocletian.
During both the eighth and ninth centuries, indeed, various repairs for
maintaining the aqueduct of Trajan [X.], which carried water from the
lake Sabatinus (di Bracciano, Acqua Paola), are mentioned by Anastasius;
and in 786 the “Jovia” aqueduct was restored by Hadrian I. In the twelfth
century, the Aqua Lateranensis is mentioned as still in use, being that
part of the Claudian aqueduct carried upon the arcade called the Arches
of Nero near the Lateran, where the _specus_ is very conspicuous. The
aqueduct of Trajan [X.], and that of Agrippa [VI.], continued to supply
water, though but scantily, for about two centuries later. The Appia [I.]
has long been supposed to have been gradually stopped up by the deposit
of clay, and thus rendered useless[164]; and so total was the failure of
all these waters in the fourteenth century, that the population (said
to have been not more than 17,000 during the absence of the Papal Court
at Avignon) were without any supply of running water, except from the
Tiber[165]. The first restoration, in the fifteenth century, was that of
Agrippa [VI.], by Nicholas V., whose aims and efforts were renewed by
Sixtus IV., and by later Pontiffs. Sixtus V. [Felice Peretti] determined
to restore to Rome the water then supposed to be the Marcia, but really
of Hadrian [XIII.] The arcade of the Claudian [VIII.] and Anio Novus
[IX.], was the most magnificent of all, and conveyed its several streams
along a distance of forty-six miles. This had been restored by Vespasian
and Titus, by Trajan, Septimius Severus and Constantine; but, in the
greater part, especially within the first few miles from Rome, the
existing stone arcade is of the time of Claudius, with repairs in the
brickwork of the Flavian emperors. At the beginning of the ninth century,
it was certainly still serviceable, and was known by the name Forma
Claudiana. The piers of this arcade were used by the engineers of Felice
to carry that _specus_ on the part near Rome; but the greater part of the
Marcian arcade, and considerable parts of the Claudian, near Rome, were
used as a stone-quarry by them. The channels through which the Anio and
the other streams flowed, were the first, 9 ft. in height and nearly 3
in breadth, the second 6 ft. by 3, as seen in their ruins at the Porta
Maggiore. The more ancient portion is not in brickwork, but of enormous
squared blocks of tufa and peperino.
The popular notion that all these aqueducts were a mere waste of money,
arising from the ignorance of the ancient Romans of the simple fact
that water will rise to its level, is altogether erroneous. Vitruvius
gives directions for taking the levels for carrying water through
valleys, where, he says, there should be standing or upright pipes
(_columnaria_,), now called respirators, to let off the confined air
(_spiritus_[166]), and explains how to bring the water on by earthenware,
lead, and even leather pipes.
Within the last few years a large leaden pipe of great antiquity, not
less than two feet in diameter, was found under the Via de’ Condotti,
encased in ancient brickwork, evidently shewing that they were afraid
to trust to the strength of the lead. The force of the water running in
a strong current from such great distances, required to be broken at
frequent intervals, by being turned at a sharp angle, and then allowed
to return again to its course by another angle. This arrangement occurs
continually along the line of the aqueducts, generally at each half mile,
with a _piscina_ or a _castellum_, or both filtering-place and reservoir,
at each of these angles. The great object of constructing these
magnificent aqueducts was to bring the water to the highest levels in the
city, from which it descended by a succession of reservoirs (_castella
aquarum_), some with _piscinæ_ or filters, others with fountains, each
one below the level of the preceding one. The lower town along the
valley, or Campus Martius, was also supplied by other aqueducts at a much
lower level. The ancient Romans had abundance of leaden pipes to convey
the water to the baths or _thermæ_, and bronze stop-cocks, as may be seen
at Pompeii, and silver ones for the emperor; but they had no pumps. From
each _castellum_ there were pipes to supply the neighbouring baths or
palaces, with moderate pressure; also wells or cisterns in the courtyard
of each house, which had frequently a fountain. On the Janiculum, the
water of the aqueduct passing from one _castellum_ to another, has
sufficient force to turn several mill-wheels.
A letter of King Theodoric, printed in Cassiodorus[167], addressed to the
Roman Senate, enjoins them to assist Joannes in his enquiries after those
who have diverted the water from the aqueducts for their own uses, and
those who have stolen the brass and lead, or those who have helped them.
This proves that they were not destroyed by the Goths, and that they were
in use in the sixth century.
CHAPTER IV., PART II.
THE LATER AQUEDUCTS.
X. SABATINA, A.D. 110; TRAJANA AND PAOLA, A.D. 1540.
The Aqua Sabatina came from the springs which supply the lake Sabatinus,
now called di Bracciano (in the Middle Ages it was, and is still often
called, Anguillara), on the side opposite to Rome, about twenty-four
miles from the city, in a tunnel at a considerable depth. It arrives at
the line of the tunnel of the Aqua Alsietina in about three miles. (See
Aqueduct VII.)
The line of this aqueduct, which is chiefly subterranean, can be traced
backwards by the respirators of Paul V., who repaired it, from his
fountain on the Janiculum in Rome across Monte Mario to La Storta, and a
little beyond it to the junction of the roads from Viterbo and Bracciano.
Here the present road follows a winding course for the sake of better
gradients, but the old one (_Clodia_) followed a more direct line in a
cutting through the hill, to the left of the present road, as may be seen
by the old paving-stones at intervals; and here, instead of the clumsy
respirators of Paul V., are wells only, one of which is near the present
road at the junction. The respirators are built over old wells, and serve
to shew that Paul V. restored the _specus_ from La Storta to Rome only in
this part. There are no respirators beyond that point for some distance,
but the _specus_ may still be traced by the wells descending into it.
About two miles further on, this _specus_ is carried on an arcade across
a valley, and it may be traced from thence to the point where Nibby
explored it in 1826, near the lake of Bracciano. From the Osteria Nuova
(fifteen miles from Rome) to La Storta (ten miles from Rome), the rough
pyramids continue along the line of the aqueduct, and at the Osteria
itself there are two of different dimensions close together at the end
of the house or _castellum aquæ_; one is nearly double the size of the
other, and both are of very rough construction. Probably one of these is
of the time of Trajan, the other of the time of Pope Paul; these wells,
with the smaller pyramids over them, are continued to near La Storta;
here a change takes place, and the respirators are modern, as has been
said.
Procopius expresses his amazement at the quantity of water thus brought
to the top of the Janiculum, and poured in torrents over the whole of the
region of the Trastevere. This is still the case, and the fountains in
front of St. Peter’s and in the gardens of the Vatican, are also supplied
from this aqueduct. The water is so abundant that it is even brought over
the bridge and supplies a fountain on the other side.
Paul V. also mentions (in his inscription at the fountain above S.
Pietro in Montorio) that it had been previously restored by one of his
predecessors, Hadrian I., A.D. 774. This was after it had been damaged
by the Lombards under Astulfus, as recorded in the Pontifical Registers
of Stephen III., Hadrian I., and Gregory IV., in whose time (A.D. 830)
the work was completed. The Saracens again destroyed it in 846, and it
was again restored by Nicholas I. (A.D. 860). It continued in use in the
fifteenth century; but in the sixteenth it was much out of repair, and
the branch to the Janiculum almost entirely failed. That to the Vatican
continued to flow in 1561, and was repaired by Pius IV., as recorded
on an inscription in the garden of the Vatican. In 1618, it had become
almost entirely ruined, and was restored in a more thorough manner at
great expense by Paul V., a member of the wealthy Borghese family, from
whom it is now commonly called the Aqua Paola. The Orsini family, to whom
the lake Bracciano belonged, contributed 2,000 ounces of water daily
from that lake. Hadrian I., who had made the first great restoration of
this water-course, was a Colonna, so that three of the greatest medieval
families of Rome have contributed towards it.
The cascade which now falls down the face of the Janiculum, in a
_specus_, turns the water-wheels of three mills in its course; this is
mentioned by Procopius, they having been destroyed by the Goths, and
their place supplied by other mills made in the Tiber by Belisarius,
which continued in use for a long period. The ruins still visible in the
river, opposite the mouth of the Cloaca Maxima, are supposed by some to
have belonged to these mills. They were of wood only[168], and may have
been built on the stone foundations; but these ruins in the river more
probably belonged to the fortifications at the head of the Port of Rome,
where there was a chain across the river to prevent boats from being
carried down by the rapid stream into the Port[169].
Immediately outside of the Porta S. Pancrazio the _specus_ forms the
boundary of the beautiful garden of the Villa Pamphili-Doria, on the
northern side, for about a mile. It is faced with fine reticulated work
of the time of Trajan, excepting where it has been clumsily repaired with
brick in the time of Paul V., and it has a wall built upon it. Shortly
after passing the limits of the garden, it arrives at the old junction
or fork where the stream was divided into two branches, one going to
the fountains in front of S. Peter’s and the Vatican, the other to the
great fountain rebuilt by Paul V. above S. Pietro in Montorio, as before
mentioned. In this part the _specus_, being above ground, had been much
mutilated, and the engineers of Paul V. found it more convenient to
change its course and make a new _specus_ for a short distance, than to
repair the old one. The ancient reservoir and the fork in the _specus_
were abandoned, and new ones made about a hundred yards off, on rather
a higher level. The old reservoir or _castellum aquæ_ was turned into a
farm-house, by piercing the walls with windows and doors, and putting
on a new roof. The original arrangement for the separation of the great
stream into two smaller ones may still be seen in the farm-yard. The old
_specus_ is here just below the level of the ground, with its reservoir,
but there is an opening into it. A portion of it can also be seen under
the Villa Spada, just within the Porta di S. Pancrazio. From the point of
junction, or rather of division, to La Storta, and nearly all the way to
the lakes, the _specus_ is underground; but the line of the branch added
by Trajan can be traced by the respirators as far as the junction, ten
miles from Rome, where, in the year 1830, an inscription[170] was found
on the Via Claudia, near the tavern of La Storta, stating that Trajan had
carried this water into the city at his own expense in A.D. 109. In the
inscriptions put up by Paul V. after his repairs, A.D. 1611[171], the
Alsietina, Sabatina, and Trajana are all considered as the same.
XI. TRAJANA OR HADRIANA[172] (?), (A.D. 120).
“In the time of the Emperor Nerva the health of the eternal
city was sensibly improved by the increased number of
castella, public works and buildings, and cisterns. Nor was
his generosity less for the benefit of private individuals,
so that those who had previously timidly obtained water in an
unlawful manner were now allowed to do so by his favour. Lest
some of the waters should perish uselessly great cleanliness
was adopted, and there was better ventilation, and the causes
of the bad climate for which the city was formerly infamous
were removed. I must not pass by the necessity for a new
distribution of the waters; but this, with the increased
quantity we have added, can easily be arranged, that is, when
the work is completed[173].”
These and other passages in the work of Frontinus shew that great works
were carrying on under his direction, not then completed, their object
being to improve the quality of the water, and to supply an additional
quantity in case any of the existing aqueducts should fail, as they
did occasionally, and to increase the power of distributing it, with a
view to improving the climate. This is a proof that Malaria existed at
that time[174], and that the best remedy for it was an abundant supply
of water in the hot weather, for which the subterranean aqueducts were
most useful. The improvement of the Aqua Alsietina, and the addition of
the Sabatina, were not sufficient for both these purposes; and, as they
supplied the district of the Trastevere only, this could not be all that
was intended by Frontinus in describing the great works begun by him
under Nerva, carried on by Trajan, and completed by Hadrian. The only
work which will correspond to this account is the great aqueduct called
by modern writers the Aqua Alexandrina, and erroneously attributed to
Alexander Severus only.
The sources of this aqueduct are about three miles from Gabii in a watery
meadow, nearly under La Colonna, the ancient Labicum. The reservoir of
the Aqua Felice is in the same meadow, very near that of Hadrian. Several
of the springs that supplied that of Hadrian were intercepted by the
engineers of the Aqua Felice, who mistook these springs for those of the
Aqua Marcia, shewing their ignorance of the line of the aqueducts. One of
the streams, which is rapid and has a considerable body of water, is not
used, because the water is of bad quality, and is so full of chalk that
it is a petrifying stream. The first central _castellum_ and _piscina_
of Hadrian remains nearly intact, lined with the usual brickwork of
that period, but much disguised in outward appearance. It is divided in
the inside by a rough stone wall, as was frequently the case; the upper
chamber to it has an external staircase added, and windows pierced in
it, giving it now the appearance of a mere farm-house. Here the _specus_
is perfect, and from hence it goes at first on a substructure, then on
an arcade across the fields, and along the line of arcade to the Cento
Celle. The part near the reservoir is destroyed, as is the opposite
end near that place, but great part of the arcade in the intervening
portion remains nearly perfect, and is one of the finest arcades of
the aqueducts, extending for miles across the country between the Via
Gabina and the Via Labicana. In some places it is double, one arcade
over another, to cross a low valley or a stream. At about a quarter of
a mile from the source, the _specus_ is open in two places, so that a
man can walk along it, being nearly six feet high and three wide. Small
openings have been left on the sides of the _specus_ at regular intervals
to let the chalky water escape; and in falling from above it has left
the marks of a small cascade in each place, in the form of stalactite, a
solid deposit of chalk or lime or tartar against the side of the piers,
down which it ran. These petrifactions continue all along the line as
far as Cento Celle, and near that point there is a part where the stones
and bricks of the arcade have been carried away for building-materials,
and the masses of hard chalk remain standing up from the ground, in
small pyramids, having very much the appearance of concrete respirators
belonging to a subterranean aqueduct; but this appearance is deceitful.
There is no pipe in them; they are merely petrifactions formed by the
deposit of the chalk from the water.
By the side of the line there are some fine _piscinæ_ and reservoirs,
of _Opus Reticulatum_, at intervals, belonging to the time of Trajan
or Hadrian. Some of the arches near the sources seem to be earlier. The
brickwork is so fine that it appears more like the work of Nero; but most
of the work agrees well with the time of Hadrian, and Visconti states
that an inscription of Hadrian[175] was found at the reservoir in his
time, towards the end of the eighteenth century, and given up to the
Borghese family, the proprietors of the ground, who also drained the
lake of Gabii, with the aid of Canina the architect. This inscription is
believed to have been sold to the French, with other things.
The character of the construction of the _castella_, or reservoirs, does
not agree with the time of Alexander Severus, but suits perfectly well
with those of Nerva, Trajan, and Hadrian, whose works are so well known.
It is work of the first or second century, not of the third. It does not
follow the line of the Via Gabina, but is carried at once to the south of
it, towards the Via Labicana, and passes nearly parallel to it between
those two roads until it crosses the Via Labicana at five miles from
Rome, at the place called Cento Celle.
The bad effect of the petrifying stream was noticed by the engineers of
the Aqua Felice, and, as that stream was carefully excluded by them, it
now runs to waste through the meadows. This discovery was probably made
before the third century, and the _specus_ being then found to be choked
up with stalactite, was restored to use on a higher level by Alexander
Severus. Although the _castella_, or reservoirs, are all of the time
of Trajan and Hadrian, the _specus_ and the arcade to carry it is of
two periods, the later portion of it being of the third century. The
principal intention of this aqueduct has been originally to supply the
great villa of Hadrian at Cento-Celle, but a branch of it does appear to
have been brought into Rome. Although it is very difficult to trace it
for the last two miles, this may arise from the general use of all the
aqueducts near Rome as quarries, by the engineers of the Aqua Felice.
In the excavations made in 1871, in the high ground near the Minerva
Medica, between the Porta Maggiore and the Porta di San Lorenzo, by
the side of that portion of the Marcian arcade that has been mentioned
as found there, was also part of another arcade of an aqueduct of the
third century, which may have belonged to this, and it was in that
neighbourhood that the inscription belonging to the aqueduct of Severus
was found.
About a mile nearer to Rome, at the Torre Pignattara[176], or Mausoleum
of S. Helena, there is a branch from the Marrana, passing under the Aqua
Marcia, apparently to convey water to an imperial villa. The construction
of the arcade of this branch to the south of the road is not of the same
period as that of the other arcade on the other side to the north. It
is usual for modern topographers, following Fabretti, to consider this
branch a continuation of the Aqua Alexandrina; but as the water from the
Marrana, which is at a considerably lower level than the Aqua Marcia,
runs _down_ the gentle incline of this arcade towards the road and the
Mausoleum of S. Helena called Torre Pignattara, this is impossible. The
construction is chiefly of the fourth century. The Mausoleum of S. Helena
is on lower ground than this part of the Marrana.
Constantine is said to have built a villa for his mother near her tomb;
but there are no remains of an imperial villa nearer than those called
the Cento Celle, a mile further along the road, or the one called “Torre
de’ Schiavi[177],” i.e. Tower of the Slaves, about a mile across country,
on another road, but on the same level. A milestone for the third mile,
found opposite this mausoleum, with an inscription of the time of
Maxentius, has been published by Ciampini. This indicates that some works
were going on there at the end of the third century, and the arcade may
be of that period.
A large and a very remarkable reservoir of the time of Trajan or Hadrian
remains a little to the west of the mausoleum, and on rather higher
ground. This was probably to receive the water for a branch to the
imperial villa, afterwards taken possession of by the Gordiani, who built
at that place their great family mausoleum, on which a tall medieval
tower was afterwards erected; of this, very picturesque ruins remain,
under the title of Torre de’ Schiavi. There are at the same place other
large reservoirs of the time of the Gordiani, shewing that the great
imperial villa was still supplied with water from the Marcian aqueduct in
the third century.
No water under the name of Hadrian is mentioned in the Regionary
Catalogue of the fourth century, it is therefore evident that this great
aqueduct was not called then after that emperor, although we are told
in his life by Spartianus, that many were made in his time, and were at
first called after him (as we have said[178]). At the first reservoir,
the starting-point, there was an inscription of Hadrian, and the other
reservoirs belonging to it are also constructions of the same period.
It may be that this water did not come into Rome at all, but that the
aqueduct was made to supply the great villa in the place now called
“Cento-Celle,” to which it leads in a direct line, and where it appears
to terminate. If any alterations were made, these may have been done in
the time of Alexander Severus, and this may now represent the so-called
Aqua Alexandrina, as Fabretti thought, although he was certainly mistaken
in one part of his account of it. The branch which went by the Mausoleum
of S. Helena, and which apparently ran underground to the Villa of the
Gordiani, was not a branch of the aqueduct to convey water into Rome, but
a branch from the great aqueduct for the villa or villas, as it now does
from the Marrana at a lower level. This short arcade is of the time of
Constantine. The great and long one that leads to the Cento-Celle is of
two periods, the earlier part of the time of Hadrian, the latter of the
third century. It is quite possible that the original _specus_ had become
choked up with stalactite in the course of a century, and that it was
restored to use for a time by Alexander Severus, and so called after him.
THE BRANCH OF TRAJAN ON THE AVENTINE.
It has been mentioned in the account of the Anio Novus (IX.) that, after
the main conduit reached the great reservoir at the arch of Dolabella, it
was divided into three branches, and that one of these was not completed
until the time of Trajan and Hadrian. This important branch was carried
over the valley between the Cœlian and the Aventine on a lofty arcade,
built upon the _agger_ of Servius Tullius, and over the Aqua Appia, also
passing over the Via Appia upon the arch of the Porta Capena to the
Piscina Publica. It then ran along the edge of the cliff to the north
of S. Balbina, and crossed again the valley between the Pseudo-Aventine
and the Aventine itself, a little further to the west, by the side of
the road which goes down the hill towards S. Prisca. In the vineyard
of S. Prisca a portion of the _specus_ remains perfect, at a very high
level[179]. From thence it was carried across the hill to the cliff above
the Tiber, where the monastery and garden of S. Sabina are now placed.
These are on the site of a palace of the time of the early Empire. Some
extensive and important excavations were made there in 1855-57, by the
Dominican monks of S. Sabina, and among the discoveries then made were
an extensive series of conduits, with a _piscina_ and a _nymphæum_ of
the same period,—of the end of the first and the beginning of the second
century of the Christian era. A cascade _specus_ served to conduct the
surplus water down to the more ancient cave reservoir at the mouth of the
Aqua Appia, at the Salaria. An account of these excavations was drawn
up by M. Descemet[180], and published in the Memoirs of the Institute
of France, with an excellent plan and section. Several brick-stamps, of
which the words are given in that work, with the names of the consuls,
and some terra cotta water-pipes, with the name of Trajan, were also
found here. Others were discovered on the Aventine and near the same spot
by Fabretti, who was puzzled by them, because they did not agree with
his theories about the aqueducts. Donatus also mentions some of the same
facts as known in his time. Some of the bricks were made at the kiln
(_figlina_) of Annius Verus, said to have been on the Aventine, near
the Salaria; and, if this is correct, that was the spot where they were
found. Others have the stamp of Trajan himself. Another is the work of
an Arabian servant of Q. Servilius Pudens, A.D. 139, when the Emperor
Antoninus Pius and C. Bruttius Præsens were consuls. A piece of leaden
pipe, with an inscription upon it, AQVA TRAIANA, was also found on the
Aventine.
XII. AURELIA, A.D. 185, AND XIII. SEVERIANA, A.D. 190.
The Aqua Aurelia of the Regionary Catalogue must be the one made by
Marcus Aurelius to convey water to his villa on the Via Appia, usually
called the Villa de’ Quintilii, where a brick-stamp of the time of Marcus
Aurelius (A.D. 162) was found on the aqueduct itself by Fea in the
eighteenth century[181]. This water was afterwards conveyed to Rome by
his successors, Ælius Aurelius Commodus and Septimius Severus, to supply
the great _thermæ_ begun by Commodus and finished by Septimius Severus,
which were in the first Regio just inside of the Porta Latina, and must
have been begun about A.D. 185[182].
The Aurelia was an important aqueduct, and there are slight remains of
its _piscina_ just outside of the Porta Latina on the southern side: its
_specus_ was traced nearly to that point in the excavations made in 1871.
The modern road is cut through this old _piscina_, forming a foss-way
in this portion: the aqueduct there passes underground, and has been
destroyed or is not visible in this part; but, about a mile from Rome,
it can be seen on the bank in the western cliff of the valley of the
Caffarella. The _specus_ remains as a tunnel for a short distance, and
this was laid open at both ends in 1872 under my direction; it had been
concealed and covered over with Pozzolana sand, which had fallen over it
from the cliff above, but it can now be seen again. The greater part of
the _specus_ has been destroyed, and used for building the large modern
farm-house on the opposite side of the valley, the building material
having been good brick. As it would not pay to destroy the tunnel, that
was let alone.
These remains of the _specus_ are near the well-known tomb called Dio
Ridicolo. To this point it runs along the bottom of the valley at the
foot of the hill on the side of the small stream or Marrana, here
artificial, and parallel to that branch of the river Almo. This open
conduit was probably made in the twelfth century, at the same time that
the other branch of the Almo, which runs through Rome, was altered and
made into a canal or mill-stream where necessary, in order to keep up a
constant supply of water, and to avoid its being wasted in floods.
Let us now trace this aqueduct _backwards_ from Rome, in that part near
the city. At the Nymphæum, called the fountain of Egeria, it turns at a
sharp angle up to another small _castellum aquæ_, close to the church
of S. Urbano, which is usually mistaken for a tomb; but the walls are
lined with _opus signinum_ or _coccio pisto_, the invariable test of an
aqueduct. At this point it turns again towards another fine _castellum
aquæ_, at the end of the Circus of Maxentius and of his son Romulus. It
comes on there from the head of the valley of the Caffarella, and to that
point from the villa of the Quintilii in the Via Appia Antiqua. Thus far
we have traced its course _backwards_ from the _thermæ_; in order to
identify it more clearly, we will now go to the sources, and bring it
down to the same point to which we have traced it from the _thermæ_.
The sources or springs are on the side of the hill of Marino, below
Grotta Ferrata, in the same swampy district as those of the river Almo,
and of the old aqueducts of the Tepula and the Julia. Several springs
are collected into a central reservoir; and, as is usual with other
aqueducts, they are then brought into a _specus_, at first underground
to the foot of the hill, then upon an arcade, of which there are
considerable remains at the Torre di Mezza, Via di Albano, about seven
miles from Rome. This fine arcade of the third century goes on to the
villa of the Quintilii, and was no doubt built under Aurelius Commodus,
after he had obtained possession of that great and fine villa. In various
parts of that great building are remains of reservoirs for this aqueduct,
and of baths connected with them[183]. About half-a-mile nearer to Rome
is, at an angle, as usual, another large reservoir, which has been turned
into a farm-house; and the appearance of a medieval chapel or church
has been given to it, by building a tower at one end. Possibly it was
used for that purpose in the Middle Ages. From thence to the head of the
valley of the Caffarella is but a short distance. Where the _specus_ has
been carried on an arcade above ground, it has been destroyed as a quarry
for the good old bricks; where the ground is higher and the _specus_ is
underground, it has been traced in parts only.
THE THERMÆ of Septimius Severus and Commodus were close to each other,
and probably connected. They are mentioned together in the Regionary
Catalogue as in the first Regio, and there are remains of them under
the small hill, called Monte d’Oro, probably, from the golden colour
of the sand in its original state, which is situated just within the
Porta Latina, between that and the Porta Metronia. Some excavations were
made there in 1870 by the Archæological Society, and large subterranean
chambers and corridors were found similar to those under the Thermæ of
Antoninus Caracalla. The _specus_ of an aqueduct was also followed for
a considerable distance in the direction of the Porta Latina. This must
have been for the Aqua Severiana. Just outside of that gate are remains
of two _piscinæ_ or _castella aquarum_, one on either side, and on
different levels. One of these belonged to the Aqua Aurelia, the other
to the Severiana. The course of this latter is more doubtful, but it was
probably only a branch from one of the great aqueducts, and would appear
to have come in the bank on which that part of the wall of Aurelian was
built, from the Porta Metronia to the Porta Latina. It arrived at the
bridge over the Almo (on which the gateway-arch of the Porta Metronia is
built), from the great _piscina_ and _castellum aquæ_, on the cliff of
the Cœlian, near the Porta Capena and the Camenæ, where two aqueducts
are now visible, having been brought to light by the excavations of the
Archæological Society. The construction of one of these aqueducts agrees
with the time of Septimius Severus.
XIV. ANTONINIANA, A.D. 215.
This aqueduct enters Rome at the south-east corner near the Porta di S.
Sebastiano, and passes over the arch of Drusus; a part of the arcade is
visible by the side of it. The _specus_ can be seen both in the wall of
the city, through which it passes, and over that arch, and one of the
arches of the arcade remains on the east side of it. It was carried in
that manner for some distance across the valley or foss, until it reached
the high bank of earth on which the Wall of Aurelian is built, near the
Porta di S. Sebastiano, and then along the edge of that bank, which is
the great _agger_ of the ancient earthworks, against the outer side
of which the Wall of Aurelian is built. The inner side of the bank is
supported by a low wall here as in many other parts, and upon or against
that inner wall the _specus_ of the aqueduct is carried. It is sometimes
on an arcade, in other parts it is carried on the wall to the Thermæ of
Antoninus Caracalla. The demolition of part of this arcade in modern
times is recorded by contemporary authors.
The _specus_ passed upon an arch over the road in the old foss outside
the wall into a garden on the opposite side, where it can be seen on
the level of the ground; thence it can be traced through that large
garden or vineyard as far as the railway, which passes on the outer
side of it in a deep cutting. The remains of the brick arcade here form
a wall between this garden and another. It is covered with shrubs, and
looks like a hedge, from which circumstance it has hitherto escaped
observation. The wall is cut through by the railway, but can be traced
on the other side of it along the bank of a narrow deep lane, like what
we call in England a Devonshire lane. This lane goes parallel to the
Via Latina, on the southern side of it, for about a mile; the aqueduct
then leaves it, turning short to the left. Near to this angle, at about
half-a-mile outside of the Porta Latina, is a large reservoir belonging
to this aqueduct. It is built against the western cliff of the valley
of the Caffarella, the top of it level with the summit of the cliff,
and therefore is not visible from above, as a person standing on the
higher ground looks over it. It is also hidden by a clump of trees;
but it is very distinctly visible from the valley below, and from some
parts of the Via Appia, and is readily seen to be a _castellum aquæ_ by
the boldly-projecting buttresses to support the wall with the weight
of water behind it. The Aqua Antoniniana ran along the edge of the
cliff, and supplied this large reservoir, which is oblong as usual, and
divided down the middle by an arcade, similar to the fine one of the
Marcian near Tivoli, and many others. This has been plastered over, and
made into a cow-house. It is far above the level of the Aqua Aurelia,
which runs below along the side of the valley of the Caffarella. The
Aqua Antoniniana clearly came from the higher aqueducts in the main
line; and, according to the Einsiedlen Itinerary, it was a branch of the
Marcian which went to supply the Thermæ of the Antonines called that of
Caracalla. Part of the brick arcade, with the _specus_ upon it, is here
visible in another garden against a cliff; it then passes underground
for a short distance, but soon emerges again, and can be traced against
another cliff as far as the Via Latina, which is here upon a bank, or
rather on the edge of higher ground, with the remains of a _piscina_
by the side of it. The _specus_ then again passes underground for some
distance, and the next point where we have been able to find it is an old
stone quarry, the vault of which fell down in 1870, and revealed this
_specus_, which was not visible before. This is in the garden behind the
Albergo de’ Spiriti, on the Via Appia Nova, about two miles from Rome,
and near the point where it crosses the old Via Latina[184].
A large reservoir remains near the Porta Furba, about a quarter of a
mile nearer to Rome, and just two miles from the Porta Maggiore. Here we
excavated (in 1871) this large subterranean reservoir, near the Claudian
arcade on the southern side, but not very close to it, rather nearer to
the road to Tusculum (Frascati), which passes near the Porta Furba. This
reservoir appears to have belonged to the Anio Vetus, which agrees with
the account in Frontinus, of a branch of the Anio Vetus at two miles from
Rome, going in the direction of a new road. The _specus_ crosses the
Via Appia Nova near the Albergo de’ Spiriti, and the Via Appia Nova was
probably a new road in the time of Frontinus, as indicated by the tombs
of the first century along the side of it.
XV. ALEXANDRINA, A.D. 225.
The Aqua Alexandrina is distinctly mentioned by Lampridius in his life
of Alexander Severus (c. 25), as made to bring water to his _thermæ_,
which were near those of Nero, and therefore near the Campus Martius
and the Pantheon in Regio IX. This could only have been a branch from
the Virgo[185], as there is no aqueduct of the third century along the
Cœlian, and no trace of a branch from the Palatine or the Capitol.
There is no probability in the theory of Fabretti, that the great
aqueduct coming from Gabii, on the eastern side of Rome[186], was the one
mentioned in the life of Alexander Severus as made by him to carry water
to his _thermæ_, near those of Agrippa, in the Campus Martius, on the
northern side of Rome. A branch from the Virgo on the Pincian, or from
one of the great reservoirs on the eastern side of Rome, could be made at
a tenth part of the cost. There is some reason to believe that there was
such a branch passing near the Barberini palace.
Another branch may very well have been made from the great aqueducts
between the Porta Maggiore and the Porta S. Lorenzo, to the Nymphæum of
Alexander Severus, on the Esquiline in Regio V. An inscription relating
to this is said to have been found at the _piscina_ in the garden of S.
Croce[187]. It is far more probable that this inscription was found on
the wall of the great reservoir, on the other side of the Via di S. Maria
Maggiore, near the Minerva Medica, where other reservoirs of extensive
_thermæ_ of the third century are visible[188]. These were supplied with
water from other reservoirs just within the Porta Maggiore belonging to
the different aqueducts; the Anio Vetus, the Marcian, and the Claudian,
all appear to have contributed their share. The one specially called
Alexandrina was probably the lofty one carried upon a tall arcade, from
the reservoir of the Claudia near the Baker’s tomb,—forming part of the
present city wall. The lower part of the piers of the arcade of this
period may be seen built up in the wall; the arches lead to another
reservoir between that and the building called the Temple of Minerva
Medica, and are there brought to an end, just on the south side of the
new arches made for the railway. The _specus_ or conduit, and the arches
for it, on these brick piers of the third century, have been rebuilt for
the Aqua Felice, in the same rough way as that _specus_ is usually built;
but, as that conduit is carried on to the Porta S. Lorenzo in the wall,
and as these piers of the third century cease exactly at the point where
the conduit of that period would naturally turn off, there seems every
probability that this was the Aqua Alexandrina, which was merely a branch
from the Claudia and Anio Novus united to supply these _thermæ_, just as
the Aqua Antoniniana was a branch from the Marcia to supply the _thermæ_
of Antoninus Caracalla.
The _specus_ of this branch was carried over the Julia on the Marcian
arcade to the point where it terminates, which is exactly in a line with
a lofty _piscina_ and _castellum aquæ_, now a gardener’s house, between
the wall and the Minerva Medica, and there are remains of the tall arcade
from one to the other; the last pier which joins to that building looks
like a large tall buttress to it.
The Temple of Minerva Medica is a brick building of the third century,
agreeing with the time of Alexander Severus, and there has evidently been
a fountain of importance in the middle of it, with an aqueduct to carry
water to it from the large _castellum_ near to it. Upon this _castellum
aquæ_ a villa of the sixteenth century has been built; but the vaulted
chambers, with the tartar deposit of water, remain in the lower part of
this building, and there is a tomb or _columbarium_ of the third century
at one end of it.
The dedication of a temple to Minerva Medica, in connection with an
aqueduct, is natural, and that this was not an isolated example is shewn
by an inscription found near Subiaco[189], and published in 1830 by
Martelli, in his work on the Antiquities of Sicily[190]. The Regionary
catalogue of the fourth century gives, in the fifth Regio, which contains
the Esquiliæ, the Nymphæum of Alexander and the Minerva Medica, all
which agrees with the existing remains of this Nymphæum. In the same
vineyard, to the north-west or opposite side of the Minerva Medica, and
very near to it, are the ruins of another building, called by some “a
_nymphæum_,” now also a gardener’s house, under which the marble pavement
remains very evident, the construction belonging to the period of
Alexander Severus[191].
Both the Pantheum or hall for the men, and the Nymphæum or hall for the
women, had images in the niches round them, and frequently an altar
also, so that they were temples at the same time that they were used as
waiting-rooms for the baths. The Pantheum of Agrippa was the entrance to
his _thermæ_[192]; the building usually called _the Temple_ of Minerva
Medica, from an image found there, is called in the Regionary Catalogue
Minerva Medica only. A Nymphæum and a Pantheum equally required a
_castellum aquæ_ to supply it with water for the fountains and the stream
that ran round it, and there are remains of bath-chambers and niches
outside of many of the larger reservoirs, as in this instance.
During some extensive excavations, which were carried on in the spring
of 1871 by a company, with a view to building new streets in the eastern
part of Rome, considerable remains of the lower part of the walls of
these great _thermæ_ of the third century were found on both sides of the
road made in the sixteenth century, from S. Maria Maggiore to S. Croce.
The company bought two large vineyards, in one of which stands the fine
ruin called Minerva Medica, which was evidently one of the halls of the
_thermæ_; the ground is full of ancient reservoirs for water at different
levels, some underground, others at a considerable elevation, turned into
houses; they may be traced at intervals all along the line within the
Wall of Aurelian, from the Porta Maggiore to the Porta S. Lorenzo, which
is itself here built against the Marcian arcade, and in one part the
outer wall of the large _piscina_ and _castellum aquæ_ of the Tepula is
incorporated with the wall, of which it now forms part. This ground had
been at one period the Esquiliæ or great burial-ground, and afterwards
the garden of Mæcenas, so that remains of great works for the supply of
water at different periods were likely to be found there, as was the
case.
XVI. THE ALGENTIANA, A.D. 300.
This aqueduct is said by some to be only a branch from the Aqua Marcia
from the _castellum_ or _piscina_ at the Porta S. Lorenzo, to the Thermæ
of Diocletian, and to have been made by him. Considerable remains of the
large _piscina_ for these Thermæ were found when the railway station
was built, a plan and section of it was preserved by Visconti; it was
not destroyed, but was built over and effectually hidden. The aqueduct
was continued, A.D. 330, by Constantine to his Thermæ on the Quirinal,
now in the Colonna gardens. Others say that the Algentiana comes from
the Mount Algidus, near Tusculum. In the Campagna between Frascati and
Rome, there are remains of large reservoirs or _castella aquarum_ of the
third century, which do not appear to belong to any of the aqueducts
hitherto described. They are usually said to be only reservoirs for
the supply of the adjacent fields; but they are all on the highest
points, and it is difficult to see how the water was conveyed to them.
There appears to be a regular line of them, not indeed a straight line,
(the nature of the country would not admit of that,) but still a line
of them at comparatively short intervals, always within sight of one
another. It seems probable that the Aqua Algentiana was brought in a
subterranean channel or _specus_ from the great reservoir at Tusculum,
which is on very high ground, and that the water was permitted to run
into these reservoirs at frequent intervals, instead of being carried
on an arcade across the country, as had been done in the case of the
earlier aqueducts. It is beyond dispute that the ancient Romans were
well acquainted with the principle of the syphon, and that they were
quite aware that water will rise to its level after a very considerable
distance: they may have therefore thought it expedient in this aqueduct
to avail themselves of that principle. It is difficult to explain how
water could be supplied to these numerous high reservoirs in any other
manner.
XVII. AQUA CRABRA, AND MARRANA, A.D. 1124.
This stream was brought into Rome in the bed or foss of the river Almo
(Flumen Almonis), mentioned in the Regionary Catalogue as in Regio I.,
and not otherwise accounted for in this enumeration. The water now comes
from the Marrana, which has its source near Marino, and from the Aqua
Crabra, which comes from Rocca di Papa, near the lake of Albano, some
miles further up the hill; the waters of these two streams are united
before a part of them is carried through the tunnel of the Aqua Julia to
a point of junction with the bed of one of the many branches of the small
river Almo. The Almo itself comes also from the hill of Marino, but from
a different part of it, and is divided into many branches when it arrives
on the low ground of the Campagna. One of these was made use of for this
mill-stream, a canal being carried in banks of clay in straight lines,
where the old bed of the river passed through low ground, and had been
therefore liable to floods; but this old bed or foss was used, to save
expense, where it passed through higher ground in its old winding course.
Originally that part of the branch which passes through Rome was
alternately wet and dry, as many of the other branches are, and was
liable to floods after heavy rains. The main branch of the Almo turns
off to the south near the Torre Fiscale, following nearly the same line
as the cross-road from the Via Appia Nova to the Via Appia Antiqua, and
passing under this road twice. In this part of its course it is generally
dry in dry weather; but when it arrives at the head of the valley of
the Caffarella, several other springs that never fail run into this old
deep foss. One comes from near the villa of the Quintilii, another is
called the fountain of Egeria, a third the Aqua Santa, from its medicinal
qualities. There is a bath-house built over that spring. The original
springs on the hill of Marino bring little water in dry weather, not more
than sufficient to supply ponds near to them for the cattle; but, in wet
weather, the water runs off in the old deep winding foss, which also
drains all that part of the country.
The sources of the Marrana are about a mile above Marino, and nearly
three miles from Albano; they are in a long, narrow, deep valley in the
rocks, and the water gushes out in several places at short intervals on
both sides of this valley, which continues on under the rock on which the
small town of Marino is built. Close under the town is a tall medieval
tower, and at the foot of this is a _piscina_ of rude early character,
the lower chamber of which is still full of water. A _specus_ cut in the
rock as a tunnel is also visible at this point. On the side of the valley
opposite to the town are the splendid ancient quarries of _peperino_,
called by Vitruvius _lapis Albanus_, because Marino was in the district
of Alba Longa. The stream flows on in the same deep valley, winding down
the hill, and, at the foot of it, the Aqua Crabra, coming from Rocca di
Papa, is united with it shortly before it is crossed by the bridge on the
road to Grotta Ferrata, ten miles from Rome and near the tunnel through
which flows part of the united water, the main body going on straight to
the river Anio; the part which is carried through the tunnel turns at a
sharp angle to the left, or west, towards Rome. At each end of the tunnel
is a loch of early character, partly cut in the rock and partly built
of travertine, with the grooves of flood-gates. Over the exit from the
tunnel is a piece of old wall faced with _Opus Reticulatum_, of the same
rude early character as that of the Aqua Julia.
After the water emerges from the tunnel, it passes in a deep bed to a
bridge over the stream of the Marrana, near the _piscinæ_, six miles from
Rome. At this point the deep foss of the river Almo is close to it. This
is dry in dry weather, but has abundance of water in wet weather, and
here the foss is dammed across; this appears to have been done originally
to effect a junction with the water of the Marrana, which from this point
flows in the foss of one of the many branches of the Almo that intersect
the Campagna in this part. This mountain-stream is a very uncertain one;
sometimes the deep foss is full of water, flowing at the rate of five or
six miles an hour, at other times it is dry. Numerous winding streams
are collected into one at the head of the valley of the Caffarella, near
the church of S. Urbano. Here it passes through swampy ground at a place
called Aqua Santa, on the cross-road from the Via Appia Nova to the Via
Appia Antiqua; here also several springs fall into the deep bed, one
of which is miscalled the fountain of Egeria[193]. In dry weather this
branch of the river Almo appears to begin here, and from thence to the
mouth of this branch near S. Paul’s, mentioned by S. Gregory as the Almo,
the water never fails. All the other branches are deep, dry fosses after
dry weather, and the branch that now flows through Rome must originally
have been frequently dry, and at other times liable to floods[194].
To remedy this evil, a branch was made from the stream, consisting of
the Marrana and Aqua Crabra united, which never fails; and, in those
parts where the water passes over low ground liable to be flooded, it
is carried in a bank of clay covered with sand, and planted with canes.
In such a bank it is carried from near the ford in the natural bed of
the river at Roma Vecchia to the Torre Fiscale. Between these two points
there is a loch with a flood-gate and a lasher, over which the water
falls into one of the deep beds or fosses of the Almo; but this deep bed
of a mountain-stream has no other beginning than this same stream, here
raised in a bank of clay, into which the water of the Marrana has been
turned. In other parts where the ground is high, and consequently the
water is below the level of the ground, it follows its ancient, natural,
winding course in a deep foss. This is the case both near the original
point of junction before reaching the ford at Roma Vecchia, again after
passing the Porta Furba, and again under the walls of Rome near the
Lateran. From Roma Vecchia, passing by the Torre Fiscale to the Porta
Furba, it is carried in a bank of clay many feet above the level of the
meadows; but after passing the Porta Furba, it again falls into the old
deep foss for about a mile at the foot of the Claudian arcade, winding
about sometimes on one side, sometimes on the other, then near to a part
of the road to Frascati. For the last half-mile to the Porta S. Giovanni,
this road is modern on a large bank of earth across the valley or great
foss outside the Wall of Aurelian, and for most part of this line the
Marrana is carried in a small bank of clay against the side of the larger
bank of the road; but before it reaches Rome it falls again, that is, the
earth rises on the terrace under the wall, and the Marrana falls into the
old deep bed near the Porta Asinaria, after passing through two mills
built on bridges, one on the line of the old Via Asinaria, the other of
the old Via Lateranensis.
This small stream enters Rome under the Porta Metronia, which is built
on a bridge over it[195]. This bridge has a brick arch of the time
of the early Empire, partly concealed by a medieval arch in front of
it. Shortly after entering Rome the stream passes at the north end of
what is now the nursery-ground of the city, called Orto Botanico, and
under a bridge on which another mill is built; by the side of it is the
road into that large garden, known to have been that of Crassipes, the
son-in-law of Cicero, who mentions in one of his letters a flood of this
stream carrying wooden shops from the bank in front of it to the Piscina
Publica[196].
This is exactly the direction that the stream takes, as it turns at a
sharp angle to the north directly after crossing the Via Appia, and
passes close to the Piscina Publica; while the Tiber flows from north
to south, and a flood of that river would have carried the shops the
other way (if it reached that level at all). There is another mill near
the angle on the Via Appia. The stream then passes along a curve at the
southern end of the Circus Maximus, (washing the foot of a lime-kiln,)
then under the slope of the Aventine and through the gas-works on the
site of the Carceres of the Circus, then underground and through another
mill in the Via della Marrana near the Bocca della Verità. The eighth and
last mill is on the bank of the Tiber, and is built over the mouth of the
stream, the back of the building resting on the old tufa wall, called
the Pulchrum Littus of the Kings, in which an aperture was left for the
Almo when that wall was built. The front of the mill is built on medieval
arches standing in the bed of the Tiber.
This alteration of the bed of the Almo may have been made at an early
period, of which we have no record, and restored to use in 1124, under
Pope Calixtus II., or it may have been entirely made out of the remains
of the old aqueducts at that time. We have distinct records of the work
done then; but in one of these the expression used is _reduxit_, that
is, he “led again” the water from the old arches. In any case, a great
benefit to the city was made at that time, and the account of it fairly
belongs to the history of the aqueducts, from which it was made. The
following account of it is given by the Cardinal of Arragon, in the time
of Pope Calixtus II., A.D. 1124:—
“He (the Pope) also brought water from the ancient arches, and
conducted it to the Porta Lateranensis, where he formed a
lake to receive it, for watering horses. He also built several
mills on the line of the same stream of water, and planted many
vines and fruit-trees round the borders of this lake with great
care[197].”
Another writer of the same period, called Pandolph of Pisa, relates the
same thing:—
“He _reconducted_ a stream of water into the city, and made
mills, with vines near a lake[198].”
The ancient aqueduct which was made use of for the purpose was the Julia
(V.), (which see,) and the ancient arches mentioned probably mean the
tunnel through which the water of the Aqua Crabra and the Marrana united
is brought. Its course has been already described, the great reservoir
or lake (_lacus_) opposite to the Porta Lateranensis is very distinctly
visible in the vineyard by the side of the stream, between that and the
Aurelian wall. It is still swampy ground, and is planted with canes;
when these are cut at the end of the month of January, it can be clearly
seen, and the remains of the lake intercept the path on the bank of the
stream. This reservoir might be restored to use with great advantage to
the neighbourhood, and at little expense.
There are two mills on bridges across the stream on the side of this
lake, and several other mills on the line of the stream, as has been
mentioned. The water must always have flowed out of the lake in the old
deep bed of the small river Almo, and passed under the bridge on which
the Porta Metronia is built, into Regio I., and then under the foot of
the Aventine by the side of the Circus Maximus into the Tiber, as before
described. The tower built in the twelfth century, against the inside of
the gate and the bridge, conceals this from view.
XVIII. AQUA FELICE, A.D. 1587.
This aqueduct is named after the Pope, Felice Peretti, whose title was
Sixtus V.; he brought it from a place near La Colonna, the ancient
Labicum, about twelve miles from the city, to the fountain of Moses (now
so called from a statue) at the Termini on the Esquiline, as recorded
on an inscription[199]. It is still in use, supplying the fountains
at the Termini, near the Thermæ of Diocletian, of Monte Cavallo, near
those of Constantine, and the whole of the upper town. The waters of
the Aqua Hadriana were united with some others in the territory called
Pantano, at about twelve miles from Rome, where they emerged from
the mountains. All these sources or springs of water were collected
during the pontificate of Gregory XIII., A.D. 1572-1585, in an immense
reservoir, repaired in 1869, with several other smaller ones subservient
to it for purification. The aqueduct was built in the time of Sixtus V.
(A.D. 1585-1590), but the reservoirs were not completed until the time
of Urban VII. or VIII. [1623-44]. From this point the water is carried
into the canal or channel through an opening called the _fistula Urbana_,
made in a piece of marble. According to Fontana, this water was brought
to the Porta Maggiore on a new arcade made out of the materials of the
old aqueducts in a very clumsy manner. It was the intention of the Pope
to have made use of the canal or conduit of the Aqua Marcia, but that was
found to be at too high a level, and his clumsy engineers were obliged
to make a new arcade at immense expense. He availed himself, however,
of the old arcades as far as he could, by building his new conduit up
against the side of the piers of the old ones, sometimes on the Marcian,
as may be seen at the place called _Sette Bassi_, and near the Porta
Furba, sometimes against the Claudian as near Rome. After bringing it
into the city in this canal of rough stone, the water was carried in
leaden pipes into the old subterranean channels, as may still be seen
in the deep _specus_ on the Cœlian, and the metal pipes pass through
the tall brick piers of the arcade of Nero, and are supported on flat
arches across from one pier to the other, with a rapid descent over the
first or ancient road from S. Croce to the Porta Maggiore, and into the
Specus Vetus underground, before arriving at the second or modern one
from S. Croce to S. Maria Maggiore. The point of descent is marked by a
respirator.
Pantano is about two miles from Gabii, and this reservoir is still
in use. It is very near to the ancient _castellum aquæ_, which was
made originally by Hadrian[200] for his aqueduct, as is shewn by an
inscription found there. The other streams coming from Tivoli are said
to have emerged also near this point, and the first engineer of the
Felice, Matteo da Castello, considering the Claudian and Marcian lines
as the best, followed those to the _piscinæ_; but having made a mistake
in the levels, instead of using the Marcian _specus_ and arcade from the
_piscinæ_ into Rome, and merely repairing it as the Pope had intended,
Fontana was obliged to rebuild it entirely of the materials of the old
Marcian arcade, with the help also of those of the Claudian, all the way
to Rome. This was done in great haste and in a very clumsy manner[201].
From the Porta Maggiore one branch of the Aqua Felice is carried across
the great foss to the Lateran, through the piers of the arches of Nero,
and down a cascade-pipe into the old _specus_ of the Appia, and along
that to the fountains and reservoirs at the Lateran. This is the branch
that goes straight on from the corner of the Sessorium to the west.
Another more important branch of the Aqua Felice turns short to the north
from the same angle and over the Porta Maggiore, along the city wall to
the Porta S. Lorenzo, in a new channel very badly and clumsily built of
rough stone from the materials of the old aqueducts, making use of the
piers of the Claudian arcade as far as they go, and then of the inside
of the wall of Aurelian over the Marcian arcade. The Aqua Felice having
here been brought to a higher level, that is to say, the descent from
the _piscinæ_ being less rapid than that of the Marcia, after passing
the Porta Maggiore, goes over the Marcia upon the Arch of Augustus at
the Porta S. Lorenzo. There is a _castellum aquæ_ for it in the wall
just to the south of the Porta S. Lorenzo, where the water may be heard
rushing through, and the surplus water runs off into an ancient drain
on the outside of the wall. With the rapidity of all the public works
under that energetic Pope, the undertaking, a decree for which he had
signed in April, 1585, was completed in two years, by the labours of
from 2,000 to 3,000 men, and the waters were seen to gush from their
sculptured fountain in the Piazza di Termini, on the 15th of June, 1587.
The Aqua Felice was conducted for fifteen miles underground, and for
seven miles upon arcades. Besides the Aqua Felice, the Via Felice and the
Via Sistina (Sixtus) in continuation of it, and many other great works
were inaugurated by the same Pope, who has been called the real founder
of modern Rome. Other old subterranean conduits are employed to carry the
pipes of the Felice where convenient for the purpose of conveying water
to different parts of the town.
Junctions of the arcade of Sixtus V., or Aqua Felice, with that of
the Claudia, take place at an angle where the Torre Fiscale has been
built, and again at another angle where there is an archway called the
Porta Furba, about two miles from Rome, and a most picturesque ruin
of a _piscina_, with a tall tower by the side of it, in which is the
ventilating-shaft of the conduit. The difference of construction and
of level is very evident, and the three conduits carried on the same
arches may be seen distinctly. The construction of the Claudia (VIII.)
is of large square blocks of stone. The Anio Novus (IX.) is merely an
additional brick conduit, the work is part of that of Claudius and Nero,
and is carried over the original one at a great height from the ground.
Near the city only small portions of this upper conduit remain here and
there, as, for instance, over the Porta Maggiore, and in a few places on
the wall. In some places, the arcade of the Aqua Felice runs parallel to
the Claudian for a considerable distance, and is joined to it at both
ends, as near the Porta Furba. This lower arcade carried part of the
conduits of the Aqua Marcia, Tepula, and Julia, which ran from the Porta
Furba into the city parallel to the later one of Claudius, at a lower
level.
Where the Aqua Felice enters the city, it is carried on the piers of the
arcade of Claudius, from the junction with the arches of Nero, over the
Porta Maggiore to the old _castellum_ at the corner of the wall, where
it turns at a sharp angle. Here the arches of Claudius cease; but the
conduit of the Aqua Felice is continued along the city wall, of which it
forms part, upon the ancient embankment as far as the Porta S. Lorenzo,
and over the archway of Augustus there, using one of the older conduits.
It then makes a sharp turn to the west, and after being carried along
the north side of the road for a short distance, crosses it again on an
archway built for the purpose by Sixtus V., as recorded by an inscription
upon it; then it turns sharply to the west again, and is carried on an
arcade between the road on the north and the railway on the south, to
the great inner _agger_, which it reaches at a point near the Thermæ of
Diocletian and the railway station. It is then carried in an old _specus_
in that bank along the east side of the Thermæ, and turns at an angle to
the north, at the Via Nomentana, near the Porta Nomentana, a little to
the south of the modern Via di Porta Pia; then along the north side of
the Thermæ till it arrives at the great reservoir behind the fountain
of Termini. The _specus_ is three feet wide, and the water in it is
usually from three to four feet deep, running with a rapid current about
five miles an hour, and constantly flowing day and night. Thence it is
carried in pipes to the different reservoirs and fountains of the upper
town. It also supplies the lower part of the city from the Ghetto to the
Marmorata, along the bank of the Tiber.
SUMMARY.
Frontinus, who wrote in the time of Nerva and Trajan, mentions (as we
have seen) nine aqueducts[202], reckoning as distinct several branches,
or additional channels, subordinate to others more important. There is
one more important record to which reference has not hitherto been made,
namely, the summary at the end of the _Curiosum_ and _Notitia_, in which
nineteen are enumerated.
The entry in the Summary of the Regionary Catalogue is as follows:—
Aquæ XIX.
I. Traiana [X.]
II. Annia (or Anio Vetus?) [II.]
III. Attica (Anio Novus) [IX.]
IV. Marcia [III.]
V. Claudia [VIII.]
VI. Herculea [XVII. Almo?]
VII. Cerulea [IX.]
VIII. Julia [V.]
IX. Augustea [I.]
X. Appia [I.]
XI. Alseatina [VII.]
XII. Ciminia (?).
XIII. Aurelia [XII.]
XIV. Damnata (Cloaca Maxima?).
XV. Virgo [VI.]
XVI. Tepula [IV.]
XVII. Severiana [XIII.]
XVIII. Antoniana [XIV.]
XIX. Alexandrina [XV.]
Those not previously mentioned are (1.) Attica, (2.) Herculea, (3.)
Cerulea, (4.) Augustea, (5.) Ciminia, (6.) Damnata.
1. Attica is supposed by Fabretti to be the same as Alseatina [VII.], but
then how is the number of nineteen to be made up? It was probably the
Anio Novus, as already described. [See IX.]
2. Herculea. This is mentioned by Frontinus[203] as receiving a part
of the Aqua Marcia after its entrance into the city[204]. Another
stream of the same name, thirty-eight miles from the city, was added to
the Anio Novus[205]; but it seems most probable that the stream here
intended is the Almo, which enters Rome under the Porta Metronia, and
conveys the water of the Marrana, or Aqua Crabra, coming from these two
mountain-streams united, as already described. This is always a very
strong stream. It follows the line of the aqueducts for miles towards
Rome, and received the surplus water in many places, where there were
_piscinæ_; it passes very near to the point where the aqueducts enter
Rome at the Porta Maggiore, and may very well have received the surplus
water there also of the Marcia, as stated by Frontinus.
3. Cerulea. This is the name of one of the branches of the Claudia, among
its sources, and is mentioned in the inscription at the Porta Maggiore;
but again, this does not account for one of the nineteen Aquæ.
4. Augustea. A stream was added to the Aqua Marcia by Augustus, and
called after him[206]; but that would not account for another stream in
Rome here indicated as one of the nineteen Aquæ. It is more probable that
the water here intended is the Augustan branch of the Aqua Appia, which
was united at the Gemelli within the outer wall of Rome. Frontinus (c.
4), indeed, mentions that the Alseatina was also called Augustea, but
that would not account for another of the nineteen streams[207].
5. Ciminia, another name for the Sabbatina [X.], according to Onuphrius
Panvinius; but the sources of the Sabbatina are very distant from the
Monte Cimino. Ciminia is perhaps written for Curtia, another source of
the Claudia; but again, this does not account for another of the nineteen
streams.
6. Damnata. This may be the stream that comes from the Quirinal and the
Palatine, and which formed the lake of Curtius, whence it was conveyed
into the Cloaca Maxima, as it still is. It was therefore _condemned_ to
serve for washing out a drain only.
There is reason to believe that some of these nineteen streams are
the natural watercourses, and others merely branches from the great
aqueducts, as has been said.
There were 1,452 _lacus_, that is wells, or cisterns of water, supplied
by the aqueducts in Rome, according to the _Horum Breviarium_ of the
_Notitia_, or Catalogue of the fourth century, and they must in many
instances have been very near together. A reservoir for the distribution
of the water was almost a necessary termination of an aqueduct, and at a
junction it was equally necessary.
Rutilius describes the aqueducts about A.D. 417, in such terms as shew
that they were not destroyed in the first siege of the Goths[208].
Cassiodorus represents them as perfect, about twenty years before the
siege carried on by Vitiges[209]. At the time of the siege by that
king, Procopius (i. 19), writing in the sixth century, records only the
fourteen aqueducts already mentioned[210].
APPENDIX.—AQUEDUCTS.
Since this chapter was printed, the great excavations that have been
carried on in Rome have brought to light many remains of the old
Aqueducts in places where they were not previously known or thought of.
These are so numerous that we can do little more than mention them,
beginning at the Sessorium, where the principal aqueducts entered
Rome. In the Sessorian or Palatian gardens, now those of Santa Croce
in Gerusalemme, a pit was dug in the reservoir which was used for the
Thermæ of S. Helena, which is a large cistern of two narrow chambers,
with others similar under them; this was ascertained by digging this
pit. Remains of other reservoirs along the line of the north wall of the
garden, which is made out of the old aqueduct, were brought to light
more clearly. Just outside of this garden is the road from the church of
Santa Croce to the Porta Maggiore[211], which is carried on a bank of
earth that was the boundary of the Sessorian garden, and on the outer
side of it, this bank is supported by a wall of the time of Constantine,
no doubt built when his mother, S. Helena, resided there. Just beyond
this bank, and in the great foss of the ancient fortress, are two large
reservoirs close together, one on either side of the foss. These appear
to correspond with the _Gemelli_, or twin reservoirs of Frontinus; an
excavation made here was stopped by water, but enough was seen to make
it evident that there were other chambers under them, and that they were
very deep, but have probably been used for one of the later aqueducts, at
a higher level also. It was very usual to carry one aqueduct nearly over
another, in order that the older subterranean reservoir might receive
the surplus water of the later and higher ones. It is probable that in
this instance the Claudia and Anio Novus had each a reservoir here on the
higher level, and that the water of the two was here united and carried
on along the Cœlian Hill in one _specus_, on the arches of Nero, to the
middle of the city.
The inscriptions on the Porta Maggiore record the distances from the
sources of the aqueducts to this point, clearly shewing that this was
the entrance into Rome in the outer wall, though not into the CITY,
until the boundary of the city was extended to this outer wall by
Aurelian, in the third century. On the northern side of this great gate
remains of the Marcian arcade were found going from this point, where
the three aqueducts pass through the outer wall at one of the angles,
and go straight on to the high bank on which the wall of Aurelian was
afterwards carried, to the Porta Tiburtina (now di S. Lorenzo), and the
reservoirs there. The _specus_ passes underground for some distance,
about half-way between the two gates, and is carried on arches near the
gates. The fine building called Minerva Medica was full of fountains, as
was all the great public garden in which it stands, and all the fountains
in Rome were supplied by the aqueducts. Between this building, of the
third century, and the wall, is another large reservoir, turned into a
house, where considerable excavations have been made. The later aqueduct,
called Aqua Alexandrina, was carried in the wall over the earlier ones,
to a point just opposite, to the remains of the Minerva Medica. The
piers of the arches that supported the _specus_ can be seen in the wall,
both outside and inside, as far as this, but they go no farther. This
point, where they cease, is close to the place where the railway passes
through the wall. Beyond these arches other excavations were made by the
archæologists near the Porta di S. Lorenzo, and the arches that carried
the Marcia, etc., were shewn. There are remains of two reservoirs near
this point; the outer wall of one now forms part of the city wall, and
is foolishly called “the house of Cicero;” the other is just within
the line, but still on the bank, with the wall of Aurelian built close
against it on the outer side. There are remains of another reservoir on
the other side of the gate, and one branch goes on from thence to the
Prætorian Camp, passing by the Porta Chiusa, where the _specus_ was shewn
in some other excavations of the archæologists; and near to it, on the
south side, is a large reservoir on the bank, cut through the middle by
the wall of Aurelian. This proves that the great bank of earth was there,
and had the aqueducts carried upon it, before the time that the wall of
Aurelian was built. The _specus_ then goes upon the bank round this camp,
but is for the most part concealed; it is visible again on the northern
side, which is the only perfect part of the fortification of the camp by
Tiberius, and his wall stands upon the earlier _specus_ of the aqueduct;
the latter is faced with _opus reticulatum_ where perfect; the wall is of
fine brickwork.
The branch that goes from the Porta di S. Lorenzo to the other reservoir,
under the Trophies of Marius, is carried on a fine arcade of the first
century; this has been brought out far more clearly than it had been for
many centuries. The remains of the reservoir at this very high level are
also made visible. Signor Ernest de Mauro, the surveyor who took the
levels, considers this branch so high, that the only water that could
reach it was that of the Claudia and Anio Novus united, which we know
from Frontinus was carried into all the fourteen Regiones of Rome, but
it was considered by Fabretti to have belonged to the Aqua Julia; the
difference of level between the two aqueducts is only ten feet. At this
high point the water was divided, and carried in different directions;
one branch, of which part of the _specus_ is visible, went to the other
great reservoir called the Sette Sale, which supplied the Thermæ of
Titus and Trajan on the Esquiline, and the surplus water passed on to
the Colosseum and to the fountain called the Meta Sudans. From the other
great division of the aqueducts, at the corner of the Sessorian gardens,
near the Porta Maggiore, the well-known arches of Nero go along the
bank to the Lateran, and from thence along the Cœlian Hill to the great
central reservoir of Nero, over the Arch of Dolabella. At that point
it has been already shewn that several of the aqueducts met, and were
divided into three branches, one straight on to the Palatine, on a double
arcade across the valley from the Cœlian, of which there are considerable
remains of the lower tier of arches, and one arch of the upper tier,
which forms a sort of back gate to the palaces of the Cæsars. A second
branch passed over the Porta Capena to the Aventine, at different levels;
the earliest and lowest, the Aqua Appia, is the one that can now be the
most distinctly traced. After passing over the short _agger_ of Servius
Tullius it goes underground under the cliff, at the north end of the
Pseudo-Aventine, and at the further end under the hill on which S. Sabba
now stands; a series of stone-quarries have been made by cutting away one
side of the _specus_, leaving the wells to give air to the quarry.
At this point excavations have repeatedly been made by the archæologists,
and as often filled up again by the workmen in the summer months, until
1876, when an arrangement was made with the proprietor to make a more
complete excavation, and put up a door to protect it. In this part, which
is just before the _specus_ crosses the last road on its way to the
Tiber, seven different branches of other aqueducts cast their surplus
water into this earliest and lowest; in many parts this was only a tunnel
cut in the bed of tufa, and generally half full of a deposit of clay,
left by the water which comes from the clayey fields of Lucullus, but
in one part it is built of large blocks of tufa, like the walls of the
Kings; it is here six feet high and two feet wide; on each side of it is
a terra-cotta water-pipe of very early character, and bringing different
water in the same tunnel[212].
Near this point it crossed _over_ the road on a bridge (?), or perhaps
from the low level _under_ it, at the site of a gate where the four roads
meet, to another old stone-quarry of the same kind nearly under Santa
Prisca, where the _specus_ was visible in 1874, but is now concealed by
some of the vault having fallen in; and from that it has been traced
through another series of old stone-quarries to the mouth on the bank
of the Tiber, in the very curious cave called that of Picus and Faunus,
and Hercules—having previously passed through another reservoir, with
water still in it knee-deep, remaining at a considerable distance under
the hill, with a _specus_ from thence to the cave at the mouth, partly a
natural channel for the water to escape, and partly cut when the aqueduct
was made.
The third great branch from the Arch of Dolabella went direct to the
Colosseum, and two subsidiary springs still flow there, one under the
garden of the Villa Celi-Montana, the other under the garden of the
monastery of SS. John and Paul, near to the Colosseum, the latter a very
abundant stream, bubbling up copiously; and there are three small pools
supplied by it in that quarry, which was formerly called the _Vivarium_,
and supposed to have been the place where the wild beasts were kept,
but this was a mistake[213]. From that reservoir another branch went
in a _specus_ at a considerable depth under the garden of the Marchese
Rappellini, behind the monastery of S. Gregory. In this garden there was
a landslip in the spring of 1876, and the Marchese thought it probable
that the palace of Scaurus had stood there, as it is close by the sloping
road called the Clivus Scauri; I thought it more likely to have been
the aqueduct which had fallen in, but agreed that the archæologists
should excavate it, which was done in May. It turned out to be an old
stone-quarry that had fallen in, at the depth of more than 20 ft., but
the _specus_ of the aqueduct had passed through the quarry, and remained
visible in the pit coming from the cave called the _Vivarium_, and going
over the Porta Capena. There is, however, so little of interest left,
that the pit was filled up again, after a plan and sketch had been made
by Signor Cicconetti.
Another branch of the three aqueducts (Marcia, Tepula, and Julia) went
from the Porta di S. Lorenzo along the side of the road or _via_, so
called, partly in the bank, by the side of it; the upper _specus_ is now
visible, the other two are under it. The whole were underground until the
levels were altered in the arrangements for the new city. This branch
led straight to the _Mons Justitiæ_, in the centre of the great _agger_
of Servius Tullius. Near this point the four young princes found in
their excavation, in 1870, two _cippi_ near together, with inscriptions
upon them, stating that the _three aqueducts_ passed between them, and
the _specus_ of the upper one, the Julia, was brought to light; the
other two, Tepula and Marcia, remained underground. Not much more than a
hundred yards from this, another _cippus_ had previously been found, on
the top of a well, recording that it descended into the Anio Vetus, which
therefore ran under the others, at a great depth in this part, on account
of the different levels of the ground, and was then carried along the
inner side of this great bank both right and left. The one to the right,
or north, going to the gardens of Sallust, or at least a branch from one
of the three, went along the horn-work at that corner of the old city,
and had a reservoir under the house (now rebuilt by Mr. Spithœver), and
then to the _nymphæum_ at the end, and (to the east) of the _Porticus
Milliarius_ of Aurelian. In the opposite direction, the left, or south,
it went along the inside of the _agger_, on which a row of houses of
the first century had been built. It has been found at intervals in
several places, one of which is close to the house of Mæcenas. Another
branch of an early aqueduct has been found in the tufa rock behind the
houses, near the great church of S. Maria Maggiore, on a high level, at
the south end of some great building of the first century, or earlier,
which was formerly called the _Porticus Liviæ_ and an account of it was
published under that name, but the fragment of the Marble Plan of Rome,
with the plan of that building and the name upon it, clearly shews this
to have been an error. The _Macellum Livianum_, or meat-market of Livia,
was found in these excavations near the arch of Gallienus, but there
is no connection between the _Macellum_ and the _porticus_, which is
represented as an oblong platform, with steps up to it at one end, and
with a grand double colonnade all round it. Nothing like this was found
near the _Macellum_, and as the earth was carried away to the depth of
several feet, if it had been there it must have been found.
In the third century, when nearly all the temples in the Forum were
rebuilt, the great public building which forms the north end of that
Forum (by whatever name it may be called), was also very much altered in
many ways; the main fabric, at the west end, is still original, as it was
in the time of Varro, when it was justly mentioned as one of the oldest
buildings in Rome. But in the interior great alterations were made, and
amongst these, at the west end of the Ærarium (or bank-vaults as they
might have been called), the arrangement was entirely altered; the public
treasury was transferred to the imperial offices on the Palatine, in what
are called the palaces of the Cæsars, and at the west end of the Ærarium
an aqueduct was introduced, with a reservoir and a well. A _specus_ of
brickwork of the third century is visible, but to which aqueduct it
belonged is not easily ascertained; from its level it would agree with
the Marcia; it is not high enough for the Anio Novus carried over the
bridge of Caligula, though that must have passed near this point; and it
is too high for the Anio Vetus, although remains of this have been found
also at a short distance; but on lower ground, under, and at the back of
a wine-shop in the Via del Consolazione, but quite at the east end of it,
and near the corner of the steps that ascend from it to the door of the
Municipio, on the level of the Tabularium, a reservoir that must have
belonged to that aqueduct has been found, and the _specus_ traced at the
back, parallel to the street, apparently cut out of the tufa rock. Two
doors further from the steps the _specus_ is again visible at the back
of the shop; and at the same point, but going in an opposite direction,
a subterranean passage, which also appears to be cut in the tufa rock,
going in the direction of the Piazza del Campidoglio, and said to go as
far as the statue of Marcus Aurelius. Whether this had any connection
with the aqueduct, or what its object was, is at present not known.
The Plan and Section of the Aqueducts at the Claudium which is also at
the end of the arches of Nero, on the Cœlian Hill, the point from which
the water was divided into three branches, have been partially shewn in
this work, but this could not be done completely until the explorations
were made in 1875 and 1876. Subsidiary springs were continually used
for the old aqueducts, that no water might be lost that could be used.
Of these springs two were found in the space indicated in this Plan,
one under part of the garden of Baron Hoffman, near the Navicella, the
other under the garden of the monks of SS. John and Paul, in the cave
or old stone-quarry which was formerly called a _vivarium_, but which
really was a reservoir of the old aqueducts, and this is the most copious
spring of the two. It seems almost certain that the water from both these
springs found its way into the Colosseum, after the great excavations
were made there in 1874-75. To get rid of this water is now (in 1876)
a great object. The Government and the Municipality propose, at an
enormous expense, to make a new drain from the Colosseum to the Tiber at
a great depth. Careful enquiries have been made of the workmen employed
in repairing the original drain of the time of Sylla and Scaurus; it was
found in a very bad state, and the workmen were afraid to go along it
without putting a wooden centering under the old vault, as they were made
to fear lest the earth should fall in behind them. This was done for the
whole length of the Colosseum, nearly as far as the Arch of Constantine,
but the men were then obliged to give up this examination of it for want
of air. They state that the main body of the water appeared to come in
from under the road from the Navicella, and to run in a continuous stream
as if from an aqueduct, and not to bubble up out of the earth as in a
spring. This led to the exploration shewn in Plate XXXVI., to ascertain
where the water came from[214]. The two springs above mentioned are
both on a much higher level than the Colosseum, as will be seen by the
Section; and as both are good drinking water, always fresh, it is certain
that they must each have some outlet, or they would soon be stagnant and
putrid. Every probability seems in favour of these being the springs that
supply the inundation of the Colosseum, and if they could be turned off
in another direction, as suggested in this Plan, the chief difficulty
would be removed. A steam-engine would soon pump the water out, if it
did not come in again. The so-called _vivarium_, under the Claudium, is
marked on the excellent map of Nolli, in the eighteenth century, as a
reservoir for water, which probably had been true; there are three small
reservoirs there now which might easily have been united, and the whole
be filled by closing the outlet.
Frontinus tells us that the aqueduct of Nero terminated at the temple of
Claudius, which was in the centre of the Claudium; this was in fact the
sacred enclosure round his temple. A fragment of the Marble Plan of Rome
also confirms this, but it is equally clear that soon after the time of
Claudius and Nero the water was carried on in three branches, one to the
Aventine, another to the Palatine, and the third to the Colosseum, as has
been before stated, and there are remains of the arcades of each in all
three directions. The _specus_ found in April, 1876, under the garden of
the Marchese Rappini, must have come from the reservoir mis-called the
_vivarium_, but it had been long out of use.
Many other remains of the aqueducts within the walls of Rome have been
found during the great excavations of 1874-1876, in different parts of
the city. Some of these have been already mentioned.
Dr. Fabio Gori has sent me an important notice of some excavations
recently made between Subiaco and Vico Varo, which throw new light on the
line of the _specus_, or channels of the aqueducts, in several places.
On p. 13, note h, it is stated that “the Anio Vetus has its source in
the district called _La Connotta_, and passes under the hill of Marano;”
but it now appears that the aqueduct in La Connotta belongs to the Anio
Novus, because they have discovered at the sources of the Aqua Marcia
another aqueduct on a lower level, which must be the Anio Vetus. This
is on the opposite side of the river Anio, and passed over the river on
the bridge at Vico Varo, of which the great stone piers remain in the
bed of the river. He could not find the sources of the Anio Vetus at the
fortieth mile, near the bridge of Agosta (twenty miles above Tivoli),
because the torrents, in time of flood, have brought down such a quantity
of stone in the bed of the river Anio, and the valley through which it
flows, that the level of the ground, and of the bottom of the river
in this part, is now nearly twenty feet higher than it was when that
aqueduct was made.
At p. 60, it is said that Dr. Gori had found the _Piscina Limaria_ of the
Anio Novus, made by Claudius, “at the _Prata della Cartiera_ of Subiaco;”
that was written when they had found a large aqueduct by the side of the
_Emissarium Barberini_; but the recent excavations have shewn that the
water for that aqueduct came from the third loch, near the bridge of
S. Mauro, where the opening at the entrance to the _specus_ was found,
covered with an iron grating. From this it was inferred that there was a
special aqueduct with a private _specus_ to supply the baths and thermæ
of the _Villa Neronis Sublacensis_. A quantity of marble of very rare
kinds, from this villa, on the margin of the river, has been found, and
in the bed of the river the foot of a colossal bronze statue.
The question of the true site of the _Piscina Limaria_, of Frontinus,
still remains to be settled, and with it the beginning or source of the
great Aqueduct of Claudius, called the _Aqua Claudia_. After carefully
examining the bank of the river at a quay at the forty-second ancient
mile of the Via Sublacensis, that is to say, between three and four
modern miles below Subiaco (which is forty-five miles from Rome), they
found the remains of an aqueduct called the _Muraccio_, almost always
washed by the water of the river, which enters into it, and then turns at
an angle.
On entering into the _Muraccio_, Dr. Gori became convinced that it was
the Piscina Limaria of Claudius, as described by Frontinus, c. 15,
because the water enters freely into the lower chamber, and to the
right the _specus_ of the Anio Novus is seen. The water, according
to Frontinus, between the entrance from the river and the _specus_
(_inter amnem et specum_), was stopped and purified in the same chamber,
before it entered into the conduit. Considering also that between the
three lochs, where the water is now pure, and this piscina, there is
a considerable distance. In the rainy season the floods bring down a
considerable quantity of earth from the neighbouring fields, which makes
the water of the Anio Novus muddy; for which reason the Emperor Trajan
began, as Frontinus states, to lengthen that aqueduct to the second upper
loch, above the Villa Neroniana Sublacensis. Dr. Gori has found that this
work of Trajan was completed, by tracing the whole line of it along the
left bank of the river Anio.
ANOTHER AQUA AUGUSTA.
At a meeting of the “Institut de Correspondance Archéologique,” in
1873, the Commendatore G. B. D. Rossi gave an account[215] of another
Aqua Augusta, the springs and source of which have been found with that
inscription, in the district called _Le Macchie di Rocca di Papa_. This
aqueduct appears not to have gone to Rome, but descending into the
meadow called the Camp of Hannibal, it went on to the imperial villa at
Tusculum, where the magnificent piscina of the time of Trajan or Hadrian
is miscalled the House of Cicero.
ERRATA ET CORRIGENDA.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
=Transcriber’s Note:= The errata have not been corrected. Since all notes
were reindexed as part of producing this e-text, the note references
below have been updated to match the new numbers.
_Errata._ _Corrigenda._
_p._ x. Julia (v.) Sources on Mons The Sources are near Grotta
Algidus (near Tusculum), Frascati, Ferrata, not Tusculum:
and Grotta Ferrata. see p. 42.
_p._ x. _col._ 1. (vii.) Lacus Lacus Alsietinus.
Alsietina.
_col._ 2. Lacus Sabatina. Lacus Sabatinus.
At the Cariæ. At the Careiæ.
Casale Bianca. Casale Bianco.
_p._ xi. _col._ 1. (x.) Lacus Lacus Sabatinus.
Sabatina.
_col._ 2. (xi.) Torre de’ Scavi. Torre de’ Schiavi.
_Ibid._ (xii., xiii.) Villa de Villa de’ Quintilii.
Quintilii.
_p._ xii. (xvi.) (Algentiana). The That opinion is not correct (?).
water is said to have been brought The name of _Algentiana_ given
by a branch from the Marcia at the to the water is from the Mons
Porta di S. Lorenzo. Algidus, near Tusculum. This
water now supplies the Villa
Aldobrandini at Frascati.
_p._ 3, _note_ 9. loco nomen Gemellorum.
respondenti Gemellarum.
_p._ 5, _note_ 14. Torre de’ Scavi. Torre de’ Schiavi.
_p._ 10, _note_ 21. under the _for_ Monastery _read_ S. Maria di
monastery of S. Maria del Trinita Malta. Aventinense, or il Priorato
di Malta.
_p._ 27. (i.) et ... novum ramus ... novum, i. 5 ... hac tres ...
Augustæ, hac tres. fluentes ad Viminalem usque
portam. i. 19.
_Ibid._ (iii.) que vocantur ... qui vocantur ... hi directi.
hi directe.
_Ibid._ (iv.) intra portam intra portam exquilinam.
exquelinam.
_Ibid._ (v.) que locus infra. qui locus est infra.
_p._ 35, _note_ 79. Delle varie Delle vere Sorgenti.
Sorgenti.
_p._ 41, _line_ 32. Squaricarelli. Squarciarelli.
_p._ 42, _line_ 8. Canina cleared That _specus_ was of the Aqua
out the ancient _specus_ of the Algentiana, and not of the Julia.
Julia. The source of the Angelosa is not
that of the Julia but of the Aqua
Crabra.
_p._ 43, _line_ 8. Near Rocca di This arcade was of the _Aqua
Papa an arcade, ... probably a Algentiana_. See Canina, tom. v.
part of the Julia. This arcade
is called _Arcioni_.
_p._ 50, _line_ 20. _Cariæ._ _Careiæ._
_Ibid._, _line_ 22. _Lacus Lacus Alsietinus.
Alsietina._
_Ibid._, _line_ 30. Strachia Capra. Stracciacappe.
_Ibid._, _line_ 32. Lacus Alsietina. Lacus Alsietinus.
_p._ 51, _line_ 5. from the from the lake Alsietinus.
Alsietina Lake.
_Ibid._, _line_ 8. Lacus Sabatina. Lacus Sabatinus.
_Ibid._, _note_ 109. This lake, This lake is called Sabatinus ...
called Sabatina ... from the from the names of those villages,
names of the proprietors. _Anguillara_ and _Bracciano_.
_Ibid._, _note_ 110. ALSEATINA. ALSIETINA.
_p._ 52, _line_ 1. Cariæ. Careiæ.
_p._ 53, _line_ 5. Lacus Sabatina. Lacus Sabatinus.
_Ibid._, _line_ 8. Cariæ. Careiæ.
_Ibid._, _note_ 116. Lacus Lacus Alsietinus.
Alsietina.
_p._ 89, _note_ 178. _Torre de _Torre de’ Schiavi._
Scavi._
_p._ 90, _note_ 179. Aquarum Aquarum ductus etiam infinitos.
ductus etiam infinitas.
_p._ 100, _line_ 2. from the Aqua The Aqua Algentiana really comes
Marcia. from Mons Algidus, near Tusculum.
_p._ 106, _line_ 19. _fistula the fistula Urbana is of lead, not
Urbana_, made in a piece of marble.
marble.
_p._ 110. (xi.) Alseatina. Alsietina.
_p._ 118, _line_ 33. Garciano. Carciano.
_p._ 121, _line_ 33, _col._ 2. Torre de’ Schiavi.
Torre d’ Scavi.
_p._ 122. (vii.) ALSEATINA. ALSIETINA.
_Ibid._ Cariæ. Careiæ.
_p._ 132, _line_ 6. Alseatina. Alsietina.
_Ibid._ Pantana. Pantano.
LEVELS OF THE AQUEDUCTS, TAKEN BY ERNEST DE MAURO, 1871.
THE SEVEN SPECUS AT THE PORTA MAGGIORE, ARRANGED ACCORDING TO THE LEVELS
ABOVE THE SEA.
I. Anio Novus, 65.000.
II. Claudia, 62.336.
The _specus_ at the Trophies of Marius, 59.936.
III. Felice, 59.560.
_Specus_ on the high ground, between the Porta Maggiore and S.
Lorenzo, 59.100.
Reservoir at the fountain of Termini, 58.600.
IV. Julia, 58.192.
Reservoir behind the wall near the Porta S. Lorenzo, 53.000.
V. Tepula, 56.712.
Reservoir in the wall near the Porta S. Lorenzo, 49.525.
VI. Marcia, 54.788.
_Specus_ at the Porta S. Lorenzo, 54.405.
VII. Anio Vetus, 45.688.
Reservoir near Porta Furba, two miles from the Porta Maggiore,
47.193.
Reservoir in the Vigna Berardi, 41.731[216].
Reservoir between the Porta Asinaria and the Amphitheatrum
Castrense, 34.030.
Reservoir in the Vigna Mangani, near the Minerva Medica, 47.735.
Two small _specus_ in the Via Labicana, 43.857[217].
Antoniana—_Specus_ in the City wall and over the Arch of Drusus, 40.374.
Aurelia—Reservoir on the south side of the Porta Latina, 36.000.
Severiana (?)—Reservoir on the north side of the Porta Latina, 33.400.
Aqua Marcia Pia[218], 60.088, at the Porta Pia.
HISTORICAL PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE AQUEDUCTS.
[_The numbers refer to Mr. Parker’s Catalogue._]
_Those marked with * are from drawings, valuable for historical
purposes_, but not as photographs.
In his admirable treatise on the Aqueducts, Frontinus mentions in his
first book, as an introduction, that before they were made, the Roman
people, for the space of 441 years after the foundation of the City, were
content with the water from the Tiber and from certain natural springs
which from their salubrity were supposed to be sanctified.
One of the springs, called Aqua Argentina, deserves special attention; it
comes out of the rock in a considerable body, and with much force, under
the north-west corner of the Palatine Hill, at a great depth, in the cave
called the Lupercal, which from its situation may very well have been a
wolf’s cave at the time of the foundation of Rome. (702* is the plan and
section of this). It falls into the larger stream that comes from the
Quirinal and Capitoline Hills, and now runs in the Cloaca Maxima (690*).
The point of junction of these two streams can be seen in an opening
where the vault has been destroyed (158), near the arch of Janus and the
church of S. Georgio in Velabro, which was the silversmiths’ quarter in
Rome, as is shewn by the arch they erected in honour of Septimius Severus
near this spot, the inscription on which remains.
The stream that comes from the foot of the Quirinal, and now runs through
the Cloaca Maxima, emerges in a cellar under a house at the back of the
church of S. Hadrian, and a great body of water rises with considerable
force. Such a spring is no doubt in its original place. Another spring
that runs into this stream is the one that rises in the crypt under the
church of the Crucifixion, at the foot of the Capitoline Hill, called the
Prison of S. Peter, which is another natural source.
Of the wells or reservoirs of rain-water, we have one remarkable
example still preserved; it is on the Palatine Hill, at the north-west
corner, just behind the most perfect part of the Wall of Romulus, and
at one corner of his _arx_ or citadel, called Roma Quadrata, and there
are certain peculiarities about it. It has _specus_, or subterranean
conduits, to carry water to it from different parts of the hill. The
cistern itself is seven feet high, of about the same width, and of
considerable length. Into this reservoir descend certain wells of a
peculiar and unusual form, like a hollow cone with the wide mouth
downwards. This form of well is said to be common in the east; but the
only examples known in this part of Italy are this one on the Palatine
under the _arx_ of Romulus, and one at Alba Longa, under the corner of
the _arx_ or citadel of that ancient city, from which the Romans are
said to have been originally a colony. This is certainly a remarkable
coincidence, if it is nothing more. One of these wells is shewn in 764
and 765 from nature, and in 366*, 384*, from a drawing. 1630 is a view
of the reservoir at Alba Longa (mis-called the Prison). 1940* is from a
drawing of the two compared.
The remains of the aqueduct and reservoir at Tusculum (shewn in 1903) are
of _opus quadratum_, of very early character, and seem to shew that the
inhabitants there had aqueducts before the Romans. Frontinus, indeed,
makes no claim to invention, nor were the Romans generally inventors,
they rather turned to useful account the inventions of other people whom
they had conquered.
I. THE APPIA—was made by the Censor, Appius Claudius Crassus
(Cæcus[219]), in the year of Rome 441, B.C. 312, and has its origin in
and near to the Latomiæ or Stone Quarries of the time of the Kings of
Rome, on the bank of the river Anio, in which one of the sources of this
aqueduct is found.
865, 866, 867
The Caves of Cervaro are a continuation of these Quarries, shewn in 1557.
1155* and 1968* are plans of the sources of the Aqua Appia and Aqua
Virgo, in the Meadows of Lucullus, near Collatia.
These meadows are now known by the medieval towers called La Rustica,
Sapienza (1551), and Cervaro (1552), and the lines of the aqueduct,
crossing them from different springs and meeting in a central reservoir,
can be traced by the clumps of shrubs over each well. The aqueduct itself
being at a great depth, but still having water in it for the greater
part of the year, and moisture always, the line of these wells is
thus distinguished. From the central reservoir, in which the water was
collected, the _Specus_ or Conduit was carried into Rome, always at a
great depth.
The spring of the Augustan branch (added A.D. 10) is found under a
cottage (1550), near the town or castle of Cervelletta.
The _Specus_, or Conduit of each of the aqueducts, is distinguished by
a slight change of form, and often of size also. Sections of fifteen of
these are given in the map, and shewn in the photographs of it, 1982*.
That of the Appia being the lowest, and always at a great depth, has
been the most difficult to distinguish; but within the walls of Rome
it passed along the Cœlian Hill[220] (691*, 890*), and then across the
short space between the Cœlian and the Aventine, upon the bank or Agger
of Servius Tullius (1100, 1136, 1164, 1165, 1289, 1288, 1166), and very
near to (_proxima_) the Porta Capena (1138*). After passing the Piscina
Publica, and serving as a drain for the surplus water, it is continued
at the foot of the cliff of the Pseudo-Aventine, under S. Balbina and
S. Sabba, to the mouth of it (84*) on the bank of the Tiber, under the
Priorato near the Marmorata and the Porta Trigemina. The _specus_ is here
distinctly visible, filled up with the clay deposit to one-third of its
height (1116); the view in the stone quarry and a section of one of the
wells is shewn in 889*. A Plan of the stone quarry under S. Sabba shews
several aqueducts meeting in it, and throwing their surplus water into
the Appia, as the lowest (this is given in 834*, 1941*).
The Reservoirs of this most ancient and very deep aqueduct were first
in the quarries before mentioned, and even in Rome were chiefly also in
quarries, as at the mouth; but just within the Porta Maggiore, and close
to the gardens of S. Croce, formerly the Sessorian Palace, are two large
reservoirs very near together, supposed to have been the Gemelli or twin
reservoirs mentioned by Frontinus, and these are so deep that they appear
to have belonged to the Aqua Appia. Some excavations attempted in them in
1867 were stopped by water (410, 411, 695*). This aqueduct is believed to
have entered Rome on the northern side of these gardens, and to have been
first received in the reservoir afterwards called after S. Helena, which
is very deep, and in this situation (546).
II. ANIO VETUS, MADE IN THE YEAR OF ROME 481, B.C. 272.[221]
The Anio Vetus and the Anio Novus are in fact branches of the river
Anio, which falls into the Tiber a short distance above Rome. The water
is there seen to be much more pure than that of the Tiber, and after it
falls into the muddy Tiber its clear water can be distinguished for a
long distance. Several of the aqueducts, as the Appia and the Virgo, are
springs, that fell into that river; but part of the water was intercepted
and brought into Rome, each in its own distinct _specus_. This was the
case with the Anio Vetus, at a much higher level above Tivoli, but below
Subiaco. The river itself may be considered to belong to the system of
the Aqueducts, and the series of magnificent cascades by which it falls
from its high level, are partly artificial, are connected with them,
and illustrate their history. Those in Tivoli (1545, 1546, 1547, 1548),
the engineers had great difficulty in avoiding. The one near Vico-Varo
(1544), above Tivoli, is near the point from which the aqueduct was
taken, which is near the valley called Arsoli (1549). It can be seen in
the valley of the Arches, two miles above Tivoli, at the foot of one
of the piers of the Marcian Arcade (1054), and the one seems to have
followed the other all the way into Rome. It passes along with it over
the Ponte di S. Antonio, which is one of the finest bridges on the whole
line of the Aqueducts, eight miles below Tivoli, across the valley and
mountain stream called S. Antonio (1530). This aqueduct can generally be
distinguished by being half-underground, or very near the surface. It was
repaired or restored by Augustus and Trajan[222], and most of the remains
now visible are of their time, and both the _specus_ and the _castella_
can generally be known by being faced with _opus reticulatum_, so much
used at that time. There is a fine reservoir or _castellum_ for it near
Tivoli, with very peculiar work of this description, and extremely
picturesque (950). Another is against a bank, and half underground, near
the Torre Fiscale, three miles from Rome, and close to the foot of the
Claudian Arcade (896, 1028, 1029). Remains of others may still be seen
at the foot of the Wall of Rome in several places, they were distinctly
visible in 1870, when these photographs were taken; but have been almost
obliterated since in the _restoration_ (?) of the wall by the municipal
architect. One is near the Porta Metronia (983), and another at the
Porta Latina (985). Remains of other _piscinæ_ are visible near the
Amphitheatrum Castrense, on the rock at the foot of the wall (868, 969,
970); at this point one branch of it seems to have been brought into
Rome along the line of the Via Appia Nova, which runs near the spot, and
entered Rome just beyond, by the Porta Asinaria. It can also be seen
at the foot of a wall by the side of the Via Labicana, near the Porta
Maggiore, and readily distinguished by the usual reticulated work (1337).
One branch enters Rome at the foot of the Marcian Arcade, close to the
Porta Maggiore (59), and the _specus_ was visible at that gate, until it
was concealed by a brick wall by the modern builders. It passes through
the City Wall there, and is visible on the other side in the inner road,
in the wall of the garden still under the level of the Marcian Arcade
(1876). Here it forked off, one branch went to the left, along the line
of the wall of the garden, to a great reservoir for it at an angle close
to the junction of two roads, one called the Via Labicana the other the
Via di Porta Maggiore, coming from the church of S. Maria Maggiore. At
this spot there is a very large and fine reservoir in several chambers at
a considerable depth, corresponding to the level of the Anio Vetus; 538
is a view of it, and 700* is a section of it. From this great reservoir
two small _specus_ in this part appear to have gone into the _specus_ of
the Appia in the Cœlian, under the Arches of Nero, and are visible going
into the bank on which this fine arcade stands (854).
Another important branch turns to the north upon the high bank of the
Kings, on which the Wall of Aurelian was afterwards built. There are
remains of _castella_ for it near the Porta S. Lorenzo (869), and further
to the south near the Porta Nomentana (871), after passing the Prætorian
Camp. It had previously gone under the Porta Chiusa, which was shewn
in the excavation of 1868, and in the photograph 1057. The _specus_
runs under the wall of the Camp all round. It is still visible on the
north side, faced with the reticulated work under the fine brickwork of
Tiberius (870). There was an opening into it at the north-east corner
of the camp, into which a dog or a boy might be sent (981, 982), until
it was closed in the recent _restoration_. Remains of it may still be
seen at the foot of the wall in several places by experienced eyes. The
general plan of this aqueduct is shewn in Nos. 1970*, 1971*, 1976*,
1977*, and 1967*.
III. MARCIA, MADE IN THE YEAR OF ROME, 608, B.C. 145.[223]
This aqueduct was made in the year B.C. 145, and has its source a few
miles below Subiaco; the springs are collected in a small lake called
Aqua Serena (1537), the water from which flows into the river Anio; but a
portion of it was intercepted for this aqueduct, and is now again taken
from the same spot and brought into Rome. It has always been celebrated
for its extreme coldness and great purity. The old _specus_ or viaduct
was found in 1870 in this lake, having long been concealed by being under
water; but by drawing off some of the water it was brought to light, and
the engineer of the new company decided on carrying his new _specus_
up to this point. The previous plan had been to draw the water from
another lake nearer to Rome, which is nearly equally good water, but not
the real Aqua Marcia so much prized, and this is now again brought into
Rome. The source of the old aqueduct is celebrated for its extremely
picturesque character, as well as for the fine construction of the arcade
of large square stones, and the scientific arrangement of the reservoirs
(_castella aquarum_) and filtering-places (_piscinæ_). The sources in
the Aqua Serena are shewn in Nos. 1538, 1539. Another source for an
additional supply was on the lake of the Mole d’Agosta, 1543.
In the earlier part of its course the _specus_ is underground; but on
arriving at the valley called the Valley of the Arches, about two miles
above Tivoli, it emerges upon the fine arches which give the name to
the valley, and is here carried across the river Anio. These arches
are in two series, and are among the most picturesque objects in the
neighbourhood of Rome; the effect is improved by a medieval tower built
upon the first pier of the bridge. This is shewn in Nos. 1053, 1054.
It then appears again on the other side of Tivoli, on the road called the
Promenade of Garciano, which is on the edge of the hill looking towards
Rome, and above the winding road up the hill; S. Peter’s is visible from
this point. On this platform there are a number of fine remains of the
_specus_ and of the _castella_ of the Aqueducts, some of the finest of
which are of the Marcia. The Plan and Section of a very fine Reservoir
and Piscina here is given in No. 535*.
Another very fine one has a wall on the edge of the cliff of the
character called Cyclopean (Nos. 1513 and 1528). Chambers of this
remarkable early reservoir are shewn in Nos. 1520 and 1521.
A considerable part of this aqueduct was rebuilt by Augustus[224] (B.C.
11), and again about a century afterwards by Trajan[225], and of the
_specus_ of that time we have examples in 1524 and 1525, shewing a very
peculiar kind of the ornamental construction called _Opus Reticulatum_.
Another reservoir of this time is shewn in 1526, and an earlier one
belonging to the original construction of the kind called _Opus
Incertum_, which probably belongs to the earlier period, is shewn in 1527.
From Tivoli the Aqueducts again pass underground for some miles,
gradually winding down the hill from the high level to that of Rome on
the Campagna, at about seven miles distance. They were carried upon
bridges, some of which are very fine and picturesque, across the gorges
of the hills and the mountain streams. At the place where they arrive at
the lower ground, there are large reservoirs and filtering-places for
them, and the locality is called from them the Piscinæ.
From thence they are carried on the fine and celebrated arcades across
the Campagna, presenting some of the finest pictures in the neighbourhood
of Rome.
At the Piscinæ, the Tepula and Julia, from the Alban Hills near Marino,
were added to the Marcia, and carried on the same arcade. The greater
part of them was destroyed, and used for building materials by the
engineers of the Aqua Felice in the sixteenth century; but there are some
very remarkable and picturesque remains of the arcade at intervals, the
more interesting because so little is left of it. One fine piece remains
at a locality called Sette Bassi and Roma Vecchia, five miles from Rome
(1435), where a small portion of each of the three Aqueducts on an arcade
can be seen in Nos. 1006 and 536, and the Piscinæ near to it, 534, 1434,
1438.
This arcade is seen again at the Torre Fiscale, a medieval tower built
upon the aqueducts at one of the points of junction, and at one of the
angles, which they made at every half mile. Here the more lofty arcade of
the Claudia and Anio Novus is carried over that of the Marcia, Tepula,
and Julia; while the Anio Vetus runs underground at the foot of it, and
the Felice is built up against it; so that at this point seven aqueducts
cross each other, and have a tall medieval tower built on the top of
them[226]. The Torre Fiscale, with this remarkable junction, is shewn in
Nos. 528, 529, 530, 531, 532. A plan and section of it are given in 689*.
There is another angle and crossing at the Porta Furba, half-a-mile
nearer to Rome, which makes another very picturesque point of view (shewn
in Nos. 551, 552). A small portion of it remains built into a gardener’s
cottage at another angle, about a mile from Rome, and a fine large
reservoir near to it. The ground then rises, and the arcade is buried
for some distance; the upper part of the arches of brick, as rebuilt by
Trajan, are then visible by the side of the old road that runs close
to the northern side of the great Claudian arcade, on the line of the
Marcian, which was parallel to the Claudian for some miles into Rome.
It then occurs again very conspicuously at the last angle, close to
the Porta Maggiore, where the Claudia was again carried over it, and
afterwards incorporated in the City Wall of Aurelian. Here the last pier
of the arcade remains with the three _specus_ of the Marcia, Tepula, and
Julia passing through the wall at a right angle (31, 59). Inside the wall
a part of the first arch remains with the _specus_ upon it (60); on the
other side of the road, the pier of the same arch remains built into the
wall of the garden; and a little further on in the garden or vineyard,
a gardener’s house is made out of another reservoir or _castellum aquæ_
(538; section, 700*).
It then passes again underground parallel to the city wall for a short
distance, and near the Minerva Medica it runs into the bank on which that
great wall is carried. A portion of this underground arcade was brought
to light in some excavations in 1871, but is now covered up again (2320).
After passing underground in the bank on which the wall stands for some
distance, it emerges near the Porta Tiburtina, now called Porta di S.
Lorenzo (see a plan and section of this in No. 1938*). As the ground here
is lower it is on an arcade, one arch of which is made into the gate (21,
1870), and a portion of the _specus_ is very distinctly visible on the
southern side of the gate, with an opening into it by which persons can
go inside of it (shewn in Nos. 69, 572*, and 1487).
After passing the Porta Tiburtina, it went on upon the bank or outer
_mœnia_ of Rome to the Prætorian Camp, and there was a large reservoir
for it near the Porta Chiusa, remains of which were visible in the
excavations of 1868, with the wall of Rome built across it (shewn in
1059). From this reservoir the three aqueducts, Marcia, Tepula, and
Julia, were carried along the side of the old road to the inner gate in
the great _agger_ of Servius Tullius on the Viminal, where the railway
station has now been made, and where the three Roman princes carried on
excavations in 1869, in which they found the upper _specus_; that of the
Julia, which was left open for a time, passing between the _cippi_ or
boundary-stones, with inscriptions upon them, recording that _the three
aqueducts_ passed there between them.
Another division of the Marcia went along the same line as the Arches of
Nero to the Cœlian, and along that hill as far as the great reservoir
over the arch of Dolabella; then turning to the left or south, it came to
an end above or over the Porta Capena[227]. These words may mean—either,
in the reservoir on the cliff of the Cœlian Hill just _above_ the
gate, rebuilt in the time of Trajan, of which the remains are shewn in
1147*;—or, in the reservoir in the valley close to the west side of that
gate (also rebuilt in the time of Trajan, and now a gardener’s house, as
before mentioned). In that case it must have passed over the gate, and
the _specus_ that is cut in the wall of the western tower belonged to it
(710*).
The general plan of the Aqua Marcia near its source is shewn in 1972*,
and the line of its course in 1981*, 1982*; the bridge for it in 1983*.
In the early part of its course, above Tivoli, the new aqueduct for this
water, called the Aqua Marcia Pia, is carried on a stone _specus_ upon
an arcade, after the same fashion as the old one (a portion of this new
arcade is shewn in No. 1553).
IV. THE TEPULA, and V. THE JULIA, being carried on the same arcade as the
Marcia for the seven miles into Rome, have left remains visible in some
places, especially at the Gates of Rome, the Porta Maggiore (31), and the
Porta Tiburtina (21, 572*); in other places, they have generally been
destroyed. Near the Sette Bassi, there is a portion of the _specus_ of
the Julia visible just at the surface of the ground, the other two being
then subterranean, as the level is rather higher in this part than usual.
This portion has been examined by Signor Moraldi, at a junction whence a
branch was carried to supply a reservoir at the great villa called Sette
Bassi, and there are remains of the loch in the channel to turn off the
water, shewing the same arrangement as in a modern canal. (A plan and
section of this is given in 696*.) The _specus_ near this point, built
of concrete faced with brick, is also shewn in 1006. The _specus_ of the
Marcia is always of squared stone, so that one is readily distinguished
from the other. There are remains of a _castellum aquæ_ or reservoir for
the Tepula, near the Porta Tiburtina, or Porta Viminalis of Frontinus,
now called Porta di S. Lorenzo. This is shewn in the Plan of that Gate,
Nos. 1111* and 1238*, and a view of it in No. 25. It is a remarkable
building of brick of the first century, and has on a level with the
_specus_ a series of small corbels projecting from it, evidently intended
to carry a _hourd_, or wooden balcony as a passage for the Aquarii,
and perhaps for defence also. It is incorporated in the great Wall of
Aurelian. It projects slightly from the line of that wall, and the end of
the _specus_, with its triangular head, is visible in the angle.
V. JULIA.
Between this building and the gate, but within the wall, though on the
bank on which it stands, are slight remains of another _castellum aquæ_,
supposed to have been for the Julia (Nos. 26, 869, 1873), which has its
external face in the direction of the wall, and must have been concealed
by it when that was built. This is also of the first century, as is shewn
by the brickwork, and it seems to have been a _castellum aquæ_ by the
disproportional size of the buttresses used to support the weight of the
water, one of the invariable marks of such a structure. The other mark is
the peculiar cement with which the wall is lined, called _Opus Signinum_
in Latin, _Coccio Pesto_ in Italian, which is made of broken pottery, and
is the hardest cement that is known; it is often impossible to break it,
even after it has been exposed to the weather for centuries.
A plan and section of the ground between the two gates, called by
Frontinus Esquilina (S. Lorenzo) and Viminalis (Maggiore), shew the
difference of level, and the three aqueducts passing underground in the
middle between the two gates, and carried on arches at both ends near the
gates (see No. 1938*).
The plan of the ground at the sources of the Tepula and Julia is given in
1980*.
VI. THE VIRGO (NOW CALLED AQUA DI TREVI) WAS MADE IN THE YEAR OF ROME
732, B.C. 21.
This aqueduct has its sources in the meadows of Lucullus, on the banks
of the river Anio, on the old Via Collatia, eight miles from Rome,
about a mile further than the Aqua Appia, not at the same level, but
comparatively near the surface. There are several springs, each of which
has its own separate reservoir just below the surface of the ground;
in some of them the vault is scarcely perceived. These are also called
conduit-heads (864, 863, 862). From each of these small reservoirs a
conduit runs into the central reservoir (860, 861), which is considerably
larger, circular in form, surrounded by a wall, lined with the cement
called _coccio pesto_, and one part of this central reservoir under the
road now remains. This is near Salone, with its medieval tower. (See the
Plan, 1155*.)
From this large central reservoir the surplus water is carried off by
short conduits into the country ditches, and so into the river Anio.
The main _specus_ into Rome begins at the central reservoir, and runs
generally underground along the line of the old Via Collatina, now called
Lunghezza. The course of the aqueduct can be clearly traced by the small
pyramidal or conical structures over the wells at regular intervals,
called Respirators (660*), or which might have been called Ventilators,
as they give air to the _specus_ below. It runs in the high bank of the
old road for two or three miles, behind the ruin called Torre d’ Scavi,
supposed to be the Thermæ of the Gordiani, in a direct line towards the
Porta Maggiore; but about half-a-mile before arriving there, it turns
sharp to the north along the bank of the great _foss_ or valley, and
being underground is traced by the Respirators. Further to the north,
beyond S. Agnes, at some little distance, the old line can be traced in
the catacomb of S. Priscilla on the Via Salaria, where the _specus_ is
visible, half filled up with the deposit of clay (1109*, 1466). In the
road on the bank on which the Wall of Aurelian is built, near the Porta
Salaria, it can be traced by the low arcade at the foot of the wall
which is built upon it (5).
But when the line was altered, it was carried still further to the north,
and it enters Rome under the garden of the French Academy (the Villa
Medici); it here is marked by two _cippi_ (2088, 2089), with inscriptions
upon them, and under the garden is a large reservoir very deep, level
with the ground in the great foss on the outside, and with the Campus
Martius inside the walls. It was then divided into two branches, one
of which went along the Via de Condotti, the other along the Via del
Nazzareno (83, 1108*) to the Fountain of Trevi, rebuilt in A.D. 1735
(1356); originally, it went to the north end of the Septa, near the
Pantheon. Some remains of this were shewn in 1871 in the Piazza di S.
Ignazio (2326). The _specus_ can be seen, with an inscription upon it
recording repairs by the Emperor Claudius (82), in the yard behind a
house near the Palazzo del Buffalo.
The plan of the ground at the sources of the Aqua Virgo (or de Trevi), is
given in 1968*, and Sections of it in 1979*.
VII. THE ALSEATINA.
This aqueduct was made by Augustus in the year of Rome 763, A.D. 10,
to bring water for his great Naumachia, or sham naval battles in the
Trastevere; the water was not good for drinking[228]. It was brought from
the lake called Alseatina, in the hills on the western side of Rome. It
is altogether distinct from the great series of aqueducts on the eastern
side. The source can be seen in the bank of the lake, and the _specus_ or
subterranean conduit can now be entered, the water of the lake having
recently been drained, and reduced to a much lower level.
To these was added from another lake about three miles distant from the
Alseatina, another branch called the Sabatina. The two conduits were
united after a few miles near the old city of Cariæ, at a _castellum
aquæ_ or reservoir, now made into a house, and called the Osteria Nuova.
The Alseatina was at the lowest level of all the aqueducts, and it is now
very difficult to see any remains of it, except the _specus_ in the lake
at its source.
Trajan afterwards adopted the Aqua Sabatina, but omitted the Alseatina,
and carried the Sabatina at the highest level instead of the lowest (see
Aqua Sabatina, Aqueduct X.) Pope Paul V., who restored these aqueducts
to use, went back to the Alseatina lake, and his _specus_ can be seen
there on a different side of the lake to that of Augustus; both are now
left dry. There is, near the junction at the Osteria Nuova, a remarkable
flight of steps for the use of the _aquarii_, or the men who had charge
of the aqueducts. It passes through the upper _specus_, and goes down to
the lower one (No. 2959*). The respirators of these two lines can be seen
and traced; they are of a different size and form. The two can be seen
close together at the Osteria Nuova (No. 2960*). The _specus_ is also
seen in No. 2961*.
VIII. THE CLAUDIA, AND IX. THE ANIO NOVUS, A.D. 38-52.
These two aqueducts were made together, or were so closely connected that
we cannot separate their history, although they were not the same water;
the Anio Novus came from some miles higher up the river Anio than the
Claudia. The latter was, like the previous aqueducts, taken from springs,
that were intercepted before they fell into the river Anio; but the Anio
Novus was part of the river itself, in which a gigantic loch was made
by building a great wall across it, about a hundred yards in front of
a natural waterfall, and forcing the water to flow over it, forming a
magnificent cascade, and at the same time causing some of the water to
flow through the _specus_ which was cut in the cliff by the side of the
river, at a rather lower level than the top of the wall. The sources of
the Claudia are below this cascade, those of the Anio Novus are above it.
The line of each of these aqueducts is distinct in all the early part of
its course; but after they come down to the valley of the Campagna of
Rome, at the Piscinæ, the two are carried on the same fine lofty arcade
into Rome.
These were the highest, and passed over the Marcian arcade with the
three aqueducts upon it. They form the finest feature in the landscape
on the eastern side of Rome. The sources are above Subiaco, and in what
is considered by artists as some of the most picturesque scenery in the
world. The photographs illustrating this are very numerous, the subjects
being some of the best that can be imagined for this purpose. The history
of these two most important aqueducts can now be better seen in this
series of photographs than in any other manner, and better understood
than by any written description of them, after the outline of their
history is once given.
They were begun in the year of Rome 789, A.D. 38, under the Emperor Caius
Cæsar, or Caligula; carried on and completed by his successor, Claudius,
in the year of Rome 803, A.D. 52. They were therefore fourteen years in
construction, according to Frontinus[229]; but Nero was then married to
Octavia, he was the actual governor of Rome, and he carried on the great
work upon what are called the Arches of Nero, along the Cœlian Hill, as
far as the arch of Dolabella, where a large reservoir for this water was
built. This work was afterwards carried on by his successors in three
branches, one to the Colosseum, a second to the Palatine, and over it
to the Capitol, and a third to the Aventine. Frontinus himself, who has
left us his admirable treatise on the subject, had the direction of these
works for many years; he was Curator Aquarum under the Emperors Nerva
and Trajan, and some of the greatest works were done in his time,—at his
suggestion, and according to his plans.
Some of the sources of the Claudia were in the lake of S. Lucia, below
Subiaco, between that and Vico Varo (see 1536). In its course through the
hills the _specus_ is almost entirely underground, and cannot be shewn
in photographs; but the line of its course is shewn in the map of the
aqueducts from Rome to Subiaco, reduced by photography in Nos. 1967* to
1984*, especially in Nos. 1976*, 1978*, 1979*, 1981*. It crosses mountain
streams on the bridges called Ponte Lupo (1532) and Ponte di S. Antonio
(1530); and an inscription relating to it, of _A.D._ 88, is given in No.
1976*.
When it reaches the level ground of the Campagna, nearly on the same
level as the hills of Rome, the _piscina_ for it is subterranean, and
only the summit of this is visible, looking like a _tumulus_ only (688);
but from this the _specus_ is seen to emerge, at first only just above
ground, but gradually getting higher (or the soil, in fact, is getting
lower), until it is carried on the grand series of arches or arcades
across the country, which remain nearly perfect for some miles, as far as
the Sette Bassi and Roma Vecchia. In 1002, a long line of this arcade is
shewn with the Claudian _specus_ upon it, and the Anio Novus over that
in many places; the two can readily be distinguished, by the Claudian
being built of large blocks of stone (with the edges chamfered off),
and the Anio Novus being faced generally with brick, occasionally with
_opus reticulatum_. Nearer to Rome, this fine arcade has been very much
damaged, or carried off altogether as building material by the farmers,
and by the engineers of Pope Sixtus V. to build the Aqua Felice; but some
portions of the old arcade remain, and are shewn in No. 1006, where the
distinction between the two _specus_ comes out very clearly. In 1005, two
of the brick arches with which it had been strengthened by Trajan are
shewn, the stone-work having all been carried away.
In 689*, a plan and section of the Torre Fiscale is shewn, with the
crossing of six aqueducts. 528 is a view of this tower and of the arches
of the aqueducts crossing each other under it, with the Aqua Felice in
the background. 529 shews the arch of the Claudia separately, and the
construction of it, with the Aqua Felice passing under this arch of the
Claudia. 530 gives very distinctly the arch of the Marcia, Tepula, and
Julia, with that of the Claudia passing over it. 531 and 532 are more
distant and general views of that tower, and the aqueducts passing under
it. 1439 is a side view of it, and of the old tombs on the Via Latina
in that part. 1004 shews the arches of the Claudia and Anio Novus in
perspective, and the opening into the _specus_ of the Claudia. In 550,
another fine portion of the arcade is shewn, with brickwork of Trajan.
The Porta Furba and a long line of the arcade is seen in the distance.
548 shews the Porta Furba at another crossing, with the fountain, and a
portion of the arcade of the Felice; with the Marrana in the bed of the
river Almo passing under it.
62 is a portion of the Claudian arcade, about half a mile nearer to Rome,
with the arches filled up with brickwork of the time of Trajan; at this
point there is another crossing. 63 shews a portion of the brickwork of
Trajan, originally built to strengthen the stone arcade; but the latter
has been carried away by the engineers of the Felice. 549 shews some
interesting repairs of the time of Nero, with massive square buttresses
faced with reticulated work. 70 is a medieval tower at the angle of the
garden of the Sessorian Palace, now of the monastery of S. Croce, near
the point where the aqueduct enters the wall.
547 shews the interior of the Tower and a _piscina_, at the entrance into
Rome, the four chambers of which are visible, the inner wall of this
tower having been destroyed; and into the interior of this the water of
the Claudia entered in the first chamber and went out at the fourth.
This photograph also shews the remains of a large _castellum aquæ_, now
forming part of the Wall of Rome, on the north side of the garden, with a
continuation of the arcade in the Wall of Rome in this part. In 544 the
_specus_ of the Claudia is plainly visible on the top of the wall, and
remains of the Anio Novus over it. In the distance are seen some of the
arches of Nero, across the valley and foss (?), from the angle near the
Porta Maggiore to the Cœlian Hill. This garden might very naturally be
called by Lampridius “The Garden of the Specus,” for the _specus_ in the
time of the Emperors must have been the most conspicuous object in it, or
visible from it (542).
412 shews another of these reservoirs in the same garden, with repairs in
brick by Trajan. The arcade of the Aqua Felice, built against the outside
of the Wall, is also seen through the arches of the Claudia.
31. The exterior of the Porta Maggiore, with the _specus_ over it, the
lower one the Claudia, the upper one the Anio Novus. (The inscription
of A.D. 404 is given in 1872.) Under these, but still on the top of the
wall, the _specus_ of the Aqua Felice may be seen, built as usual of
rough stone concrete. To the right or north of this may be seen the three
_specus_ of the Marcia, Tepula, and Julia, passing through the wall in
the opposite direction, now under the Felice, and originally under the
Claudia and Anio Novus. These three _specus_ are carried upon one of
the piers of the Marcian arcade, built into the great wall. Just beyond
these, further to the right, is part of the last tower of the Claudian
arcade.
32. The Porta Maggiore, with the _specus_ on it, seen sideways, and the
north side of the Baker’s tomb.
The last tower and _piscina_ of the Aqua Claudia; it stands at an angle
of the wall projecting from it, and shews clearly that it stood there
when the wall was built by Aurelian, and then incorporated into it. When
the fortifications of Honorius at this gate were destroyed in 1833, the
inscription relating to the aqueduct was preserved and built up to the
right or south of the gate (shewn in 1872). Within the wall, behind the
tower, is a large reservoir or _castellum aquæ_, of which there are
slight remains, shewn in 967 and 968.
A panoramic view of the line of the Claudian arcade, on the north side of
the Sessorian gardens, taken from the extreme end of them at the west,
is shewn in Nos. 542 and 543. On the left hand is the beginning of the
arches of Nero, going across the foss towards the Cœlian; then the Porta
Maggiore is seen sideways, with the two _specus_ on the top of it. Under
this is part of one of the two great reservoirs believed to have been
the Gemelli of Frontinus. Then comes the western wall of the Sessorian
gardens, rebuilt by S. Helena, the construction being of the time of
Constantine. To the extreme right is the ruin of the Basilica or Great
Hall of the Sessorian Palace, repaired by him. This is miscalled a temple
of Venus and Cupid on some of the maps.
Having thus traced the Aqua Claudia from its sources into Rome, we must
now do the same for THE ANIO NOVUS, which in its early part is distinct
from it, as we have said.
1514. Sources of the Anio Novus above Subiaco. The river Anio in the
highest point, with which the aqueducts are connected, is seen winding
through a gorge in the rocky mountain, with remains of the bars or dams,
across the river, forming the two upper lakes or lochs. The celebrated
monasteries of S. Scholastica and S. Benedict are visible on the hill to
the left.
1515. The River Anio, a little lower down, with remains of the second
barrage or dam across it, forming the third loch or lake, with the modern
bridge built upon the ruins of the old wall that formed the bar. Chapels
of the monks of S. Benedict are visible on the hill to the right.
1534. The Bridge of S. Francis, over one of the branches of the Anio that
meet near the rocks before mentioned, above Subiaco.
1517. Remains of a great reservoir or _castellum aquæ_, of the time of
Trajan, on the bank of the lake or loch before mentioned. The wall is
faced with _opus reticulatum_, with layers of brick at intervals, the
usual construction of the time of Trajan.
1518. The modern bridge, far below, and remains of the old high wall on
which it is built, are seen under it; below are the cliffs of the third
lake or loch, cut into a circular form. In the bed of the stream are
large stones fallen from the wall or bar across the river.
1519. Remains of another _castellum aquæ_ above Subiaco, and the mouth of
a cave connected with the aqueduct.
1555. _Specus_ of the Anio Novus cut in the cliff of the valley of the
Anio. This is below the level of the great bar, and the water was forced
to go through the _specus_ into Rome by the bar being higher than the
_specus_. A modern winding road has now been cut here, and the rock has
been in part cut away, shewing an opening into the _specus_, which is six
feet high and two feet wide. Above is seen a tower and an embattled wall
of the modern Villa Gori.
1516. Part of the _specus_ of Trajan, who repaired this aqueduct. The
_specus_ is cut as a tunnel in the cliff, with a reservoir by the side of
it.
1556. A view of the gorge in the mountains above Subiaco, where the three
lakes are situated.
1536. A small lake at the source of the spring called Fons Novus
Antoninianus, one of the sources of the Anio Novus.
1558. Cascade at the Paper Mill, on the site of a _piscina_ of the Anio
Novus, above Subiaco.
1057. Arches of the bridges of the Marcia and Anio Novus, in the Valley
of the Arches above Tivoli.
1052. Arch of the bridge on the Anio Novus, in the Valley of the Arches
above Tivoli, with a medieval tower built upon it, forming one of the
most picturesque objects in the neighbourhood of Rome.
1522. Specus of the Anio Novus below Tivoli, on the road to Garciano,
called the Promenade, with openings into it, and an old tomb in front of
it. This promenade is through an olive wood, and the roots of the olive
trees run into many of the ruins.
1523. One side of a _castellum aquæ_ of the aqueduct above the road to
Garciano, faced with _opus reticulatum_.
1529. A bridge across a valley that passes the road to Garciano. This
bridge is above the road on the left, in the valley called the Arcinelli.
1531. Ponte de S. Antonio, a fine bridge for the aqueduct below Tivoli,
across a gorge. It is seen from above looking down upon it, with the
chapel of S. Antony at the end of it, and a medieval castle in the
distance. The road for horses, and the remains of the _specus_ by the
side of it, are here visible.
1532. Ponte Lupo, near Poli, west side, below Tivoli, the finest of all
the bridges of the aqueducts. It crosses a valley from one cliff to the
other, and is a solid wall for part of the way, the rest on arches. The
two _specus_ are here visible, as seen from below on the west side.
687. Arrived in the valley of the Campagna, the great _piscina_ of the
Anio Novus and that of the Claudia, which is near to it, is underground,
and the summit of it only is visible, appearing like a tumulus. It is
near the old Via Latina, and below the present roads to Albano, Frascati
and Marino.
74 and 75. After leaving the great _piscinæ_, the two _specus_ are
carried on the fine arcade, of which a panoramic view is here given,
shewing its general effect for some miles.
554. Passing by the remains of Roma Vecchia to the Torre Fiscale and the
Porta Furba (given under the head of the Aqua Claudia), the _specus_
rises to a remarkable reservoir, which from its great elevation must
have belonged to the highest of the aqueducts. It is a most picturesque
one, near the Mausoleum of S. Helena, but is earlier than her time; it
belongs rather to that of Trajan, being faced with fine reticulated work,
with layers of bricks on the exterior. The interior is distinguished by
remarkably solid central buttresses, to support the wall against the
pressure of the water (553).
926. Another large reservoir of the same period and style, and at nearly
the same level; it occurs about a mile further from the main line of the
aqueducts, at the place called Torre de’ Scavi, where the Thermæ of the
Gordiani were afterwards made. This appears also to have belonged to the
Anio Novus, as no other aqueduct is high enough for the water to have
reached it.
ARCHES OF NERO.
At the great reservoir inside the Porta Maggiore (the Porta Esquilina
of Frontinus), the water of the Claudia and the Anio Novus was united
for the general use of the City. This aqueduct entered on the highest
ground in Rome, and the water supplied the deficiencies of any of the
other aqueducts in case of need. Being a part of the river Anio, it never
failed. It was forced to come through Rome, as has been shewn by the
arrangements in the bed of the Anio above Subiaco. This united water was
carried to all the fourteen Regiones of Rome, and in order to ensure an
abundant supply, it was conveyed in the great stone _specus_, on the fine
arches of Nero along the whole length of the Cœlian Hill for more than a
mile; at the west end of the Cœlian an enormous reservoir was built for
it on the level of the _specus_ at the top of these arches, so that the
base of the reservoir was fifty feet from the ground, and the road passed
under it. From this great central reservoir, at a very high level, the
water was distributed in various directions.
Before arriving at the Cœlian Hill, it had to be conveyed to and along
the Cœliolum (now the Lateran Hill). It had come through the gardens of
the Sessorium, as we have seen, in the two separate _specus_, after it
had entered Rome at the extreme eastern corner, on the north side of
these gardens, which are nearly half a mile long. These are _the palace
gardens_ mentioned by Frontinus. The Sessorium with its gardens (now the
monastery of S. Croce in Gerusalemme) had been one of the two Prætorian
camps, this one being at the south end of the great _agger_ of the
Tarquins, which formed the outer _mœnia_ of Rome on the eastern side. The
one, called the Prætorian Camp, is at the north end of the same great
bank.
Each of these fortified camps was surrounded by a great wide and deep
foss or trench. These great banks and trenches are usually mistaken for
natural hills and valleys; but natural hills and valleys are not merely
high banks fifty feet high and perhaps a hundred feet wide, nor are
natural valleys long narrow trenches of the same dimensions, running on
each side of the great banks, being in fact the trenches from which the
earth has been thrown to form the banks. Such a bank with such trenches
can be clearly traced all round Rome by eyes that are accustomed to
examine such things, although modern buildings have disguised them so
much that an ordinary observer does not see them. People cannot see
over modern walls of twelve feet high, still less over the great Wall
of Aurelian fifty feet high, and they do not think of comparing the
level of the ground on each side of that wall, nor can they easily do
so. These great ancient earthworks were extremely convenient for the
engineers of the Aqueducts, which were brought upon the high banks at
the farthest corner. They were carried along the bank on the north side
of the Sessorium, from its north-east corner to the south-west angle,
where the great bank of the Tarquins joins on to it. Some branches of
the Aqueducts, perhaps the main stream in some cases, were then carried
along this high bank of the Tarquins to the north, as far as the other
Prætorian Camp, and beyond it along the outer wall of Rome, as we have
seen in the case of the Anio Vetus, the Marcia, Tepula, and Julia. These
did not pass through the Sessorium, but parallel to it about a hundred
yards on the north of it. The Claudian arcade had been at about that
distance on the north of it, all the way from the Piscinæ into Rome. The
Marcian arcade was made nearly over the Anio Vetus, which ran between
that arcade and the Claudian, but much nearer to the Marcian.
On entering Rome, this main stream went straight on through the great
bank to the large reservoir on the inner side. The reservoirs for the
Tepula and Julia were much to the north, near the Porta di S. Lorenzo
(the Porta Viminalis of Frontinus), as we have seen; that of the Marcia
was much closer to the Porta Esquilina. The two great reservoirs, called
by Frontinus the Gemelli, were made in the great foss between the
Sessorium (S. Croce) and the Cœliolum (the Lateran). They had probably
been originally made for the Aqua Appia and the Anio Vetus, being both
at a low level, though one was much deeper than the other. Advantage was
taken of these ancient reservoirs to erect the higher one required for
the reception of the waters of the Claudia and Anio Novus over it, or by
the side of it, as was very usual throughout Rome. The later reservoirs
are always made nearly over the old ones. This is equally the case here
at the entrance into Rome and at the other end of the Cœlian. The great
high reservoir of Nero is close by the side of, and really over, the
great subterranean reservoir of the Aqua Appia (now under the garden of
the Villa Cœlimontiana, as described in the account of the Appia).
The foregoing explanation seems necessary to explain the photographs that
now follow, belonging to the Arches of Nero. The first of these (No.
77) shews the junction with the Porta Maggiore; the two _specus_ that
pass over that great gate are visible to the right of the photograph.
The beginning of the Arches of Nero is then seen, where they have to
cross the great wide and deep foss of the Sessorium, and were therefore
strengthened by sub-arches, as seen in No. 76. A more close view of these
arches, nearly at the same point, is seen in 66.
These arches were used by the engineers of the Aqua Felice whenever they
suited their purpose, and cut about or destroyed without mercy; they
also made use of an old _specus_ to carry their metal pipes whenever it
was convenient to do so, and the _old specus_ that ran along the Cœlian
was very convenient for that purpose. 1295* is from a drawing made to
shew this. The _specus_ of the Aqua Felice was first carried on the
lower arches of the double arcade of Nero, the upper part of the arcade
being destroyed. The metal pipes were then carried down into the old
subterranean _specus_ (_the Specus Vetus_ of Frontinus). This is in the
same garden or vineyard as the Gemelli, in the great foss between the
Sessorium and the end of one of the banks of the Tarquins, (on which
the garden of the Villa Volkonski has been made, and along which the
Arches of Nero run.) A portion of the grand arcade, with the _specus_
very visible on the top of it, is shewn in 759. This is close to the
Scala Santa of the Lateran; the arcade carrying the aqueduct passed along
the bank on the north side of the Lateran fortress on the Cœliolum, and
supplied that with water.
On the western side of the Lateran fortress is another great foss,
between the Cœliolum and the east end of the Cœlian Hill. It was either
thought more convenient to make a bank across that great foss for the
aqueduct to rest upon, or this bank which traverses that great foss had
been made before for an upper road, and was used first for the Aqua Appia
and the Anio Vetus, and afterwards by Nero. The existence of such a
foss between the east end of the Cœlian Hill and the Cœliolum is denied
by those who have not paid attention to the subject, and have not been
into the gardens and vineyards to examine it; but the fact is a matter
of demonstration. The tomb of the first century (miscalled the House of
Verus, probably a tomb of the great Lateran family), being on the western
bank of that fortress and the eastern bank of the foss, and the other
tomb of the first century also, in the garden of what was the Museum of
Campana (_under_ an arch that carries the modern road), on the western
side of that great foss, are a demonstration that there was such a foss
on the east side of the City of Servius Tullius, i.e. that the Cœliolum
and Lateran did not form part of the City at that time. (See my chapter
on the Tombs, and the photographs of these two tombs, 174 and 1942).
The Arches of Nero remain on the Cœlian in many parts of the line,
by the side of the road from the Lateran to S. Stefano Rotondo and
the Navicella, with the arch of Dolabella, which was under the great
reservoir of Nero, and formed the entrance of the Claudium. The Arches of
Nero are faced with the finest brickwork in the world (ten bricks to the
foot, as usual at that period, and are chosen as typical examples). This
is well shewn in 78, and the internal construction of rubble, faced only
with the fine brickwork, in 358. A line of these, shewing the picturesque
effect, is shewn in 131 and 357. The aqueduct formed one of the usual
angles between the Lateran and the arch at the west end of the Cœlian. It
has been destroyed in this part; but this accounts for the arches being
sometimes on one side of the road and sometimes on the other.
We have now arrived at the arch of Dolabella, built when he was consul,
A.D. 10, as an entrance to that part of the Cœlian Hill which had been
the keep when it was a separate fortress, and was afterwards made the
Claudium. This arch is of very simple construction, of travertine, the
same construction as the early part of the Basilica Julia, built by
Julius Cæsar and Augustus. It was used by the engineers of Nero as a
foundation for their great reservoir, or rather for one corner of it, as
we clearly see in 72. The work of the time of Nero terminated here, but
the design was carried on by his immediate successors. The water was then
divided into three branches; the one on the right hand, to the north,
went to the great reservoir between the Cœlian and the Esquiline, called
the _Stagna Neronis_, and was used for the sham naval battles. Around
these Stagna the Colosseum was afterwards built. A portion of the arcade
on which the _specus_ was carried is visible in the garden of the monks
called the Passionists of SS. John and Paul, and is well shewn in No.
1773, looking towards the east, with the ruins of the reservoir over the
arch of Dolabella, and the church of S. Stefano Rotondo in the distance.
There are remains of a reservoir for this, of the third century, in the
garden of the monks on the terrace of the Claudium, opposite to the
Palatine, shewn in No. 1765. The ruins of the fine arcade of the Claudium
stand on this terrace; the _specus_ also is in a wall here, behind the
arcade. A portion of another reservoir or _piscina_ for them can be seen
at the foot of the cliff of the Claudium, at its north-east corner,
opposite that part of the Colosseum near the Meta Sudans; this is also
shewn in No. 1743, with _opus reticulatum_ of the time of Nero. This
branch continued in use in the third century; for there are remains of
another reservoir for it, again at the foot of the Claudium opposite to
the Colosseum, but more to the east, near the north-east corner of the
Claudium, and near to the eastern end of the Colosseum. The remains of
this reservoir are shewn in No. 1735. A colonnade carrying the _specus_
from this reservoir to the second story of the Colosseum, is shewn on one
of the coins of Septimius Severus, who probably built this reservoir.
In the corridors of the Colosseum are open stone troughs lined with the
cement for water. These carried water from this aqueduct in a constant
running stream to cool the air. They are work of the third century, with
old inscriptions on some of them, shewing that they were made of old
materials.
Another branch from the great reservoir went straight across to the
Palatine, and from thence to the Capitol; it first follows the line of
the road down the Clivus Scauri, on the left or southern side, and a
fragment of it is visible opposite to the church of SS. John and Paul, as
seen in No. 305. At the foot of the Clivus Scauri it formed an angle, and
passed against the cliff on which the apse of the church was afterwards
built; it now forms the lowest and last of the series of arches that are
carried across the road to support the side of the church. Then, after
this angle to the north, it resumes its course to the west upon the
arches across the valley to the Palatine, which was a double arcade; but
the lowest tier of it only remains, as is shewn in 116. A portion of the
upper tier is also visible at the end of it; an arch of this upper tier
remains, which, having been made into a back gate of the Palatine, has
been suffered to remain, and is shewn in No. 72. A large reservoir for it
was made at the south-west corner of the Palatine, on which the palace
of Commodus was afterwards built; part of this reservoir and _specus_ is
shewn in 683 (made from a drawing). The _specus_ went across the middle
of the Palatine, and has been found more than once in some of the recent
excavations, but not understood. It was then carried on the bridge of
Caligula to the Capitol, a small portion of which remains connected with
his palace, as is shewn in Nos. 1447 and 1451.
The third branch from the great reservoir over the arch of Dolabella on
the Cœlian was made in the time of Trajan, to carry water to supply the
thermæ on the Aventine, called after Sura, the cousin of the Emperor;
these thermæ were closely connected with the private house of his family,
rebuilt in his time, and called in the Regionary Catalogue “Privata
Trajani,” of which there are considerable remains, now subterranean. The
first place where this branch of the aqueduct is visible is in another
reservoir (1147) against the cliff of the Cœlian, opposite to S. Balbina.
This is partly above the level of the hill, and has been thought part of
the Palace of Commodus, on the Cœlian (which may possibly have been built
over it, but the existing remains are of the time of Trajan). The lower
part is under this, and is excavated in the cliff. These were brought to
light in the excavations of A.D. 1868 (559, 1008, 1009, 1010, 1011). The
plan and section of it are to be seen in 1150*, 692*. Against the cliff
the aqueduct formed one of the usual angles towards the north, and this
was carried across the valley on the _agger_ or bank of Servius Tullius,
first passing over the arch of the gate of the Porta Capena, above the
Aqua Appia, on a much higher level, and on an arcade, probably a double
arcade, like the Arches of Nero near the Porta Maggiore, on account of
the great height at which the water had to be carried from one hill to
the other. All that remains of this lofty arcade is a line of brick piers
passing across from the Cœlian to the Aventine, over the Aqua Appia,
before described, and passing by the north end of the Piscina Publica,
as rebuilt in the time of Trajan over the old one, which had belonged to
the older aqueducts. There are considerable remains of the walls of this
period, that divided the chambers shewn in 557, 558, 1288.
This arcade can then be traced against the cliff of the Pseudo-Aventine,
on the north side of S. Balbina, though partly concealed by the filling
up of the space against the cliff before mentioned. The tall arcade
then crosses the valley from the Pseudo-Aventine to the other part of
the Aventine, and from the garden of S. Balbina to that of S. Prisca,
and, in the latter garden, there are considerable remains of it on the
cliff opposite to the Palatine. At the north end is the _specus_ upon
the arcade (the top is open, and there is a walk upon it), 79. A small
portion of the Thermæ of Sura is also shewn, with the _specus_ in front
of the ancient wall of tufa, called the Wall of the Latins (833).
From the _piscina_ and reservoir on the cliff of the Cœlian another
branch went to the south, over the spring of the Camenæ (?) 692, and near
that of Egeria (?); it was carried over the Porta Metronia, and on the
bank of the City Wall as far as the Porta Latina.
Another fine arcade of the time of Nero (No. 1317) leads to the Nymphæum
before mentioned, where the Trophies of Marius were hung. The elevation
shews that this water must have come from the highest of the aqueducts,
the Anio Novus; and the remains of the reservoir near the Porta di S.
Lorenzo, supposed to have been for the Aqua Julia, being on high ground,
may have been for this branch, which conveyed water to the Thermæ of
Titus.
X. SABATINA TRAJANA.
Great works for the aqueducts were carried on in the time of Trajan. One
great work of his time was to bring water from the lake Sabatina to the
top of the Janiculum. Augustus had previously brought water from that
lake, supplementary to his aqueduct, from the lake Alseatina (VII.), to
supply his Naumachia in the Trastevere; but the Aqueduct of Augustus was
on the lowest level, that of Trajan on the highest. It does not appear
that Trajan made use of the old _specus_ of Augustus; but his aqueduct
was afterwards made use of by the engineers of Pope Paul V. for the Aqua
Paola, although they also brought a branch to it from the Alseatina, as
Augustus had done.
That of Trajan is chiefly subterranean, and has been described under the
head of the Alseatina (VII.), but nearer Rome it is above ground, and is
carried on an arcade against the wall of the Villa Pamphili-Doria, near
the Porta di S. Pancratio. Both the arcade and the _specus_ are faced
with the _opus reticulatum_ of that period. (664* is from a drawing, 1065
from nature.) In some parts, one side of the _specus_ has been cut away
(1063). Just on the outside of that garden a large _castellum aquæ_ of
this aqueduct has been made into a farm-house, and in the yard of that
house a branch from it can be seen (665*), apparently for the purpose of
irrigation; or, as some think, this was formerly the point of division,
one branch going to the Vatican, the other to the great fountain on the
Janiculum (960), above S. Pietro in Montorio. The division now takes
place at a short distance from this point. Procopius, writing in the
sixth century, admires the enormous quantity of water brought by this
aqueduct to the highest point in Rome; as it descends the hill, it turns
the wheels of the flour-mills. After it arrived at the low level of the
ground in the Trastevere, the respirators of the pipes for this aqueduct
are carried in tall pyramids resembling chimneys (540). Part of the
arcade and _specus_ rebuilt by Paul V., near the garden before mentioned,
is shewn in 1064, with the inscription of A.D. 1609 above it.
XI. HADRIANA (?), TRAJANA (?) OR ALEXANDRINA (?).
The next great work of the period of Trajan or of Hadrian, on the eastern
side of Rome, was probably begun in the time of Trajan. It brought water
from springs under Labicum, now La Colonna, the same that is now brought
for the Aqua Felice. The water from several springs was collected in a
central reservoir, on which an inscription of Hadrian was found by E. Q.
Visconti in the eighteenth century. This is between Pantana and Gabii, in
the valley under La Colonna (1540). There are several other reservoirs of
the time of Trajan or Hadrian along the line (1637, 1638). This aqueduct
was considered by Fabretti to be of the time of Alexander Severus, and
since his time it has usually been called the Aqua Alexandrina. It may
have been partly rebuilt and brought into use again in his time, after
having been choked up with stalactite, one of the springs used proving to
be a petrifying spring.
Near the sources this arcade is low and much damaged, and the _specus_
where it remains is nearly filled up with stalactite (1541, 1542).
In some parts of the line the stalactite has all the appearance of a
petrified cascade, and is evidently formed by the water oozing out and
dripping and petrifying as it fell (1436). Further on there is a fine
arcade for it across the country in the direction of Cento-Celle; and in
some places the arcade is double to raise the _specus_ to the necessary
level, as in the Arches of Nero (1428, 1429). A portion of the arcade,
where it is broken off, is seen in 1427, with the tower of Cento-Celle in
the distance. Another portion of this fine arcade is shewn in 1640. It
is of two periods; the upper part is of the third century, and may have
been rebuilt by Alexander Severus (as has been said). At Cento-Celle the
ground is high, and the aqueduct passes underground for some distance,
along the side of the road towards Rome.
About a mile nearer to Rome, there is a branch aqueduct from the foot of
the Marcian arcade, in the direction of the Mausoleum of S. Helena, which
Fabretti considers as part of the same aqueduct; but it is difficult
to see upon what grounds. There is a fine arcade here also for about a
quarter of a mile; but it is of the time of Constantine, and I have not
been able to trace any connection between this and the other. This arcade
has been originally double, and the lower one only now remains, with
a modern _specus_ made upon it (555 and 556); but the water now flows
_from_ the Marrana, at the foot of the arcade of the great aqueducts,
which were here on higher ground, and _runs down_ upon this arcade to the
garden and small monastery of S. Peter and Marcellinus, at the Mausoleum
of S. Helena, called the Torre Pignattara, from the earthenware pots of
which the vault was made.
XII. AURELIA, A.D. 185, AND XIII. SEVERIANA, A.D. 190.
These two aqueducts were made to convey water to the Thermæ of Commodus
and Severus in Regio I., of which the remains were found in the
excavations of 1870, just within the Porta Latina. The first part was
originally made by Marcus Aurelius, for the use of his great villa on
the Via Appia, called the Villa dei Quintilii, and the great reservoir
and thermæ connected with it remain (2346, 2349, 2350, 2351, 2352).
From thence it was brought into Rome by his successor, Ælius Aurelius
Commodus. The water came from the Alban hills, near Marino (2358, 2359,
2360, 2361, 2362, 2363), at first underground, and then on an arcade,
of which there are considerable remains near the Torre di Mezza Via di
Albano (1626 and 1627).
From the Villa dei Quintilii it went parallel to the Via Appia. One of
the reservoirs of it nearer to Rome is made into a farm-house, with a
tower to it, and has the appearance of a church at a little distance;
it is called the Casale di S. Maria Nuova (2348); it then passed again
underground. Near the head of the valley of the Caffarella there remains
a _piscina_ for it nearly perfect (1372); this is very near also to the
Circus of Maxentius and his son Romulus. There is another _piscina_ or
small reservoir for it near the church of S. Urbano, often mistaken for
a tomb; here it again forms an angle, and the _specus_ descends (plan
and drawing, 831*) to the Nymphæum, or so-called Fountain of Egeria
(262). The _specus_ is then continued in the cliff of the valley of the
Caffarella, from that fountain towards the tomb of the first century
called Dio Ridicolo. Nearly opposite to that tomb the _specus_ is visible
in the cliff, with large openings into it, between which it passes
underground. Wherever it was above ground it has been carried off as
building materials and destroyed, so that it has not again been found
until it arrives at the remains of a _piscina_, just to the south of the
Porta Latina (984). It then entered the city of Aurelian through the bank
on which his wall is built, and supplied the Thermæ of Commodus within
that gate (as has been said), 1485, 1486.
XIV. ANTONINIANA, A.D. 215.
This aqueduct was used to supply the great Thermæ of the Antonines, now
called after Antoninus Caracalla. It is more easily traced backwards,
passing along the inner side of the bank on which the Wall of Aurelian
is built, then upon an arcade which has been destroyed in this part, but
of which remains are visible inside of the Porta Ardeatina (986), by the
side of the Arch of Drusus, just within the Porta di S. Sebastiano (73,
1772, 1202). It then passes underground through the bank, and emerges in
the city wall at the angle between the Porta di S. Sebastiano and the
Porta Latina (539, 883). It here crosses the road, and is visible in the
garden on the opposite side (884).
XV. ALEXANDRINA, A.D. 225.
The Aqua Alexandrina is mentioned by Lampridius in his life of Alexander
Severus, but it was probably a branch from the Anio Novus only, as the
Nymphæum engraved on one of his coins[230] has been identified with the
ruins near S. Maria Maggiore (2126, 2127). This stands on very high
ground, and the only aqueduct that could reach it was that of the Anio
Novus. This branch can be traced in the wall by the piers of the arcade,
which have been built into the Wall of Aurelian near the Porta Maggiore
(80 A, B). The _specus_ and the arches were destroyed by the engineers of
the Aqua Felice; the piers only remain, and these cease just before we
arrive at the point where the railway now enters Rome through the wall
(99). They come to an end directly in a line with a large reservoir, now
a gardener’s house, near the Minerva Medica, almost between that and
the wall, but a little to the south of it; one pier, however, of the
tall arcade of the third century remains, as a sort of buttress, against
that side of the fine building of the same period called the Temple of
Minerva Medica (537). There are great remains of thermæ and fountains
in the large vineyard in which this building stands. Some of these are
of an earlier period; but a considerable part of them are of the third
century, and of the time of Alexander Severus. The Nymphæum before
mentioned was at the north end, and is a fine picturesque ruin, with very
evident remains of the aqueduct in it (61, 963, 964). The water was here
divided into several branches, of which we see portions of the _specus_
going in different directions. One of the most important of these goes to
the great reservoir of the Thermæ of Titus and Trajan, called the Sette
Sale. This was made long before the time of Alexander Severus, who only
rebuilt the Nymphæum; and there is an arcade of the first century leading
to this Nymphæum from a reservoir near the Porta di S. Lorenzo.
At a short distance to the south of this celebrated Nymphæum is another
very curious reservoir, now in a very bad state, having been turned into
a gardener’s house, but which must have been of considerable importance,
and probably belonged to the thermæ of the third century (2322, 2323).
There is a _cippus_ with an inscription, which indicates that the
building was a _castellum aquæ_ (2324).
XVI. ALGENTIANA, A.D. 300.
This aqueduct was made to supply the great Thermæ of Diocletian on the
Viminal Hill, but is believed to have been entirely subterranean, so that
little is known about it. There was a reservoir for it on the eastern
side of the Thermæ, under the present railway station. Drawings and a
plan of this were preserved by Visconti[231].
XVII. THE AQUA CRABRA, THE MARRANA, A.D. 1124, AND THE RIVER ALMO.
These three may all be treated as one aqueduct for the supply of Rome,
partly natural and partly artificial. They all come from the Alban
Hills; the first from near Rocca di Papa on very high ground, the second
from about a mile above the small and very picturesque town of Marino;
the third lower down the same hill. They are all mountain streams, and
partake of the usual character of such streams; in dry weather the
springs that supply the Almo bring so little water, that it is only
sufficient to fill some ponds for cattle at the foot of the hill. The
deep bed of the river, which winds about the Campagna for miles, is
therefore dry for a great part of the year, but the other two streams
never fail; they are united at the foot of the hill, not far from the
place where the Aqua Aurelia came from. The greater part of their united
waters runs into the river Anio, but a portion of it is diverted near
the ruins of the ancient fortified village or _pagus_, called _Centroni_
(2315, 2316, 2317, 2318, 2319), on the road to Tusculum, (now Frascati,)
about eight miles from Rome. This branch to supply Rome is first brought
through an ancient tunnel of the Aqua Julia, at each end of which remains
can be seen of the stone _specus_ and the flood-gates (2310, 2311, 2312,
2313). The water is then conveyed in a bank of clay for about a mile, and
then in the bed of one of the many branches of the mountain stream called
the river Almo, and so brought into Rome (1309, 1318), under the Porta
Metronia, which is built upon a bridge over it. The stream passes under
some other bridges with mills upon them, and eventually falls into the
Tiber through an aperture left for it in the Pulchrum Littus, or fine
tufa wall of the Kings (drawing, 1235*; plans, 368*, 1234*; views, 77,
166, 157).
Another branch from it is carried from the junction or separation between
the Torre Fiscale and Roma Vecchia (1937*) by the side of the cross road
from the Via Appia Nova to the Via Appia Antiqua. Sometimes in the bed
of the Almo, and in other parts, where the ground is low and the stream
is liable to floods, an artificial canal is made for it, which may be
seen in the valley of the Caffarella. This excellent plan was carried out
in the most economical but effectual manner by a company in the twelfth
century. This is really an aqueduct, though not usually so called; it is
kept in repair by the present Water-Company, and is of great importance
for Rome; as the floods to which the Almo was always liable along its
whole line, and within the walls of Rome, (as is mentioned by Cicero,)
are effectually kept out of Rome, and a constant, regular supply of water
is obtained.
XVIII. AQUA FELICE, made A.D. 1587 by Pope Sixtus V. (Felice Peretti).
The sources of it are the springs under the hill on which La Colonna
stands. The same water had been used long before, and brought into Rome
by the aqueduct (XI.) of Hadrian and Trajan before mentioned. The large
reservoir for the water now in use is very near to the remains of the old
one of Hadrian. The construction of this aqueduct is very rude and rough,
of concrete and rubble-stone only, and this stone consists entirely of
old materials; still the large scale of the work, and the height at which
the _specus_ is carried upon the arcade, give it a grand effect. At a
little distance, the inferior construction is not seen, and this almost
modern aqueduct is frequently mistaken by strangers for one of the old
ones of the time of the Empire, of which it is only an imitation. It is
seen in several of the views of the older aqueducts in the Campagna,
especially those at the Torre Fiscale (531, 1028, 1029) and the Porta
Furba (68, 1437). Here it crosses the road to Frascati on an arch, with
an inscription upon it. In the latter part of its course it is made on
the piers of the Claudian arcade, and it enters Rome at the same point,
the north-east corner of the gardens of S. Croce. After passing along the
north side of them, it is divided into different branches by a reservoir
at the angle, close to the south side of the Porta Maggiore (30). The
principal stream then passes along upon the Wall of Aurelian (80 A, B,
81), on the same high bank as the earlier aqueducts had done; it was cut
through in making the railway, but a new bridge over that road was built
for it (29). Near this it can be seen that it is carried on the piers of
an older aqueduct for some distance (28). See Alexandrina (XV.)
Further on towards the Porta di S. Lorenzo the ground is higher, and
in order to keep the level necessary for the _specus_, it is brought
within the wall, and built up against the inside of it (1871). The
Marcia, Tepula, and Julia, over which it is carried, as is seen at the
two gates where their arcade is visible _under_ the _specus_ of the Aqua
Felice, are here still under it, but _underground_ also, owing to the
higher level of the ground. It passes over the Porta di S. Lorenzo to a
reservoir on the north side of it, and then turns to the west by the side
of the road, which it crosses upon an arch, with an inscription upon it,
at a short distance within that gate (81). The principal termination of
it is at the Fountain of the Termini (called of Moses,) 71. Behind the
fountain is a reservoir after the old fashion, which is illustrated by a
plan and section (704*). The celebrated Fountain of the Triton (1196),
in the Piazza Barberini, is also supplied by this aqueduct, as well as
all the upper terraces upon the hills. The lower range, on the Campus
Martius, is chiefly supplied by the Virgo. Another branch goes from the
reservoir at the Porta Maggiore along the bank on which the Arches of
Nero are carried, to the Lateran, where the fountains are supplied by
this water. The old aqueduct was used according to the custom of the
time, and there is a cascade _specus_ from the level of the Marcia to
that of the Appia (shewn in 541).
The _specus_ of each of these old aqueducts was used to carry the metal
pipes of the Aqua Felice, when it was convenient to do so (1295*), as has
been previously mentioned.
THE AQUA MARCIA PIA was made by a Company between 1860 and 1870, and has
been mentioned under the head of the Marcia (a part of it is shewn in
1553).
THE AQUEDUCTS.
ANIO NOVUS.—THE RIVER ANIO.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PHOTO-ENGRAVINGS.
PLATE I.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS—SOURCE OF AQUA APPIA.
ANCIENT QUARRY OF THE KINGS.]
Source of the Aqua Appia, in a very ancient Stone-quarry of the time of
the Kings, in the meadows on the bank of the river Anio, formerly called
the meadows of Lucullus. They are not far from Lunghezza, the site of
the ancient city of Collatium. This cave has two springs of water in it,
and the two streams meet at the mouth of the cave in a channel, which is
at first open at the top, and crosses the low meadow with the appearance
of a ditch only, to a central reservoir, also in a cave, from which the
tunnel _specus_ begins that runs on, into and through Rome. Three streams
meet at the same central reservoir, and their united water goes through
the _specus_. Each _specus_ can be traced by the line of bushes in the
meadows, each bush being over one of the wells; these descend at regular
intervals into the _specus_. These wells are also called respirators or
ventilators, as they give air to the current of water, or as the people
say, enable it to breathe. This cave is easily overlooked, and any person
passing on the higher ground over it, is almost sure not to see it. It
is scarcely visible until close to it. The ancient quarry from which it
comes is earlier than others in the neighbourhood. The celebrated Caves
of Cervaro are also ancient quarries; they are about a mile from this
point, and although very early, are not quite so early as this, which is
more distant from the river Anio. It seems probable that this was one
of the quarries for the city of Collatium, before the time of Servius
Tullius.
PLATE II.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS—SOURCE OF AQUA APPIA.
ANCIENT QUARRY OF THE KINGS.]
SOURCE OF ANOTHER SPRING OF THE AQUA APPIA, in another ancient stone
quarry on the bank of the river Anio. This is one of a fine series of
ancient quarries, now caves, about a mile higher up the river than the
Caves of Cervaro. These are believed to have been the quarries from
which the large blocks of tufa for the walls of the Kings of Rome were
taken, especially the great wall of Servius Tullius, which was a mile
long, fifty feet high, and in some parts twelve feet thick, and which
would require an enormous quantity of stone. This was probably floated
down the Anio on wooden rafts, which served for timber also. The pool at
the source of this spring appears as if it came from the water dripping
through the rock above, which serves for a roof; but the old shepherds,
who have watched it for years, say that the water never fails, and that
it is a natural spring, although the quantity of stone refuse thrown into
it makes it impossible to see exactly where it rises. These caves are
extremely picturesque, more so even than the Caves of Cervaro, though
these are the favourite resort of the German artists in their annual
festival.
PLATE III.
1. THE AQUEDUCTS ABOVE SUBIACO.
2. RIVER ANIO, THE UPPER LOCHS.
—— THE THIRD LOCH AND THE BRIDGE.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS ABOVE SUBIACO
RIVER ANIO THE UPPER LOCHS
THE THIRD LOCH AND THE BRIDGE]
The water for the aqueducts of Rome was chiefly drawn from the river
Anio, or from springs or tributary streams that fell into that river. It
rises in the high mountains above Subiaco, which are generally covered
with snow for the greater part of the year, and the supply of water never
fails entirely, though it is not always equally abundant. It is generally
a clear, bright mountain stream, coming through rocks, but it is liable
to sudden and violent floods, which bring down a great deal of mud, and
therefore great precautions are taken for filtering it. The latest and
most important of the great aqueducts were the Claudia and Anio Novus;
the latter was the most abundant of all, being in fact a branch of the
river compelled to pass through Rome by clever engineering. A series of
great lochs was made by building dams across the river, with cascades
from one to another. There were three of these about two miles above
Subiaco, and about forty-two miles from Rome. The uppermost one of them
is seen in the upper part of the plate, but in the third loch, the lowest
of the three (shewn in the lower part of the plate), the bed of the river
is so deep, that the water is not seen. The country through which it
passes is celebrated as among the most beautiful in Italy.
PLATE IV.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS ABOVE SUBIACO
ANIO NOVUS, THE THIRD LOCH
ANIO NOVUS, SPECUS CUT IN THE CLIFF]
1. ANIO NOVUS, THE THIRD LOCH, as seen from below, where the dam, that
formerly kept up the water and formed a great cascade, has been thrown
down, and appears only as rocks in the stream; the modern bridge seen in
this view is built upon the two ends of the old dam.
2. ANIO NOVUS, SPECUS. The _specus_ is here a tunnel cut in the cliff,
on the side of the valley on which the town of Subiaco stands; it is six
feet high, and only eighteen inches wide (an opening into it may be seen
in the cliff, on the left-hand side of the view). The round tower, seen
on the right, is that of the Villa Gori, about a mile above Subiaco.
PLATE V.
AQUEDUCTS ABOVE SUBIACO—ANIO NOVUS, CASTELLUM.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS ABOVE SUBIACO
ANIO NOVUS, CASTELLUM
LINE OF THE SPECUS OF ANIO NOVUS
_Photogravure Dujardin, Paris_]
This is the loch below the modern bridge, which is made upon the remains
of the old dam across the river, destroyed in the fourteenth century by
making a hole at the bottom to let the water escape from a flood in the
upper country. The force of the water once let loose soon destroyed the
dam, and the large stones of which it was built are still lying as rocks
in the river, and are seen in the photograph and the photo-engraving.
LINE OF THE SPECUS OF THE ANIO NOVUS. It is here carried in the cliff of
the valley of the river Anio, seen on the left of the picture. Both of
these views are continuations of those seen in Plate IV., and one helps
to explain the other. The _specus_ continued in this way for many miles
underground, in one sense, when seen from above, but not underground when
seen from below. When it has to cross the mouths of the small subsidiary
streams that fall into the Anio, it has to be carried over bridges or
arches, at other times it is cut in the rock or cliff.
PLATE VI.
THE CLAUDIA, ANIO VETUS, AND NOVUS, AND MARCIA IN THE VALLEY OF THE
ARCHES ABOVE TIVOLI.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS—CLAUDIA AND ANIO-NOVUS.
IN THE VALLEY OF THE ARCHES, NEAR TIVOLI.]
This valley is about two miles above Tivoli, where there is a junction
of another stream with the Anio, in rather a wider valley than the usual
valley of the Anio only. One arch of the lofty Claudian arcade is left
on the side of the valley next Tivoli, and on the top of this a medieval
tower has been built, which has an extremely picturesque effect. Through
the arch may be seen a small portion of the Marcian arcade, and at a few
yards to the left the Anio Vetus, which there passes half-underground at
the foot of the tall arcade of the Anio Novus.
PLATE VII.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS ABOVE TIVOLI
ANIO NOVUS. MEDIEVAL TOWER
IN THE VALLEY OF THE ARCHES
_Photogravure Dujardin, Paris_]
TWO OTHER VIEWS OF THE RUINS OF THE ARCADES OF THE CLAUDIA AND ANIO
NOVUS, in the Valley of the Arches above Tivoli. In the foreground, the
Marcian seen through the arch, and the Anio Vetus again through the
arch of the Marcian. These views are celebrated for their picturesque
character, as indeed is all the country about Tivoli and Subiaco.
PLATE VIII.
AQUEDUCTS AT TIVOLI. CASCADES OF THE ANIO, WITH THE ROUND TEMPLE OF THE
SIBYL AT THE TOP.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS AT TIVOLI
TEMPLE OF THE SIBYL AND CASCADES
CASCADES OF THE ANIO]
This cascade shews the character of the country through which the
aqueducts had to be carried, but the waters of the aqueducts taken out of
the river Anio were necessarily confined each within its own _specus_,
here in tunnels, which are carried in a zig-zag course gradually down the
hill to the level of the Villa of Hadrian in the valley below.
PLATE IX.
AQUEDUCTS BELOW TIVOLI.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS BELOW TIVOLI
MARCIA ON THE VIA DI CARCIANO
MARCIA CASTELLUM. B. C. 145]
THE MARCIA, A GREAT CASTELLUM AQUÆ OR RESERVOIR ON THE VIA DI CARCIANO.
This is sometimes called the “Promenade” of Carciano, being a favourite
walk on the brow of the hill, from which there is a distant view of S.
Peter’s at Rome. This fine reservoir (of which two sides are here shewn)
is of the time that this aqueduct was made, B.C. 145. It was probably
from this reservoir that a branch _specus_ descended to the Villa of
Hadrian below, to which there is a bridle-road from near this point.
PLATE X.
AQUEDUCTS BELOW TIVOLI. AQUA MARCIA, RESERVOIR.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS BELOW TIVOLI
AQUA MARCIA RESERVOIR
RESERVOIR OF AQUA MARCIA INTERIOR]
This is another of the great reservoirs to receive and retain a supply of
water on the edge of the hill, both as one of the many such reservoirs
for the supply of water to Rome, and for the purpose of local irrigation.
It consists of two large chambers, divided by an arcade, which is the
usual plan, and is probably part of the original construction of B.C.
145. These reservoirs are remarkably picturesque and finely situated.
PLATE XI.
AQUEDUCTS BELOW TIVOLI. ANIO NOVUS, CASTELLUM.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS BELOW TIVOLI
ANIO NOVUS, CASTELLUM
MARCIA, CASTELLUM OF TRAJAN]
This is another of these fine reservoirs, about a mile further on; it is
faced with the reticulated-work of the first century, and is part of the
original work of the time of Nero.
MARCIA, CASTELLUM OF TRAJAN, who repaired the aqueducts in several
places, as is recorded by inscriptions. The reticulated-work with which
this is faced is very peculiar, and is believed to be unique, at least it
has not been observed elsewhere.
PLATE XII.
THE CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS IN THE CAMPAGNA OF ROME, NEAR ROMA VECCHIA.
[Illustration: THE AQUEDUCTS. CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS
IN THE CAMPAGNA NEAR THE PISCINAE AND ROMA VECCHIA.]
This grand arcade is the most perfect part of this finest of the
aqueducts, and extends for about a mile, from near the farm-house
called Roma Vecchia, about four miles from Rome, to the piscinæ where
the arcade becomes gradually lower as the ground rises towards the
foot of the hills. The two _specus_ are clearly seen with their usual
characteristics, the Claudia built of large squared stones; the Anio
Novus is visible, faced with brick in most parts, but here is faced with
reticulated-work. In the first part of this view are seen the ruins of
one of the enormous reservoirs, or Castella Aquarum, at one of the angles
which occur at each half mile along its course. The object of these very
numerous reservoirs probably was two-fold, one for local irrigation, the
other for keeping up a constant and never-failing supply for Rome, even
in the hot season, when many springs cease to flow.
PLATE XIII.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS ON THE VIA LATINA.
NEAR PORTA FURBA
UNDER THE TOR FISCALE MARCIA & CLAUDIA
_Photogravure Dujardin, Paris_]
THE MARCIA, TEPULA and JULIA passing under one of the arches of the
CLAUDIA and ANIO NOVUS, now under the TOR FISCALE. A medieval tower built
upon the celebrated crossing of the aqueducts, where seven aqueducts
crossed each other at different levels. The Anio Vetus passes under it
just underground, and the AQUA FELICE by the side of it. The _specus_
of the Aqua Marcia, built as usual of squared stone, is seen upon the
arch that carried it; the others are concealed by a modern wall, but can
be traced passing under the stone arch of the Claudian. The other view
in the upper part of the plate shews another crossing, at one of the
angles made to break the force of the water. The Marcian and the Claudian
arcades running parallel to each other at a short distance only, the
angle of this goes across the intervening space, and then changes sides
for a time. The road which here runs between the two arcades passes under
the arches at both ends of this junction, near the Porta Furba, which is
seen in the distance. The character of the brickwork of the arch in the
foreground indicates the time of Trajan, with later repairs, which were
made at all periods in this arcade.
PLATE XIV.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS
MARCIA AT PORTA TIBURTINA
CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS AT ANGLE OF THE SESSORIUM]
The upper view represents the stone _specus_ of the Aqua Marcia at the
PORTA TIBURTINA, now of S. Lorenzo, just within the gate, and in the wall
on the southern side, with an opening by the side of it, through which a
man can now walk into the _specus_ and along it. To the right of this,
still in the wall, is a Castellum of the Aqua Felice, which is here, as
at the Porta Maggiore, above the Marcia, Tepula and Julia, and below the
Claudia and Anio Novus.
In the lower view is the Claudia and Anio Novus, at the north-east angle
of the gardens of the Sessorian Palace (now of S. Croce in Gerusalemme).
One of the stone piers of the Aqua Claudia is seen just within the
projection of the tower at the angle, which is an addition of a later
period. Within this portion of the City wall is a great Castellum Aquæ,
extending from the corner to the tower, through which the aqueducts
entered Rome. The interior of the tower is a piscina, which is shewn in
another plate.
PLATE XV.
AQUEDUCTS AT THE PORTA MAGGIORE. THE MARCIA, TEPULA, AND JULIA ENTERING
ROME.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS AT THE PORTA MAGGIORE.
MARCIA TEPULA JULIA ENTERING ROME
MARCIA ETC. WITHIN THE WALL.]
The upper view shews the exterior of the wall, with the three _specus_
passing through it, under an arch of the Claudian arcade, now destroyed.
These are carried upon one of the piers of the Marcian arcade, built of
squared stone, as the part near Rome always was. In the left lower corner
of this view may be seen the Anio Vetus, half underground, as usual for
this aqueduct. [This opening has been built up since the photograph
was taken. The demolition of all traces of the old aqueduct as far as
possible was part of the plan of the architect, who directed what were
miscalled the _restorations_ of the City wall.]
The lower view represents the _specus_ of the Aqua Marcia, of squared
stone, carried on one of the arches of the Marcian arcade through the
wall, within it at the same point as that of the exterior shewn above.
PLATE XVI.
CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS
ANIO NOVUS ON THE CAELIAN
CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS OVER THE PORTA MAGGIORE]
I. OVER THE PORTA MAGGIORE. In the lower view the two _specus_ are seen
endways, built of squared stone, as part of the gateway. The point of
view for this is nearly the same as that of Plate XV., looking south
instead of west. The curious tomb of the Baker Eurysaces is seen on the
left, with the stone kneading-troughs of which it is built.
II. The upper view is one corner of the great reservoir of Nero on the
Cœlian, near the west end, over the Arch of Dolabella, which is seen
built of well-cut stone, and perfectly plain. This has an inscription,
with the names of the Consuls of the time of Augustus (A.D. 10), forty
years afterwards; the arch, which was the eastern entrance into the
Claudium, was used by the engineers of Nero as a substructure for the
corner of the great reservoir of water for the supply of that part of
Rome, which was carried at the height of thirty feet from the ground.
Some small square windows are seen in the wall, which belonged to the
chapel of S. Thomas _in formis_ (or in the arches), made in the remains
of the arcade in the eighth century, and removed in the twelfth for a
larger chapel, now in the garden of the Villa Celi-montana near to it.
At the left-hand corner of this view is seen the gateway of the small
monastery of the Redemptorists, with the celebrated mosaic picture over
it, representing Christ between a black and a white slave, shewn in
another plate of this work.
PLATE XVII.
ARCHES OF NERO WITHIN THE PORTA MAGGIORE.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS. ARCHES OF NERO.
WITHIN THE PORTA MAGGIORE.
AQUA MARCIA, WITHIN THE PORTA MAGG: 1871.]
This double arcade crosses the valley or inner foss of the Sessorian
Palace. It was built on this plan for greater strength, as the piers are
of a great height. This arcade is a continuation of the one that forms
the northern wall of the Sessorian gardens, in a direct line to the west,
over the Cœlian to the great reservoir over the Arch of Dolabella (shewn
in the last plate). The _specus_ was carried at the top, and conveyed
the water of the Claudian and Anio Novus, _united_ at _the Gemelli_ (a
great twin reservoir which was close to that point, and at the north-west
angle of the Sessorian gardens). The Claudian as a separate water turns
at a sharp angle, and goes on to the Porta Maggiore, with the Anio Novus
over it, and terminated at another tower just to the north of the place
where the Marcia, Tepula, and Julia pass through the wall. But they left
a considerable part of their water at that angle to be united to that of
the Anio Novus at the Gemelli.
The lower view represents a fragment of the Aqua Marcia, as repaired and
restored by Trajan, to the north of, and near the Porta Maggiore, in the
vineyard in which the Minerva Medica stands, which has been the Exquiliæ,
and afterwards the gardens of Mæcenas. This, which is parallel to the
City wall, is joined to it a little further on. It was accidentally
brought to light by some excavations in 1871, and is now buried again.
PLATE XVIII.
THE CLAUDIAN AND THE ANIO NOVUS, IN THE NORTH WALL OF THE SESSORIAN
GARDENS, NEAR THE PORTA MAGGIORE.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS NEAR PORTA MAGGIORE.
CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS IN THE WALL OF THE SESSORIUM.
NYMPHAEUM OF ALEXANDER SEVERUS WHERE THE TROPHIES OF MARIUS WERE HUNG.]
The wall for about a quarter of a mile is entirely made out of this
arcade, with the arches filled up, but it is built upon the old earthwork
of the Sessorium, probably of the time of the Kings. The arcade extends
from the angle at the north-east corner, where the aqueduct entered Rome,
to the north-west angle near the Porta Maggiore, which was called Porta
Sessoriana, because it entered into the Sessorian gardens.
The lower view represents the NYMPHÆUM OF ALEXANDER SEVERUS, WHERE THE
TROPHIES OF MARIUS WERE HUNG.
This is identified by a representation of it on one of the coins of that
Emperor. It is commonly miscalled a Castellum of the Aqua Julia, but it
is on too high a level for that water, and there is no other but the Anio
Novus which is high enough; this was brought along the wall to another
reservoir near the Porta Tiburtina, and then by a branch arcade to this
point, where there is another large reservoir on high ground, from which
the water was dispersed in different directions. One branch went to
supply the great reservoir called the _Sette Sale_, which supplied the
Thermæ of Titus and Trajan on the Exquiliæ, and from thence went on to
the Colosseum and to the Tiber. Another branch supplied the Thermæ of
Constantine, on the Quirinal.
PLATE XIX.
RESERVOIR ON THE ARCHES OF NERO OVER THE ARCH OF DOLABELLA.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS—ON ARCHES OF NERO.
OVER THE ARCH OF DOLABELLA]
This Plate is almost a repetition of Plate XV., but from a different
point of view, and this great reservoir is of so much importance for the
history of the aqueducts in Rome, that it was necessary to shew it as
clearly as possible. Without repeating what has been said before, we may
add that the arch seen to the right in this view is the beginning of an
arcade which led to the Colosseum. Another branch in a more direct line
led to the Palatine, after passing first along the north wall of the
garden of the Villa Celimontana, then by the western side of the Clivus
Scauri, parallel to the church of SS. John and Paul, and at the foot of
the hill passing across the road, and under the apse of the church; then
turning again southwards on an arcade across the valley to the Palatine,
of which there are remains; afterwards passing along the whole length
of the Palatine underground, it is visible at the mouth of a tunnel on
the platform opposite to the Capitoline Hill, and went across the Forum
Romanum over the bridge of Caligula. The work of Nero stopped at the Arch
of Dolabella, but it was taken up and completed by his successors.
Another branch went also to the left, on the west wall of the garden of
the Villa Celimontana, to the valley between the Cœlian and the Aventine.
There is a large reservoir for it on the cliff of the Cœlian, partly
below and partly above it, and in the garden of the monks of S. Gregory.
It then went on a tall arcade, over the Porta Capena and the _agger_ of
Servius Tullius, to the Piscina Publica, and from thence, again crossing
the valley between the two parts of the Aventine, to the Thermæ of
Sura, and the private house of Trajan, and the temples on the edge of
the Aventine, and to the mouth of the aqueducts in the cave under the
Priorato at the Porta Trigemina, and so to the Tiber.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DIAGRAMS.
PLATE I.
PLAN OF THE SOURCES OF THE APPIA (I.) AND VIRGO[232] (VI.)
[Illustration: I.
AQUEDUCTS—AQUA APPIA AND VIRGO.
PLAN OF THE SPRINGS AT THE SOURCES IN THE MEADOWS OF LUCULLUS, ON THE
BANK OF THE RIVER ANIO, EXCAVATED IN 1868]
1. Farm-house of Cervaro.
2. —— Cervelletta.
3. —— La Rustica.
4. —— Salone.
5. Church.
6. Sources of the Aqua Appia.
7. —— Virgo.
8. —— Augusta.
9. Tombs.
10. Aqueduct of the Virgo.
11. Road of Cervaro.
12. —— La Rustica.
13. —— Prænestina (?).
14. —— Collatia.
15. Bed of the stream of the Fontanille.
16. —— of Tor Sapienza.
17. —— of Ponte Nono, the Rivus Herculaneus.
18. Direction of the Aqueduct of the Appia.
19. Stone-quarry of Collatium and Necropolis.
PLATE II.
[Illustration: II.
AQUEDUCTS—AQUA APPIA, SPECUS.
IN A TOWER OF THE PORTA CAPENA, UNDER THE CŒLIAN, NOW A GARDENER’S
COTTAGE, EXCAVATED IN 1868.]
THE APPIA (I.) at the PORTA CAPENA, in the eastern tower of the gate, now
in the house of the gardener of the monks of S. Gregory. The _specus_ is
built of large blocks of tufa, and the lower part of it cut in the tufa
wall of Servius Tullius; it was distinctly visible in the excavations of
1870, when this drawing was made. The line of the aqueduct upon the short
_agger_ between the Cœlian and the Aventine was also visible for several
yards, and in three different places, where pits were dug fifteen feet
deep, the last was where a branch was carried into the Piscina Publica.
The middle pit was in waste land on the western side of the present south
road through the gate of S. Sebastian, or the modern line of the Porta
Appia. It was to this pit that his holiness Pius IX. was taken to see it
by the Cavaliere Guidi, and he said there was no denying that this was
part of the wall of Servius Tullius, but he was surprised that his Roman
friends had not discovered this. The greater part of the pits that he
opened might have been left open, if it had not been for the prejudices
of the subordinate officers of the Government. The particular pit in
question was in waste ground by the side of the road, and might have been
left open without any inconvenience.
PLATE III.
[Illustration: III.
AQUEDUCTS—AQUA APPIA, SPECUS.
IN A STONE QUARRY UNDER S. SABBA, ON THE AVENTINE, WHERE SEVEN BRANCHES
OF LATER AQUEDUCTS CAST THEIR SURPLUS WATER INTO THE APPIA, EXCAVATED IN
1868.]
The Appia (I.) under S. Sabba, in an old subterranean stone quarry.
Several branches of other and later aqueducts here cast their surplus
water into the _specus_ of the Appia, the earliest and the lowest (as
shewn in the plan). The _specus_ is also visible in several places,
filled up to one-third of its depth by the deposit of clay left by the
water, which comes from swampy meadows on the bank of the river Anio, in
which the soil is clay, upon tufa rock, called the “Meadows of Lucullus.”
Over the plan in this plate are two sections of the _specus_; in the
one to the right the clay deposit left by the water is shewn, in the
one to the left a small pipe coming into the _specus_, probably part
of the system of irrigation, which was one great use of the aqueducts;
the green lines winding through the quarry represent the lines of the
various streams of water coming at different levels, sometimes with a
very rapid descent, and all falling into the old deep _specus_ of the
Appia, before that was carried across the last road that it had to pass.
In this instance it was probably carried under the road, and not over
the arch of the gate. At this point four roads meet, which is almost a
certain indication of the site of a gate. In most cases the _specus_ was
carried over the gate, but here the level seems too low, unless the old
foss-way has been filled up even more than the usual fifteen feet. The
_specus_ is visible again in another subterranean stone quarry under S.
Prisca, in the same large vineyard formerly of the Jesuits, now of Prince
Torlonia, in which, at a higher level, are also the remains of the Wall
of the Latins on the Aventine, and of the Thermæ of Sura and the private
house of Trajan. Another aqueduct passed over this to supply the Thermæ;
this is on a very high level, and was carried on a tall arcade across
the valley, from the Cœlian to the Aventine, passing over the Porta
Capena and on the old _agger_. There are remains of the tall brick piers
in several places, and of the arcade and _specus_ on the hill near S.
Prisca, visible from the Palatine.
PLATE IV.
[Illustration: IV.
AQUEDUCTS—AQUA APPIA, MOUTH.
IN A CAVE OF THE AVENTINE, UNDER S. ALEXIO, AT THE PORTA TRIGEMINA, NEAR
THE MARMORATA, EXCAVATED IN 1868.]
Mouth of the Appia (I.), in a cave under the Priorato or Priory of the
knights of Malta on the Aventine, near the Marmorata and the Porta
Trigemina. At the back of the cave, and connected with it by a natural
tunnel, is a large reservoir of water in the heart of the hill, supplied
by a natural spring, which was added to the water brought by the aqueduct
for distribution. The latter part of this cave, behind the part here
shewn, is under the garden of the monastery of S. Alessio, and the cave
belonged to those monks. A plan and section of it is given in another
plate. In the inner part of the cave is the natural spring, so that it
is always knee-deep in water. This seems a likely place to have driven
cattle into for concealment; there is no other natural cave under the
Aventine, and this is close to the Porta Trigemina. The idea that
there was a cave near the Forum Boarium seems to have arisen from a
misunderstanding as to the exact site of the Porta Trigemina, which was
supposed to be close to that Forum, instead of being a quarter of a mile
from it, and close to the Sublician, or wooden bridge, where some remains
of it have been found. The _specus_ of the Aqua Appia leads directly into
this cave, and other aqueducts also meet there. The surplus water of the
Trajan, far above this level, descends into it by a vertical pipe of
terra cotta. Piranesi, in the last century, recognised the cave as the
mouth of the Aqua Appia, and gives one of his admirable etchings of this
part of the Aventine, with the cave at its foot. He was in advance of his
time, but a great deal of fresh evidence has come to light since that
period.
PLATE V.
I. AQUA APPIA.
[Illustration: V.
THE AQUEDUCTS.—APPIA.
RESERVOIR IN THE GARDEN OF THE SESSORIUM, NOW OF S. CROCE, CALLED THERMÆ
OF S. HELENA.
A. SECTION. B. PLAN.]
The Aqua Appia (I.) is at so great a depth near the Porta Maggiore
(which stands on very high ground), that it is difficult to trace it,
but the _specus_ was found in making the railway in a deep cutting about
half-a-mile outside of that gate, and was described in the _Bulletino di
Correspondenza Archæoligia_ at the time it was found. There is reason
to believe that it entered Rome under the wall on the north side of the
Sessorian Gardens, and was received in a reservoir, of which there are
remains at a considerable depth, especially the lower story. This is near
the reservoir of the great Basilica or Hall of the Palace, of which the
apse remains. The plan and section of this reservoir are shewn in this
diagram. The _specus_ from this point turned to the west, and passed
along the Cœlian Hill at a low level, nearly under the arches of Nero;
but before arriving at these, it passed through another large and deep
reservoir to the south of the Porta Maggiore, now in a vineyard, with
another large reservoir close to it. These two are believed from the
situation to be the Gemelli of Frontinus. An inscription was found on the
one in the garden of the Sessorium relating to the Thermæ of S. Helena,
who resided in that palace, and probably the water for her bath-chambers
was taken from this reservoir.
PLATE VI.
II. ANIO VETUS.
[Illustration: VI.
THE AQUEDUCTS.—ANIO VETUS. RESERVOIR NEAR THE PORTA FURBA.
A. SECTION, SHEWING THE DEPTH UNDERGROUND.
B. PLAN OF THE TWO CHAMBERS AND THE ENTRANCE.]
The reservoir, of which the plan and section are given in this plate,
is situated at about a quarter of a mile from the Porta Furba, near the
junction of the old Via Latina with the Via Appia Nova. It is just two
miles from Rome, and so agrees with the text of Frontinus. It seems
clear that at this point part of its water was carried by the Octavian
_specus_ to the Porta Maggiore, while the main stream went on along the
side of the Via Appia Nova to the Asinian Gardens, just within the Porta
Asinaria. It was shewn in some excavations made under my direction in
1871. We had long been looking for it, and the gardener informed us that
there was a vaulted chamber under part of that garden or vineyard, where
we found it, a few feet underground, and about a hundred yards from the
arcade of the great aqueduct on the southern side, nearer to the present
road than the reservoir.
PLATE VII.
LOCH IN THE AQUA JULIA, NEAR THE IMPERIAL VILLA, CALLED THE SETTE BASSI
(SEPTIMIUS BASSUS?).
[Illustration: VII.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
A LOCH IN THE AQUA JULIA, NEAR THE VILLA CALLED SETTE BASSI. PLAN AND
SECTION.
A. SECTION OF THE BRANCH.
B. THE SPECUS.
B. PLAN, SHEWING THE DIVISION AND THE LOCH.
A. A. THE SPECUS.
B. THE LOCH FOR THE BRANCH.]
The Aqua Julia at this point, which is about four miles from Rome, is
just underground, and this loch and branch to supply the Villa was
discovered about 1850 by Signor Moraldi, when he was making a map of the
Aqua Marcia, with a view to having it brought again into use; which has
since been done, but by a different line.—To save carrying it so far
round as the old aqueduct was carried (in order to avoid the mouths of
the many streams that run into the river Anio), the modern engineers used
metal pipes in this part. Above Tivoli they built a stone _specus_ after
the old fashion, as in that stone country they found it the cheapest
and the best plan. They now say they regret that they did not continue
the stone _specus_ over the level Campagna also, as the metal pipes
are continually bursting from the force of the water. Previous to this
discovery of Signor Moraldi, it was not known that there were lochs in
the aqueducts, though it is obvious that when branches had to be taken
from them, such an arrangement would be required. The Tepula and the
Marcia are underground in this part. The Julia, being the uppermost of
the three, was close to the surface. This was also the case on the side
of the great _agger_ of Servius Tullius near the railway station, where
the Julia only was excavated, with two cippi, on which were inscriptions
stating that _the three_ aqueducts passed there.
PLATE VIII.
AQUEDUCTS AND RIVER ALMO, NEAR THE PORTA FURBA.
[Illustration: VIII.
THE AQUEDUCTS AND RIVER ALMO, NEAR THE PORTA FURBA.
A. PLAN AT A CROSSING.
B. PLAN AND SECTION AT ANOTHER POINT.
C. PLAN AND SECTION IN THE QUARRY AT THE ALBERGO DE’ SPIRITI.
D. PLAN AND SECTION OF RESERVOIR NEAR THE SAME.]
A. Arcades of the Marcia, Tepula, and Julia; the Claudia and Anio Novus
at one of the angles and crossings; and the Aqua Felice, which is carried
first on one and then on the other of the old arcades. Also, there is an
indication of the situation of the great tumulus and tomb called “Monte
del Grano,” in which the fine sarcophagus was found which is now in
the Capitoline Museum, and was long supposed to be that of the Emperor
Alexander Severus and his wife Mammea. This is given to indicate the
situation. The river Almo is seen crossing the two arcades near the gate
or arch over the road.
B. The same two arcades, at about a quarter of a mile nearer to Rome, or
just two miles, with the river Almo winding between them; and a Section
to shew the elevations.
C. Plan of the junction of the old Via Latina, with the modern road to
Albano, at two miles from Rome, shewing the situation of the aqueduct in
a stone-quarry at the back of the “Albergo dei Spiriti,” near C.
D. Plan and Section of the reservoir, at two miles from Rome, near the
Porta Furba.
PLATE IX.
THE SEVEN AQUEDUCTS AT THE TOR FISCALE.
[Illustration: IX.
THE AQUEDUCTS AT THE TOR FISCALE.
A. SECTION.
B. PLAN, SHEWING THE CROSSING OF FIVE AQUEDUCTS IN THE TOWER, AND TWO
UNDER IT.]
At this important junction and crossing of the aqueducts the Marcian
arcade originally made one of the usual angles. The more lofty arcade
of the Claudia and Anio Novus was then carried over it, with the Anio
Vetus half underground, nearly on the same line; and the modern aqueduct,
called the Felice, is here carried against and partly upon the old
Marcian arcade. The medieval architects took advantage of this crossing
to build a tall tower upon it; the five conduits or _specus_ can be
seen inside the tower, and half arches abutting against it in a very
picturesque manner, all of which are shewn in the Section in the upper
part of the plate, and in the Photo engravings.
The Plan in the lower part of the plate shews the arrangement, and also
the small river Almo, now called the Marrana, winding round it.
PLATE X.
[Illustration: X.
THE AQUEDUCTS.—CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS.
ENTERING ROME IN A TOWER OF THE SESSORIUM.
A. SECTION.
B. PLAN, OF THE PISCINA MADE IN THE TOWER.]
Piscina of the Anio Novus at the entrance into Rome, in a tower of the
Wall of Aurelian, and of the gardens of the Sessorian Palace, now of S.
Croce in Gerusalemme.
A. The Section.
B. The Plan.
By a singular coincidence it happens that the inner wall of this tower
has been destroyed, so that the whole of the interior is displayed, and
shews exactly what an ancient piscina was. The water comes into the
right-hand upper chamber, it then descends into the chamber under it,
as is marked by the arrow in the drawing, it then passes through small
holes in the partition wall into the left-hand lower chamber. [The artist
has represented a _large_ opening through this wall, but this must be a
mistake, owing to the wall being partially broken away; there are always
_small_ holes through this partition wall.] The space between this tower
and the corner of the wall in the Sessorian gardens, where it turns sharp
to the west, was a large reservoir, or Castellum Aquæ, for the Claudia;
it is not at a sufficiently high level for the Anio Novus.
PLATE XI.
THE AQUEDUCTS AT THE PORTA MAGGIORE AND THE PORTA TIBURTINA.
[Illustration: XI.
THE AQUEDUCTS.—AT THE PORTA TIBURTINA.
A. MARCIA, TEPULA, JULIA, AND FELICE.
THE AQUEDUCTS.—AT THE PORTA MAGGIORE.
B. MARCIA, TEPULA, JULIA, AND FELICE; CLAUDIA AND ANIO NOVUS CROSSING
OVER THEM.]
In the lower part of this plate is seen the Wall of Rome on the northern
side of the Porta Maggiore, with the tomb of Eurysaces the Baker in front
of it. The wall here makes an angle, and the section of it is shewn just
beyond the gate; the Claudia and Anio Novus (which here passed over it)
are shewn in section, the _specus_ of the Claudia being nearly square,
that of the Anio Novus over it considerably higher in its proportions.
The Marcia, Tepula, and Julia here pass under these at a right angle, and
through the wall, which in that part is made by filling up the arches
of the Claudian arcade of the aqueducts. A pier of the Marcian arcade
is shewn in the lower part of the section. The Aqua Felice is carried
between the Julia and the Claudia, and it continues on to the Porta
Tiburtina, always at the same level, over the Marcian arcade, but between
the gates it passes through higher ground, and is therefore in that part
underground, but emerges on arches at the two ends, near the gates, as
Frontinus mentions. The Claudian arcade terminated at a tower in an angle
of the wall, just to the north of this view, and with a great reservoir
within the wall. In the upper view the Porta Tiburtina is shewn, with the
Marcia, Tepula, and Julia passing over it. The different levels of the
old road and the new one are also shewn. The arch on which the aqueducts
are carried has inscriptions upon it of the time of Augustus, A.D. 10,
and is of his time; it is buried up to the springing of the actual arch;
the jambs are entirely buried by the filling up of the foss-way, but the
two arches of the time of Honorius, A.D. 405, are tall arches, standing
on the ground at its present level; the raising of the level of the road,
therefore, took place between A.D. 10 and A.D. 400.
PLATE XII.
ANIO NOVUS—NYMPHÆUM, WHERE THE TROPHIES OF MARIUS WERE HUNG.
A. SECTION OF THE TOWER AND ARCHES.
B, C. PLANS OF THE THREE STORIES.
[Illustration: XII.
THE AQUEDUCTS.—ANIO NOVUS.
AT THE NYMPHÆUM, WHERE THE TROPHIES OF MARIUS WERE HUNG.
A. SECTION OF THE TOWER AND ARCHES.
B. C. PLANS OF THE THREE STORIES.]
This Nymphæum is represented on one of the coins of Alexander Severus,
and belonged to the great Thermæ of the third century on the eastern side
of Rome, which, having been long in progress, are called by the names of
different emperors of that period. The ground had been originally the
Exquiliæ, the great burial-ground of the time of the Republic, afterwards
the garden of Mæcenas; it is full of aqueducts of different periods, and
at different levels, and there are several reservoirs for them, some
underground, others at a higher level. This one was formerly considered
to have belonged to the Aqua Julia, but on taking the levels it appears
that the only water in Rome that is high enough to reach it is the Anio
Novus, the highest of the aqueducts, and the water has been brought from
a reservoir belonging to that, near the Porta Tiburtina; having just been
brought along the high bank on which the Wall of Rome stands, part of an
arcade of an aqueduct leading to it remains, coming from that gate. Near
the Porta Maggiore there are also remains of an aqueduct at a very high
level, coming from the Anio Novus, but the construction of the arcade is
of the third century. It is now part of the wall.
This Nymphæum or reservoir at that high level has several branches
leading from it, one of which goes in the direction of the other great
reservoir on the Esquiline Hill, called the _Sette Sale_, and this, from
the high level, probably supplied the Sette Sale and the Thermæ of Titus
and Trajan.
PLATE XIII.
RIVER ALMO. DIVISION INTO TWO BRANCHES, NOW A LOCH OF THE MARRANA.
[Illustration: XIII.
RIVER ALMO, NOW THE MARRANA.
DIVISION INTO TWO BRANCHES, NOW AT A LOCH OF THE MARRANA. PLAN, VIEW, AND
SECTION.]
This loch is situated about half-way between the Tor Fiscale and the
farm-house called Roma Vecchia, rather more than three miles from Rome,
and a quarter of a mile to the left of the Via Appia Nova. The Almo is a
mountain stream coming down from the Alban hills, often flooded in the
rainy season and dry in the hot season, with a very deep bed called a
foss. This bed was convenient for the engineers who made the mill-stream,
now called the Marrana, in the twelfth century, and they used it when the
ground was high and the foss deep; but in other parts, when the ground
was low and liable to be flooded, they banked up the stream, or made a
new channel for it on a raised bank, for sometimes half a mile together,
then joined the old winding bed again for perhaps another mile. At the
point where the division into two streams takes place, one branch is
banked up and comes through Rome, the other remains in the deep bed and
receives the surplus water from the loch, made at this point, and this
second stream runs through the valley of the Caffarella, and has its
mouth near the church of S. Paul f. m. The Plate shews the plan at the
division, one section of the loch, and the lasher. The second stream has
no other beginning than this division, and the deep bed or foss can be
traced in its winding course by the side of the cross-road from the Via
Appia Nova to S. Urban, at the head of the valley of the Caffarella.
PLATE XIV.
RIVER ALMO, NOW THE MARRANA.
ENTRANCE INTO ROME UNDER THE PORTA METRONIA.
[Illustration: XIV.
RIVER ALMO, NOW THE MARRANA.
ENTRANCE INTO ROME UNDER THE PORTA METRONIA.
A. ELEVATION, WITH THE BRIDGE UNDER THE GATE.
B. PLAN AND SECTIONS—A. B. THE BRIDGE; C. D. SECTIONS.
C. PLAN OF THE GROUND WITHOUT AND WITHIN THE WALL OF ROME.]
A. Elevation, with the bridge under the gate.
The lower bridge under the modern road is of the time of the Early
Empire, and can be seen, though not without some little difficulty, by
climbing upon the bank of the mill-stream, which now runs in the deep
winding foss of the Almo, and makes a bend under the gate, as is seen in
the small plan in the centre, marked M.
B. Plan and sections, longitudinal and transverse, of the bridge, with
the gate upon it. The longitudinal section A B has the line of it, marked
on the small plan M; the transverse section is marked C D.
C. Map of the corner of the Wall of Rome, shewing the great bend that it
makes to the south at this point. The wall is indicated by the towers at
short intervals, and the stream of water by its winding course. The roads
within the walls, and the road on the outside under the wall are also
indicated. The house shewn in the lower part, to the left in the plan,
is believed to be on the site of that of Crassipes, the father-in-law
of Cicero, near the Via Appia. The stream after passing the road turns
sharply round to the north, under the cliffs of the Aventine, and runs
through the Vallis Murcia, in which the Circus Maximus was made, first
having passed by the Piscina Publica, under that part of the Aventine on
which the Reformatory of S. Balbina now stands.
PLATE XV.
RIVER ALMO. MOUTH IN THE PULCHRUM LITTUS. VIEW.
[Illustration: XV.
RIVER ALMO, NOW THE MARRANA.
MOUTH IN THE PULCHRUM LITTUS. VIEW.]
This is the mouth within the Walls of Rome from the earliest period, and
it was here in all probability that the priests washed the blood off
their knives, and not at S. Paul’s, a mile outside the town. The remains
of the early wall of tufa in this part are well shewn in the drawing, and
the mouth for the stream to pass through, left when the wall was built.
This was part of the second Wall of Rome, built when the peace was made
between the Romans and the Sabines. The construction of that period, of
the usual large blocks of tufa with very fine joints, is clearly shewn in
the drawing.
PLATE XVI.
RIVER ALMO. MOUTH IN THE PULCHRUM LITTUS. PLAN.
[Illustration: XVI.
RIVER ALMO, NOW THE MARRANA.
PLAN OF THE MOUTH IN THE PULCHRUM LITTUS.]
In the Plan the old arrangement is clearly shewn, and the division of
the stream into two branches, one of which now turns a mill-wheel, and
is probably part of the alterations in the twelfth century,—this is the
straight line. The other is probably the original end of the stream, or
at least of this branch of it. The frequent change of the sand-banks by
the great floods of the Tiber sometimes obscure this part. Advantage was
taken of the water being low in the Tiber to get this plan and the view
in Plate XV.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
PLATE XVII.
SOURCES OF THE AQUA APPIA.
[Illustration: XVII.
SOURCES OF THE AQUA APPIA.]
DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XVII.
SOURCES OF THE AQUA APPIA[233].
A. Spring in a very ancient stone-quarry on the bank of the river Anio,
probably one of those from which Servius Tullius had obtained the stones
for his great wall, which had been floated down the river on rafts. The
spring is so filled up with broken stones that it looks like merely a
pond formed by drippings from the roof and the earth above, but the
shepherds are certain that it is a spring, and the water never fails.
B. Central reservoir where two streams meet and are united in one
_specus_, which conveyed the water into Rome. The aperture in the rock
above is not original, or it has been greatly enlarged. This was probably
a well to draw water for the cattle, and to give air to the _specus_.
C. Two streams coming out of a sort of double cave, and meeting at the
mouth of it, from whence they are carried across the meadow in a _specus_
open at the top for a certain distance, and having the appearance of a
ditch only; but the water from this spring also never fails, and these
two streams united gave a certain steady supply to the aqueduct. The
meadow through which these streams flow has a clay soil, and the water is
always liable to be muddy after rain, and left a large deposit of clay in
the _specus_, as is shewn in other plates.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
PLATE XVIII.
AQUA APPIA, OR APPIAN AQUEDUCT.
[Illustration: XVIII.
THE APPIAN AQUEDUCT PASSING OVER THE PORTA CAPENA AND THROUGH THE
TOWER.]
DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XVIII.
AQUA APPIA, OR APPIAN AQUEDUCT.
Crossing the valley from the Cœlian to the Aventine upon the _agger_
of Servius Tullius and over the Porta Capena, this was the only part
that was above ground, as we are told by Frontinus[234]. In this view
the pavement of the Via Appia is seen in the foreground, then the wall
of Servius Tullius, twelve feet thick, (as usual with the walls of
the Kings;) by the side of this, to the left, is seen the arcade that
carried the _specus_ of the aqueduct; this goes as far as the branch of
the river Almo (now called the Marrana), which runs through the valley.
On the further side of the stream the land is high, and the aqueduct is
again underground, but it has been traced not only across the valley,
but under the cliff on the northern side of the Pseudo-Aventine, with a
branch to the left to supply the Piscina Publica, which was an enormous
swimming-bath for the whole population of Rome at that period, extending
as far as the north end of the Thermæ of Caracalla, where the hollow with
the bank round it can still be seen, and where a great reservoir remains,
lined with the cement called _opus signinum_ (or _coccio pisto_). The
ruins of another great reservoir rebuilt in the time of Trajan are at the
north-west corner, nearly under the Aventine, and are called the Piscina
Publica.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
PLATE XIX.
PLAN AND SECTION IN A CAVE IN THE AVENTINE.
[Illustration: XIX.
AQUEDUCTS—PLAN AND SECTIONS IN A CAVE IN THE AVENTINE]
DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XIX.
PLAN AND SECTION IN A CAVE IN THE AVENTINE.
This is the same cave on the Pseudo-Aventine, nearly under the church and
monastery of Santa Sabba, which has been before described when partially
excavated (Plate III.[235]), but which has now, in 1875-6, been more
thoroughly examined and made accessible.
A A. General Plan of this part of the _specus_ of the Aqua Appia, made
into a stone-quarry for many years, and part of it still in use for that
purpose, but another large part has been long out of use[236].
B. Entrances to the two parts, the steps distinguish that leading to the
part excavated.
C C. Section of part of the cave-quarry.
D. View of that part of the _specus_ of the Aqua Appia which is built of
squared stones, and has a terra-cotta water-pipe on each side of it.
E E. Longitudinal Section of this part.
F. Transverse Section of the same.
DETAILS OF THE PLAN A.
a a. Entrance to the cave or quarry.
b b. Via di San Paolo, the carriage-road to that gate.
c c. Via di Santa Sabba, the carriage-road up the hill to the south.
d. Via di Santa Prisca, the road up the hill to the north.
e e. The most perfect part of the _specus_ where it is built, and not
merely a tunnel cut in the bed of tufa, as in other parts.
f f f f. Windings of the tunnels for the Aqueducts.
g g. Water-pipes of terra-cotta, by the side of the _specus_ in the part
where it is built, and not merely cut out of the tufa.
h. The _specus_ half filled up with the deposit of clay.
i. Steps made to give access to the cave.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
PLATE XX.
THE JUNCTION AT THE WEST END OF THE CŒLIAN, NEAR THE CLAUDIUM.
PLAN AND SECTION.
[Illustration: XX.
AQUEDUCTS AT THE WEST END OF THE CELIAN]
DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XX.
THE JUNCTION AT THE WEST END OF THE CŒLIAN, NEAR THE CLAUDIUM.
PLAN AND SECTION.
A B C. Line of the Section.
a. Colosseum.
b. Claudium.
c. Arch of Dolabella.
d. Reservoir and Spring of water.
e. Aqueduct of Nero.
f. Cave-reservoir and Spring, with ten wells down into it, erroneously
called a _vivarium_.
g g g. Porticus of the Claudium.
h. Church of SS. John and Paul.
i. —— S. John of Mata.
k. —— S. Maria in Domnica.
l. —— S. Gregory.
m. Clivus Scauri.
n. House of the family of S. Gregory the Great.
o. Villa Celi-Montana (formerly called Villa Mattei).
p. Vineyard of Marchese Rappini.
q. Ground called Orto Botanico.
r. Place of S. Gregory.
s. Arch of Constantine.
t. Meta Sudans.
u. Via Sacra.
v. Summa Sacra Via.
x. Proposed Drain, for turning off the water of this spring from the
Colosseum.
y. Branch of an existing subterranean drain under the Via di S. Gregorio,
between the Cœlian and the Palatine.
z. Excavation made in 1876 in the Vigna Rappini, in consequence of a
land-slip; but nothing was found beyond an old quarry of tufa, at a great
depth, and a branch of an aqueduct at nearly the same depth, the water
having come originally from the spring in the cave (?) or quarry (?)
called a _vivarium_.
THE AQUEDUCTS.
PLATE XXI.
SECTIONS OF THE SPECUS OF EACH OF THE FIFTEEN AQUEDUCTS OF ROME.
[Illustration: XXI.
SECTIONS OF THE SPECUS OF EACH OF THE 15 AQUEDUCTS OF ROME]
DESCRIPTION OF PLATE XXI.
SECTIONS OF THE SPECUS OF EACH OF THE FIFTEEN AQUEDUCTS OF ROME.
The names of each are given under the section of it, and it will be
observed that no two are alike; this was no doubt done in order that the
workmen might always know which aqueduct each belonged to, at the points
where they cross each other, so that if there was any obstacle in one of
them it might be readily removed. Some of those which came from a clay
soil, as the Appia and the Virgo, were liable to get choked up by the
quantity of deposit left by the water, and it was necessary to have them
cleared out from time to time, as is still the case with the Virgo, now
called the Aqua di Trevi. One of the small streams that were collected
to form the Aqua Hadriana, which comes from near Gabii, was a petrifying
spring, which quite choked up the _specus_ in the course of a century.
It was restored by Alexander Severus, but the same water seems still to
have been used. The Aqua Felice comes from the same sources, but the
petrifying spring was carefully excluded, and now runs in a ditch, giving
a coat of stone to the sticks and the weeds.
PLAN OF THE AQUEDUCTS. ON THE CŒLIAN.
[Illustration: AQUEDUCTS ON THE CŒLIAN AND ESQUILINE LEADING TO THE
COLOSSEUM.]
PLAN OF THE AQUEDUCTS.
ON THE CŒLIAN[237].
Three branches diverge from the great central reservoir at the Arch of
Dolabella,—one goes straight on, nearly due north to the Palatine, the
second north-east to the Colosseum, and the third west to the Aventine.
AND ON THE ESQUILINE.
From the other great reservoir called the Sette Sale, or the Thermæ, and
from thence to the Colosseum.
A.A.A. The drain under the road between the Cœlian and the Palatine, now
called Via di S. Gregorio, leading to the Via Appia.
B. Arch of Constantine.
C. Meta Sudans.
D. Thermæ of Titus on the Esquiline, with the great _piscina_ called
Sette Sale, and the aqueduct leading from it to the Colosseum.
E. Monastery and Church of S. Gregory.
F. Site of the Porta Capena, with the aqueduct over it, leading to the
Piscina Publica under the Aventine: and on to the mouth at the Porta
Trigemina, in the bank of the Tiber.
G. Church and monastery of SS. John and Paul.
H. Church and monastery of S. Clement.
I. The great reservoir and Piscina of Nero over the Arch of Dolabella,
and reservoir of the Aqua Appia to the left of it; this is underground in
the garden of the Villa Celimontana, and from thence the _specus_ goes
underground to the cliff of the Cœlian, where another _piscina_ is shewn,
near the bottom of the plan, to the left.
Under that part of the Cœlian Hill on which the Claudium stood are seen
four _piscinæ_, two on the western side opposite to the Palatine, and two
on the northern side opposite to the Colosseum; of these latter the one
at the corner is of the time of Nero, that in the middle of the northern
front is of the time of Alexander Severus, when the upper storey of the
Colosseum was building of stone.
MAP OF THE AQUEDUCTS ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF ROME.
[Illustration: MAP OF THE AQUEDUCTS ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF ROME
Whiteman & Bass, _Photo-Litho’ to the Queen_, 236, Holborn]
This map is reduced by photography from one made for this work on a
very large scale, which was thought necessary in order to shew the
line of the course of each aqueduct, which, being to a large extent
subterranean, are not shewn in the usual maps of the country. In the
immediate neighbourhood of Rome the lines are so complicated that they
could only be shewn on this large scale. (At the Tor Fiscale, for
instance, they remind English travellers of the railways at Clapham
Junction near London. There are many coincidences between the aqueducts
and the railways; both are carried at different levels in order to
cross each other; both are in some parts in tunnels, and in other parts
carried on embankments, or on arches). This map was made by Signor
De Mauro, an engineer and surveyor, who took much interest in the
work, and is generally very careful and accurate, under the direction
chiefly of Dr. Fabio Gori, who is a native of Subiaco, near which the
principal aqueducts have their sources. The author of this work went
with them from time to time to verify what they had done, but as it was
a work of several months, and necessarily done in the summer, it was
not practicable for him to do more than to go to the source of each
aqueduct and follow it down to its mouth. The large map, which covers
one side of a room, being 135 ft. long and 90 ft. wide, has been reduced
by photography to three different sizes; the first makes eighteen
photographs of the usual size, called the “normal size,” and the whole
on this scale is about 15 ft. long and 10 ft. wide; this again has been
reduced to two sheets[238], 21 ins. long and 14 ins. wide; and then to
the same size as this outline; but on this small scale the lettering
requires a powerful magnifying-glass, and therefore the bare outline
has been taken from it to shew the general features of the line of the
great aqueducts. The reservoir at the source of each is marked by a dark
circle, and from each of them the line can be traced into Rome. Within
the walls a separate and careful examination was required, as so much of
the work is subterranean; this examination has been made, and the line of
each of the aqueducts has been traced to its mouth. It will be observed
that the _specus_ or conduit of each aqueduct is of a separate form, and
this was no doubt necessary to distinguish one from the other, as they
frequently intersect and cross one another in a very singular manner, and
in case of repair being necessary, it would have been very difficult for
the workmen to know which aqueduct was at fault, or how to find the part
that wanted repair, without this arrangement.
1. The earliest aqueduct, the APPIA[239] (B.C. 312), being entirely
underground at a considerable depth, is marked by a dotted line. It
comes from old stone quarries on the bank of the river Anio, just beyond
the Caves of Cervaro, about eight miles from Rome, near the ancient Via
Collatina, called by Frontinus Prænestina, because in his time the road
to Præneste went through Collatia.
2. ANIO VETUS[240] (B.C. 272), comes also from the bank of the river
Anio, but at a much higher level than the Appia, between Tivoli and
Subiaco, near the village of Agosta, twenty miles from Rome, but the
winding course makes the whole length of the aqueduct 42 miles, 779
paces underground, and 221 paces (about 350 yards) above ground on a
substructure. It is brought at a considerably higher level than the
Appia, but still underground for the most part, though near the surface,
and sometimes only half underground. It was not legal to build over an
aqueduct anything but another aqueduct, consequently the later aqueducts
are all brought on the same line, each on a higher level, so that the
line of the Anio Novus, carried on the arches of Nero, shews at the same
time the line of the Anio Vetus nearly under it.
3. MARCIA[241] (B.C. 145). This stream also comes from near Subiaco, 39
miles from Rome, 36 on the Via Valeria, and 3 off it on a cross-road,
near the village of Arsoli. There is a small lake 38 miles from Rome on
the same road (which is another source of this aqueduct), into which the
water gushes out from under the limestone rock; it is intensely cold in
all weathers, and the water is of a light green colour in the lake. “The
length of the course is 61 miles 710 paces, of which 54 miles 247 paces
are underground, 7 miles 463 paces above ground, on an arcade for 6 miles
472 paces, on a substructure for 528 paces,” and in several places on
bridges across the gorges in the hills. This water was brought into Rome
again in 1860-70 by a new line, and was then called Aqua Marcia Pia, from
Pius IX.; the name of Pia has since been dropped.
4. VIRGO[242] (B.C. 21), made by Agrippa for his Thermæ, restored to
use by the popes in the eighth century, and frequently repaired; now
called the Aqua di Trevi, from the fountain so named. The source is on
the Via Collatina, 8 miles from Rome and 1 mile beyond the source of the
Appia. There are several springs, each with a separate small reservoir,
collected in one large reservoir, now under the road. “The length of the
course is 14 miles 105 paces.”
5. TEPULA[243] (B.C. 126). The sources of this are 12 miles from Rome,
near Grotta Ferrata and Marino, 2 miles from the old Via Latina.
6. JULIA[244] (B.C. 34). This source is on the cross-road from Grotta
Ferrata to Marino, on the old Via Latina, 14 miles from Rome, and also 2
from the Via Latina (there are still washing-places at each of these two
sources). The two streams, when they arrived on the level ground at the
foot of the hill, were carried on the same arcade as the Marcia for 6
miles into Rome.
7. AUGUSTA[245]. This name is a mistake of the artist for Aurelia; it
is the aqueduct made by Marcus Aurelius for the Villa de Quintilii on
the old Via Appia, and united with the Severiana to supply the Thermæ
Aurelianæ et Severianæ in Rome.
8. ANIO NOVUS[246] (A.D. 52). “The source of this is 42 miles from Rome,
on the Via Sublacensis; the length of the channel is 58 miles 700 paces,
of which 49 miles 300 paces are underground, 9 miles 400 paces above
ground, 2 miles 3 paces in the upper part and near the City, 609 paces on
substructure, 6 miles 491 paces on an arcade of the highest arches, in
some places 109 ft. high.” This stream was part of the river Anio itself;
a great dam was made across the river in a rocky part, about 2 miles
above Subiaco. A great loch (_lacus_) was formed between this dam and a
natural cascade about a hundred yards higher up the river, and a _specus_
was cut in the rock by the side of it at rather a lower level than the
top of the dam, so that the water of the river must go into the _specus_
and so into Rome, before any of it could fall over the artificial cascade
made by the dam. From this cause the water of this aqueduct never failed
in the hottest and driest weather, but it was sometimes muddy after a
flood in the upper country, and had many _piscinæ_ or filtering-places
for that reason; there is usually one at each half mile in the arcades
near Rome, and a _castellum aquæ_, or reservoir along with it, at each of
the angles, made to break the force of the water.
9. CLAUDIA[247] (A.D. 38). The source of this is 38 miles on the Via
Sublacensis, just above Subiaco, about 2 miles nearer to Rome than the
Anio Novus. They are carried in two distinct _specus_ as far as Tivoli
and to the foot of the hill, but on the level ground; both _specus_ are
carried on a lofty arcade, which turns at an angle at every half-mile,
and there has a _piscina_, and at each of these points it was carried
across the lower arcade, which served for the Marcia, Tepula, and Julia.
10. HADRIANA or TRAJANA[248] (A.D. 120), and ALEXANDRINA (?). The sources
of this are under La Colonna, about three miles from Gabii. The _specus_
is carried on a fine arcade for two or three miles between the two great
roads. The same water was afterwards used for the Felice, with the
exception of one of the springs, which was found to be of a petrifying
quality, and had choked up the _specus_ of the old aqueduct. It seems
probable that the stalactite produced by the petrifying spring had choked
up the _specus_ of Trajan and Hadrian before the time of Alexander
Severus, that he restored it to use, and it was then called by his name.
The construction of the Piscina and Castella Aquæ near the source is
distinctly of the time of Hadrian, but in some parts the arcade which
carries the _specus_ is of the time of Alexander Severus.
11. SEVERIANA[249] (A.D. 190). The sources of this are in a swampy ground
on the lower part of one of the Alban Hills, under Marino and Grotta
Ferrata, nearly the same as those of the small river Almo, and the Tepula
and Julia. The course is at first underground as far as the Torre di
Mezza Via di Albano; from thence it is carried on a fine arcade of the
third century to the Villa de Quintilii, and from thence into Rome for
the Thermæ of Aurelius Commodus and Septimius Severus, near the Porta
Latina.
12. ALEXANDRINA (?)[250]. There is some doubt about the source and the
line of this aqueduct.
13. ALGENTIANA[251]. This aqueduct went to the Thermæ of Diocletian,
where the _specus_ has been found, but it is almost the same as the last.
Both were probably branches from the great early aqueducts.
14. AQUA FELICE[252], A.D. 1587. Made by the Pope, Felice Peretti, or
Sixtus V. Its source is the same as that of the Hadriana, which was
mistaken in his time for the celebrated Aqua Marcia.
15. AQUA MARCIA PIA. The real old Marcian water was brought into Rome
by a Company in 1860-70. The course as far as Tivoli is in a stone
_specus_, like the old aqueduct, but after it reaches the level ground
it is carried in cast-iron pipes on the other side of the river Anio,
and passes under it by a great syphon. This was to avoid repeating the
great circuit made by the old aqueduct, and was also done to escape the
necessity of crossing the mouths of the number of small streams that fall
into the river Anio and drain the Campagna; these are often flooded in
the wet season, and would have been likely to injure the bridges of the
aqueducts where they crossed the stream; the iron pipes avoid them by
being on the other side of the river.
MAP OF THE AQUEDUCTS ON THE WESTERN SIDE OF ROME[253].
[Illustration: MAP OF THE AQUEDUCTS ON THE WESTERN SIDE OF ROME
Whiteman & Bass, _Photo-Litho’ to the Queen_, 236, Holborn]
The account given of the map of the eastern side of Rome applies almost
equally to this, but the difficulty to be surmounted was here greater.
Neither Dr. Gori, nor Signor De Mauro, nor the author knew the ground; we
had only Frontinus and Fabretti to help us, and the course is much more
subterranean on this side than on the other. There are none of the great
arcades to carry the _specus_ for five or six miles; the only portion
where they are carried on an arcade for any distance is on the side and
upon the wall of the garden of the villa Pamphili-Doria, and there the
arcade as seen is the work of Pope Paul V. (Borghese), who restored them
to use in the sixteenth century, making use of the old subterranean
_specus_ and the ruins of the old arches, which can be seen against
the wall of that garden. From this point they are mostly subterranean,
we traced them to the three lakes which served as reservoirs for them.
The first _specus_ on this side of the Lacus Alsietinus has been kept
separate from the one on the other side. In the time of Augustus the
water came from the two upper lakes, but it was brought at a very low
level, and the water from these being always muddy and bad, Frontinus,
under Trajan, rejected it, and brought the water only from the Sabatina;
Pope Paul returned to the use of the upper lake, Alsietina.
This map is also reduced by photography from one on a much larger scale,
though not so large as the one for the eastern side, as that was found
inconveniently large, and on this side there was less complication to
examine and explain. Great credit is due to Signor de Mauro for the tact
with which he traced the subterranean lines. He found that there are
wells and air-holes at intervals, not always regular, but nearly so, and
that when they are in grass-land or barren land, shrubs have always grown
over the top of each well on account of the moisture that remained in it,
and by means of these shrubs he was able to follow the line.
These aqueducts, which supplied the fountains in the Trastevere, all come
from the lakes on the hills. The Alsietina of Augustus comes from the
lake of that name (now called Martignano), between the Via Claudia and
the Via Aurelia, but not very near to either, being 6½ miles from the
Via Claudia at the fourteenth milestone, as Frontinus states. This was
made to supply the Naumachia of Augustus, which were near the present
monastery of S. Cosimato in Trastevere; the water was very abundant,
but not fit for drinking. It entered Rome at a lower level than any
of the other aqueducts, because the Naumachia were very little above
the level of the Tiber. At the small town called the Cariæ (near the
present Osteria Nuova), about fifteen miles from Rome, it received an
additional supply of water from the Lacus Sabatinus. Trajan restored
to use that part which came from the latter lake; this is better water
than the Alsietina. Pope Paul III., A.D. 1540, again restored this to
use, and it is now called Aqua Paola. His engineers brought the water
from three lakes, the two before mentioned, and a smaller one above the
Alsietina, called Stracciacappe. The object of bringing the water from
this very high level, 500 ft. above Rome, was to supply the splendid
fountains in front of S. Peter’s, the water of which rises to a great
height. This lake was drained in 1870, and at the same time the water in
the Alsietina was also much lowered, by which means the three _specus_
were brought to light on the bank, and the sites are shewn on this map.
The Aqueduct of Trajan was carried at a much higher level than that of
Augustus, and entered Rome on the top of the Janiculum. Procopius, in the
sixth century, admired the profuse supply of water at that point; and the
water was then, as it is now, used for a series of mills on the slope of
the hill. The engineers of Pope Paul made use of the water of all the
three lakes, and a most abundant supply still flows into Rome through
the Fountain, above the Church of S. Pietro in Montorio. How far the old
_specus_ was used it is difficult to tell, but most probably that of
Trajan was used for a large part of the distance; it is almost entirely
underground until the last mile into Rome, where it was carried on an
arcade of the time of Trajan. The Aqua Paola is there also carried on an
arcade, parallel to it and near to it, but not the same.
FOOTNOTES
[1] During the first season that I was resident in Rome, it was my habit
to go with my friend Mr. William Long, of Balliol College, Oxford, then
resident in Rome, into the Catacombs every Monday morning, and along
the line of the Aqueducts also once or twice a-week, when the weather
permitted. We procured all the best maps of the Campagna that were to
be had, but could find none that would enable us to trace the course of
the Aqueducts. Moltke’s map is the best as far as it goes; but, being
intended as a military map only, he paid no attention to the antiquities.
The one known in England by the name of Gell, and in Rome by the name
of Nibby, is made especially for the Antiquities; but it is on a small
scale, and we found it impossible to trace the Aqueducts upon it.
Eventually I have had one made on a large scale, to make it clear, have
added the other Antiquities, and then had it reduced by photography to
two smaller sizes: one very small, to give the general lines only; the
other on a size convenient for the pocket; and, by using the portion near
Rome separately, it makes a good and convenient map for the purpose.
[2] Frontinus is usually said to have died A.D. 106.
[3] See notably Plutarch, Vita Anci Marcii; Dionys., Hal. Ant. Rom., lib.
iii. c. 679, sect. 9; Strabo, lib. v.; Cassiodorus, lib. vii. cap. 6, &c.
[4] These wells may have included the cisterns for holding rain-water,
one of which exists on the Palatine.
[5] In the best text, that of the MS. at Monte Cassino, and in the best
printed edition of the text, that of Buecheler (Lipsiæ, 1858), the
passage runs “Salubritatem enim ægris corporibus afferre creduntur, sicut
_Camænarum, et Apollinis, et Juturnæ_.” The spring of the Camænæ or Muses
referred to, is that which existed in the grove outside the Porta Capena,
and beneath the western slope of the Cœlian. There was an Area Apollinis
in the same Regio, and possibly there was a spring there; but no writer
refers to it. A stream, now subterranean, still exists, and is very
copious, running into and through the Cloaca Maxima; it may be seen in
the excavations of the Forum Romanum. This subterranean stream comes from
three different springs; the source of one is near the Arch of Titus,
or more immediately in front of the usual entrance to the Palatine;—a
second has its source near the foot of that part of the Quirinal Hill on
which the Torre de’ Conti and the Torre delle Milizie are situated; it
now emerges in a cellar under a shop behind the church of S. Hadriana;—a
third comes from the prison of S. Peter, at the foot of the Capitol.
These streams meet near the church of S. Maria Liberatrice and the
celebrated three columns of the temple of Castor and Pollux; by their
union they formed the lake usually called after Curtius, but by Ovid the
Lacus Juturnæ (Ovid. Fasti, l. i. ver. 708). This is not the same as the
stream so called on Nolli’s Map. The lake was between that part of the
Velabrum of the Palatine on which the church of S. Maria Liberatrice and
S. Teodoro are situated, which formed the southern side of the lake, and
the Forum Romanum the northern side.
The Aqua Juturnæ, marked 1056 in Nolli’s Map, is the stream that gushes
out in great volume from the rock at the foot of the Palatine in the
Lupercal of Augustus, which is now in a very ruinous state, the cave
being used as a mill-head to a modern mill, between that point and the
Cloaca Maxima. This cave is close to the Carceres of the Circus Maximus.
The authority for the name of this stream is doubtful; it is now usually
called Aqua Argentina, and falls into the Cloaca Maxima, near the church
of S. Giorgio in Velabro and the arch erected by the silver-smiths in
honour of Septimius Severus.
[6] The Augustan is a name applied also to a branch of the Marcian close
to its source, as well as to one supplementary to the Appian within the
city.
[7] Frontinus, c. 5.
[8] Ibid.
[9] “Jungitur ei ad Spem [Specum] veterem in confinio hortorum
Torquatianorum et Pallantianorum ramus Augustæ, ab Augusto in
supplementum ejus additus, ... loco nomen respondenti Gemellarum.” (Ibid.)
[10] “Incipit distribui [Aqua] Appia imo Publicii clivo ad portam
Trigeminam.” (Ibid.)
And again: “Rivus Appiæ, sub Cœlio monte et Aventino actus, emergit, ut
diximus, infra clivum Publicii.” (Ibid., c. 22.) The cave reservoir which
formed the mouth of this stream, where it was distributed, has been found
near the Marmorata, or marble-wharf. The Porta Trigemina was between that
and the Salaria, or salt-wharf. Both of the wharves are still in use.
Some good antiquaries consider that the Porta Trigemina consisted of
three double gates, at intervals along the narrow strip of ground between
the Aventine and the Tiber, and that the one of which remains have been
found near the Sublician bridge was the middle one of the three: if so,
this cave would be literally _in_ the Porta Trigemina. In any case, it
must have been close to it.
[11] That is, in the reservoir, or _castellum aquæ_, through which the
conduit or _specus_ passed. This reservoir exists, or rather considerable
remains of it, just within the Porta Maggiore, between that and the
church of S. Croce, and just outside the _agger_ of the Sessorium, on
which the road from S. Croce to this gate now runs.
[12] “... Cujus aquæ ad caput inveniri mensura non potuit, quoniam
ex duobus rivis constat. Ad Gemellos tamen, qui locus est infra Spem
(_Specum_) veterem, ubi jungitur cum ramo Augustæ, inveni altitudinem
aquæ pedum quinque, latitudinem pedis unius, dodrantis: fiunt areæ pedes
octo, dodrans: ... quas esse ex eo adparet quod in plerisque urbis
partibus perdita aqua observatur, id est quæ ex ea manat, sed et quasdam
fistulas intra urbem illicitas deprehendimus, extra urbem autem propter
pressuram libræ, quam vidi infra terram ad caput pedibus quinquaginta,
nullam accipit injuriam.” (Frontinus, c. 65.)
[13] There is good reason to believe that such tombs were not
_exclusively_ Etruscan, but were also used by the Latins and other
nations at the same period, and this one may very well be early Roman.
[14] The modern carriage-road, so called, was called Via Gabina in the
time of Frontinus. The old Via Prænestina is now a bridle-road only for
the first three miles out of Rome, to the Torre de’ Scavi; it is then
a cart-road, called Via Collatina, with a branch road into it from the
present carriage-road.
[15] In the Map of Gell and Nibby, along the Via Prænestina will be seen
the name _Pupinia_. The spot is just north of this, and not far off from
the piece of road marked in the same map as the Via Collatina.
[16] Frontinus, c. 22.
[17] In the _Bullettino dell’ Instituto Archeologico_, and the _Civiltà
Cattolica_, for the year 1861, it is stated that for the works of the
iron railroad between the Via Labicana and the Via Gabina the _specus_ of
the Aqua Appia was found, 450 yards (metres) from the Porta Maggiore. It
was constructed of square stone of tufa, and was incrusted with _tartar_,
had an acute vault, which was 5 ft. 9 in. high, and 2½ ft. wide.
[18] This is on the line of the wall of Servius Tullius. It appears that
Trajan made a reservoir here over the old one. The _specus_ of the Appia
passes through the present gardener’s house lengthwise, from east to
west. This _specus_ was found again in another excavation to the west of
it, by the side of the present road.
[19] “Substitit ad veteres arcus _madidamque_ Capenam.” (Juvenal, sat.
iii. ver. 11.) “Capena grandi porta qua _pluit gutta_.” (Martial, lib.
iii. epigr. 47.) The distance from the foot of the Cœlian to the Marrana
is just a hundred yards along the line of the wall of Servius Tullius,
across this part of the valley or great primitive foss. The ground on the
side of the wall is all made earth and rubbish, and two aqueducts are
carried on arcades against the wall, one on either side. These arcades
have not been traced beyond the Marrana, the ground there being higher.
At the Piscina Publica, where another pit was dug 20 ft. deep, the wall
is built against the tufa rock, and there is a third _specus_ in a tunnel
in the rock under the wall.
[20] Or perhaps the road was a deep foss-way, and the _specus_ passed
over the arch of the gate at this point, where four roads meet.
[21] In the spring of the year 1870, another excavation was made close
to this point, and a way was found into another old subterranean
stone-quarry long out of use. Through this cave, or quarry, the _specus_
of five different aqueducts pass on their way to the Tiber. Some of these
come down at a steep decline, and the water of the whole seems to have
been carried into the lowest one, the Appia, at this point. This _specus_
must have been carried over the deep foss-way upon or under the arch of
the gate of the old wall of _the city_, where four roads meet. It is
also visible again in another old subterranean stone-quarry on the other
side of the road, nearly under S. Prisca, and from thence it must have
gone to the old cave, used as a reservoir near the Marmorata, and the
Porta Trigemina, immediately under the monastery of S. Maria del Trinita
di Malta, where the _specus_ is again visible, and where the wells of
other aqueducts run into the same cave reservoir at the mouth of the
aqueducts in this part of Rome. One of these runs down a vertical pipe
from the reservoir nearly over this cave, but under S. Sabina on the
hill above, excavated in 1865, and described by M. Descemet (Sect. xi.)
There is another large reservoir in the interior of the hill, still full
of water, supplied by a spring rising there; the water from this still
passes through the same passage to the Tiber. This is also said to have
been called the cave of Faunus by the poets. It is probably also the same
as that of Cacus, being a large natural cave, with a spring of water,
and a natural reservoir of considerable size in it about knee-deep, the
entrance to which is by a narrow passage made into the _specus_ of the
aqueduct. Such a cave might very well have been used to drive cattle into
for concealment, and a resolute, well-armed man standing at the entrance
might defend it against any number. Solinus (i. 7) says that the cave of
Cacus was at the Porta Trigemina, and that he dwelt in the Salinæ, which
are close by this spot. “Qui Cacus habitavit locum cui Salinæ nomen est,
ubi Trigemina porta.”
[22] On the wall of the smaller reservoir, the fragment of an
inscription, relating to the Thermæ of S. Helena, now in the Vatican
Museum, is said to have been found:—
D. N. HELENA ... VEN. ... AVG. MAT.
AVIA ... BEATIS ...
THERMA ... SI ... ESTRV ...
[23] Frontinus says, c. 5, at the sixth milestone on the Via Prænestina,
about nine hundred and eighty paces off to the left, and near the Via
Collatina, this stream has its source. The sources both of the Aqua Appia
and of the Augusta were traced by Signor Fabio Gori and Mr. J. H. Parker,
in March, 1868, and were afterwards shewn to the British Archæological
Society of Rome.
[24] The source of the _Appia_ was 780 paces off the road, between the
7th and 8th milestone. That of the _Augustan_ 880 paces off, and by
the 6th milestone. The former was measured to its termination, giving
11⅛ miles. The latter went only to the “Specus Vetus” (which is two
miles less) and gave 6⅓ miles. Two miles is the distance from the Porta
Maggiore to the Porta Trigemina and the Salaria. In all probability the
Augustan branch was carried for the six miles into Rome along the bank
of the Via Prænestina, here a deep foss-way between two high banks; and
at a later period the Aqua Virgo was carried over it at a higher level,
till within about half a mile of Rome, where it arrives at the outer bank
of the great foss, and is carried at a sharp angle to the north to the
Pincian. The Appia, being much deeper, was carried straight on at the
bottom of the great foss into Rome, and entered at the extreme eastern
corner, under the line afterwards taken by the Claudian arcade, to the
two great reservoirs or _gemelli_ before mentioned; the main line running
here parallel to it, a little to the south, till it reached the Piscina
of S. Helena, the two lines converging at the _gemelli_.
[25] There are considerable remains of two large reservoirs in a garden
just outside of the boundary-wall of the Sessorium, which wall is of the
time of S. Helena, on its western side. Some excavations made in them
in 1869 under my direction shewed that they went to a great depth, the
workmen being stopped by water. These two great reservoirs, so close
together in the line of the Aqua Appia, seem to have been the Gemelli
mentioned by Frontinus. From this point the _specus_ can be traced along
the Cœlian, and the reservoirs are below the level of that _specus_
(_infra specum veterem_).—F. ii. 65.
[26] If the “Plautian” be the better reading, they may have been the
gardens of Plautius Lateranus, which were near those of the Sessorian
Palace.
[27] Frontinus, cap. 19: “Marcia autem partem sui post hortos
Pallantianos in rivum qui vocatur Herculaneus, dejicit.” Cap. 20:
“Finiuntur arcus earum (Anionis Novi, et Claudiæ), post hortos
Pallantianos.” Cap. 69: “Præterea (Julia) accepit prope urbem, post
hortos Pallantianos.” In the _Notitia_ and the _Curiosum Urbis_ the
“Horti Pallantiani” are given as being in the Regio V. or the “Esquiliæ.”
[28] Remains of these _thermæ_ were accidentally brought to light in
1871, during some excavations made by a building company, who had bought
the ground on speculation. They are of great extent, and on both sides of
the present road from S. Maria Maggiore to S. Croce in Gerusalemme, which
was made in the sixteenth century by Sixtus V.
[29] “Exquiliæ locus in quo sepeliebantur corpora extra portam illam in
qua est Sessorium.” (Acron ad Horat., lib. i. Sat. viii.)
“Eodem tempore fecit Constantinus Augustus basilicam in palatio
Sessoriano, ubi etiam de ligno S. crucis D. N. Jesu Christi posuit.”
(Anastasius in vita S. Silvestri papæ, xxxiv. § 41.)
[30] Frontinus, c. 6. Pyrrhus was king of Epirus, and came to the aid of
the Samnites against the Romans; he was conquered _c._ B.C. 272.
[31] The passage is corrupt, as will be explained. The following is the
reading, as given by Buecheler, whose text is _an exact copy_ of the best
manuscript, that of Monte Cassino:—“Anio Vetus citra quartum milliarium
_infra Novum_, _qui_ a via Latina in Lavicanam _inter_ arcus trajicit, et
ibi piscinam habet. Inde intra secundum milliarium partem dat in specum,
qui vocatur Octavianus, et pervenit in regionem _viæ Novæ_ ad hortos
Asinianos, unde per illum tractum distribuitur. Rectus vero ductus,
_secundum Spem_ (_Specum_) veniens intra portam Exquilinam, in altos
rivos per urbem deducitur.” (Frontin., c. 21.) _Infra Novum_, therefore,
signifies within the fourth mile on the Via Nova, the New Road of the
time of Frontinus, the Via Appia Nova (?).
[32] Frontin., c. 18.
[33] Signor F. Gori, who is a native of Subiaco, and has followed the
line of the aqueducts on foot from Subiaco to Rome, says that he has
found the source of the Anio Vetus in the river Anio, at three miles
from Subiaco, on the _Via Sublacensis vetus_, twenty miles from the old
gate of Tibur or Tivoli, in the district called _Le Connotta_, where he
finds two _specus_, the higher one the Anio Novus, the lower one the Anio
Vetus. He traces the same _specus_ near Marano, a village thirty-eight
miles from Rome, on the Via Sublacensis Neroniana, near _Vico-varo_; and
again near Tivoli, on the bank of the _Valle degli Arci_. “Delle vere
Sorgenti dell’ Acqua Marcia e delle altre acque allacciate dai Romani
presso le Vie Valeria e Sublacense,” per F. Gori. Roma, 1866, 8vo., pp.
53, 54.
[34] The local _patois_ for _Albergo_ or _Auberge_.
IMP. CAESAR
DIVI. F. AVGVST. EX . S.C.
dclix. P. CCXL.
IMP. CAESAR .
DIVI. F. AVGVST. EX . S.C.
dclxix. P. CCXL.
[35] By the side of a plan of Rome in the first volume of his magnificent
work (pl. xxxviii.), Piranesi gives a section of the relative heights
of the Aqueducts, as compared with each other. The figures refer to the
base of each _specus_ above that of the Appian, and the following is the
result, according to his measurements, reduced to English feet:—
Above Specus of Appian. Palmi. Feet.
Anio Novus 173.8 127
Claudian 163.2 119
Julian 145.1 106
Tepulan 138.7 101½
Marcian 128.7 92½
Anio Vetus 75.4½ 55½
Virgo 9.3 7
Appian — —
At a lower level than Specus of the Appian.
Alsietina in the Trastevere 37.6½ 27½
He gives as the total full range, i.e. from the _specus_ of the Alsietina
(the lowest), to that of the Anio Novus (the highest), as 211.2½ _palmi_,
or 154½ English feet. The height of the Appian, he shews by his diagram
to be about 24 English feet above the Quay of the Tiber. The points at
which Piranesi obtained his measurements, and the mode employed, are not
recorded. It seems hardly possible that the Appia is 55 ft. under the
Anio Vetus in Rome.
[36] See ante. Frontinus, cap. 21.
[37] The passage, as it stands in the Codex Cassinensis, is, “Anio Vetus
_citra_ quartum miliarium _infra_ novum _qui_ a Via Latina in Lavicanam
_inter_ arcus trajicit, et ipse piscinam habet.” This piscina is visible
at the third modern milestone on the Via d’Albano, and at the fourth on
the Via Latina. The Codex Vaticanus is an inferior copy of the Codex
Cassinensis; but the Codex Urbinas, now also in the Vatican Library, is
distinct. No other MS. is of any authority.
[38] Remains of the tombs on the Via Latina are distinctly visible and
rather prominent objects, close to the Torre Fiscale. The Marrana, or
Almo, the small stream that received the surplus water of the aqueducts,
also washes the foot of the tower.
[39] This _castellum aquæ_ is exactly two miles from the Porta Maggiore,
another proof that the entrance _to Rome_ (though not to the City) was
considered by Frontinus to have been at that gate. All the aqueducts on
the eastern side of Rome are measured by him from this gate, and the
inscriptions put over that gate as the entrance into Rome indicate the
same thing. The level of this _castellum_ above the sea is about 153 ft.;
at the Porta Maggiore, where the Anio Vetus enters Rome, it is about 146
ft., allowing a descent of about 3 ft. 4 in. for the two miles, which is
natural. The Via Appia Nova, in the part near Rome, was made out of the
old Via Asinaria. Frontinus says that this branch “was conveyed to the
Asinian gardens,” which were between the Lateran and the Sessorium, and
to which the Porta Asinaria (or gate of the Asinii) was the entrance.
Between that gate and the Amphitheatrum Castrense are remains of an
ancient reservoir or _castellum aquæ_, cut in the rock at the foot of the
wall and half underground, as was very usual with the Anio Vetus. The
branch that goes along the Via Latina appears to have gone from the same
reservoir, but to be distinct from the one mentioned by Frontinus, and to
have been made after his time. This last branch seems to be the same as
the Aqua Antoniniana of the Regionary Catalogue, having been made in the
third century to supply the great Thermæ of the Antonines. In the Middle
Ages, this was considered to have been a branch of the Aqua Marcia; but
if this had been the case, there must have been some remains of the
arcade for it across the valley.
[40] This branch is believed to have been called AQUA ANTONINIANA, as it
conveyed water to supply the great Thermæ of the Antonines, called after
Antoninus Caracalla. But it seems doubtful whether it may not be the
SEVERIANA, which conveyed water to the Thermæ of Septimius Severus. There
appear to have been two aqueducts along this point of the Via Latina at
different levels, and the higher one, passing over the Arch of Drusus, is
said to have been a branch from the Marcia.
[41] Frontinus, c. 21. On the subject of the word _Spes_ (?) or _Specus_
(?), see the Appendix to this Chapter.
[42]
ANI_o_
IMP . CAESAR
DIVI . F . AVGVST . EX . SC
VII PCCXL
_i_MP . CAESAR
DIVI . F . AVGVST . EX . SC
VI_i_ PCCXL
C
[43] “Descrizione del luogo denominato anticamente Speranza Vecchia, del
monumento delle Acque Claudia ed Aniene Nuova, e del Sepolcro di Marco
Virgilio Eurisace, dell’ architetto cav. Luigi Canina.” 8vo., Roma, 1839,
with six Plates; extracted from the Annali dell’ Instituto Archeologico.
[44] There are two other temples known to have been dedicated to Spes,
and the one near the Porta Carmentalis is thus entered in the _Notitia_
and _Curiosum Urbis_: “Fortunæ et Spei Templa _Nova_.” We know that
there had been a great fire here, and that these temples were rebuilt,
and therefore the _Nova_ has reference only to the new structure.
Besides, to be analogous, it should have been “Spes Nova,” or “Templum
Spei Novæ.” According to Dionysius, another Temple of Spes was a mile
or eight _stadia from the City_. (Dion. Hal., ix. 24.) “Having in the
first battle, which was fought at the distance of eight stadia from
_the City_, near the temple of Hope, overcome the enemy and beaten them
out of the field, and after that fought them again near the gate called
Collina,” &c. The Porta Maggiore, in the outer wall of _enceinte_, is
just a mile from the Porta Esquilina, in the inner wall of _the City_,
and the Arch of Gallienus. On the other hand, the line of the _specus_,
with the foss-way by the side of it, must have been important ground for
a battle. The modern theory that the whole of the eastern side of Rome
was called after Spes, has no ancient authority. Another instance is on
all accounts very puzzling. It is a passage in Lampridius, in the life
of Heliogabalus: “Ipse secessit ad hortos Spei Veteris, quasi contra
novum juvenem.” (Lampridius, Antoninus Heliogabalus, 13.) It would almost
appear that there were some gardens called by the name of Spes, unless
indeed in transcribing some such error should have been made as in the
case of the transcriber of Frontinus, and “Spei” written for “Specus,” by
a scribe to whom the former word was familiar but the latter not, who had
mistaken _Spc̄_ for _Spē_. It is a strong passage in favour of the temple
theory; but still there is strong evidence on the other side. This garden
was that of the Sessorium, one side of which was enclosed by the arcade
carrying the _specus_ of the Claudian aqueduct.
[45] The seven places where the abbreviation of _spem_ or _specum_ occurs
in Frontinus are given in another page, with tracings of these passages
from the best manuscript.
[46] Polenus and Buecheler have demonstrated that the Codex Cassinensis
is the earliest and best. It was discovered at Monte Cassino by Poggio
in the fourteenth century. The Codex Vaticanus is a copy of the above;
but the Codex Urbinas, though of later date, is not a copy from that
manuscript. Probably both are copies from an earlier one, not now extant.
Some of the various readings in the Codex Urbinas are better than those
of the Codex Cassinensis. See the edition of Frontinus by Polenus,
Prolegomena, p. 20. Patavii, 1722, 4to.
[47] Other excavations, made in 1871 in the large vineyard near the Porta
Maggiore, near the building called Minerva Medica, shewed the aqueducts
very distinctly passing through the higher ground and going along the
line of the wall towards the Porta di S. Lorenzo.
[48] Frontinus, c. 87.
[49] Piranesi, Le Antichità Romane, vol. i. pl. x.
[50] I am indebted to the kindness of the abbot of the monastery at
Monte Cassino, for the tracings of these passages here reproduced by the
process of photo-engraving.
[51] The manuscript called _Codex Urbinas_ reads, _jungitur ei ad
anionem veterem_. In the present instance, the true reading is evidently
_specum_. Frontinus is describing the Aqua Appia, the oldest of the
aqueducts, and the junction of the Augusta with the old _specus_. This
could have nothing to do with the Anio Vetus.
[52] _ascus_ (?): Buecheler reads this _ad spem_.
[53] The Torquatian Gardens were near the Porta Maggiore, and probably
the same as those of the Sessorium, now those of Santa Croce in
Gerusalemme.
[54] Canina published a volume on what he considered to be the Temple
of Spes, by the side of the Porta Maggiore (as before mentioned); but
a few years afterwards those ruins were pulled down to make room for a
modern guard-house. In doing so, the inscription of the dedication to
HERCULES was found by the architect, Felice Cicconetti, and sent to the
Vatican Museum. This statement was made to me some years since by Signor
Cicconetti himself, and was confirmed by his friend, Signor Simelli, the
photographer, who said he had seen it.
The fact is now denied by the Roman archæologists, and when challenged by
the Cavaliere Visconti to shew him the inscription in the Vatican Museum,
they say they cannot now remember anything about it; and the stone with
the inscription upon it has not been found. It is printed by Dr. Henzen
in his collection of Inscriptions as _then_ in the warehouse of the
Vatican Museum; but he considers it to have belonged to a wayside altar
only, not to a temple.
The twin reservoirs are very near the same spot; but the place where
the Aqua Appia enters Rome is in the gardens of the Sessorium, some
distance from the gate, to the east of it. An old _specus_ certainly
runs along the Cœlian Hill, nearly under the Neronian Arcade, and part
of it is now used for the Aqua Felice. I have been along it for more
than a quarter of a mile, from near the Porta Maggiore to the Lateran.
The Aqua Felice is carried down a sharp incline into that old _specus_,
and the metal pipes on the slope are still supported on brickwork of the
first century, probably part of the Marcian Arcade, when rebuilt in that
part by Frontinus. The old _specus_ runs on (or ran on, it is said to be
now interrupted,) to the reservoir on the Cœlian Hill, at the Arch of
Dolabella.
That a part of the eastern side of Rome went by the name of _Spes
Vetus_, is said to be proved by a curious graffito upon the bottom of an
amphora, found in 1871 in the excavations in the Exquiliæ, near the Porta
Maggiore, of a cobbler’s stall, in that district:—
TYCHICI
SVTORIS
A. SPEM VE
TERE.
This piece of _terra-cotta_ is of the first century of the Roman Empire;
but _at what period_ the name and address of the cobbler was scratched
upon it, is a question not so easily answered.
[55] The Aqua Claudia and Anio Novus enter Rome at the extreme eastern
point on a lofty arcade, which formed the northern boundary of the
Sessorian gardens, and was incorporated in the Wall of Aurelian. This
extends for about a quarter of a mile; it then turns at a sharp angle to
the north, and passes over the Porta Maggiore, to its final reservoir
in a tower at an angle to the north of that gate. But part of the water
of the Claudia and the Anio Novus united, was carried straight on along
the bank on which the arches of Nero stand, to the Cœlian Hill and the
reservoirs at the west end of it. The temple, called by Canina _Spes_,
stood near the angle where the water was divided into two distinct
channels, between that point and the Porta Maggiore.
[56] The name of _Porta Esquilina_ is here given to the Porta Maggiore,
the outer gate on the road to the Esquiline. The same name was also given
to the inner gate in the _agger_ of Servius Tullius; but there must
always have been an outer gate also in the outer _mœnia_, or bank and
wall for enclosure, which was a necessary part of every fortified city.
(The same name, _Porta Angelica_, is still given to both the inner and
the outer gate of the Leonine City, near the Vatican.) The high streams
were carried on this bank to the Porta Viminalis of Frontinus, now
called the _Porta di S. Lorenzo_. The remains of these three aqueducts
can be plainly seen on entering through the city wall close to the Porta
Maggiore, on the north side, and going along on this bank to the Porta
di S. Lorenzo. The _specus_ is visible at both ends, carried on arches.
In the middle the ground is higher, and the _specus_ pass through it
underground, and then emerge and are carried again upon arches, exactly
as described by Frontinus. The Aqua Felice is carried _over_ the three
aqueducts of the Marcian arcade; it is on arches twenty feet from the
ground at each end, and in the middle, where these three are underground.
The lower part of the _specus_ of the Aqua Felice almost touches the
ground, while the other three are underground.
[57] The _gemelli_ are, in all probability, the large twin reservoirs
just outside the western wall of the Sessorium, now in a large vineyard
near the Porta Maggiore, through which the Neronian arches pass. These
reservoirs are below the level of the _specus_ of the Anio Vetus, as was
shewn by some excavations made in them under my direction in 1869.
[58] Some of the water had been thrown into the old _specus_ at the
junction of the Claudian with the Neronian arches.
[59] There are remains of more than one _specus_ crossing the valley
from the Cœlian to the Aventine upon the _agger_ of Servius Tullius, and
passing over the Porta Capena at the foot of the Cœlian. One of these
was the Marcia, from the reservoir over the Arch of Dolabella, which is
near the site of the Claudium and Temple of Claudius. There were great
reservoirs for the aqueducts at this point on different levels; one of
them underground is still in use, the remains of the others are among the
most picturesque objects in Rome. This passage cannot apply to the temple
of Hope, which is full a mile away from the Aventine.
[60] “Quum hæc accepta clades esset, jam C. Horatius et T. Menenius
consules erant. Menenius adversus Tuscos, victoria elatos, confestim
missus. Tum quoque male pugnatum est, et Janiculum hostes occupavere:
obsessaque urbs foret, super bellum annona premente, (transierant enim
Etrusci Tiberim) ni Horatius consul e Volscis esset revocatus: adeoque id
bellum ipsis institit mœnibus, ut primo pugnatum ad Spei sit æquo Marte,
iterum ad Portam Collinam. Ibi quanquam parvo momento superior Romana res
fuit, meliorem tamen militem, recepto pristino animo, in futura prœlia id
certamen fecit.” (Livii Hist., lib. ii. c. 51.)
[61] “Romæ fœdum incendium per duas noctes ac diem unum tenuit: solo
æquata omnia inter Salinas ac Portam Carmentalem cum Æquimælio Jugarioque
vico. In templo Fortunæ ac matris Matutæ et Spei extra portam late vagans
ignis, sacra profanaque multa absumpsit.” (Ibid., lib. xxiv. c. 47.)
[62] “Comitia deinde a prætore urbano de senatus sententia plebisque
scito sunt habita: quibus creati sunt quinqueviri muris turribusque
reficiendis: et triumviri bini; uni sacris conquirendis donisque
persignandis; alteri reficiendis ædibus Fortunæ et matris Matutæ intra
Portam Carmentalem, sed et Spei extra portam, quæ priore anno incendio
consumptæ fuerant.” (Livii Hist., lib. xxv. c. 7.)
[63] “Theatrum et proscenium ad Apollinis, ædem Jovis in Capitolio,
columnasque circa poliendas albo locavit: et ab his columnis, quæ
incommode opposita videbantur, signa amovit: clipeaque de columnis, et
signa militaria affixa omnis generis dempsit. M. Fulvius plura et majoris
locavit usus: portum et pilas pontis in Tiberim; quibus pilis fornices
post aliquot annos P. Scipio Africanus et L. Mummius censores locaverunt
imponendos; basilicam post argentarias novas et forum piscatorium,
circumdatis tabernis, quas vendidit in privatum; et forum, et porticum
extra Portam Trigeminam, et aliam post navalia, et ad fanum Herculis, et
post Spei ad Tiberim ædem Apollinis Medici.” (Ibid., lib. xl. c. 51.)
[64] “Sive autem medii montes erunt inter mœnia et caput fontis, sic erit
faciendum, uti specus fodiantur sub terra librenturque ad fastigium,” &c.
(Vitruv., _De Architectura_, lib. viii. c. 6. § 3.)
[65] “Alexandria est fere tota suffossa, specusque habet ad Nilum
pertinentes, quibus aqua in privatas domos inducitur.” (Aulus Hirtius,
_De Bello Cæsaris Alexandrino_, cap. 4.)
[66] Frontinus, lib. i. c. 7. He also quotes from Fenestella concerning
the delays which occurred, and speaks of the Decemvirs consulting the
Sybilline books, and being supposed to have found that it was not the
Marcian but rather the Anio which should be brought into the Capitol:
(“Invenisse dicuntur, non esse aquam Marciam, sed potius Anionem in
Capitolium perducendam.”) Eventually, however, Marcius prevailed, and his
plan was carried out.
Pliny also refers to the work of Marcius: “Sed dicantur vera æstimatione
invicta miracula; Q. Marcius Rex jussus a senatu aquarum Appiæ, Anienis,
Tepulæ _ductus reficere_, novam a nomine suo appellatam cuniculis per
montes actis intra præturæ suæ tempus adduxit.” (Nat. Hist., lib. xxxvi.
c. 121; see also further details in Plin., xxxi. 41, and ibid.)
[67] “Qui lapide quadrato ampliores ductus excitavit, perque illos aquam
quam acquisiverit rei publicæ commodo, trium millium opera fabrorum duxit
cui ab auctore,” &c. These words are wanting in the best manuscript,
that of Monte Cassino. In place of them we have “( ... priores ductus
restituit et tertiam illam aquarum in urbem perduxit) cui ab auctore,”
&c. This does not agree with the opinion of the learned, that the Urbinas
Manuscript is a copy of the one at Monte Cassino, unless great liberties
were taken with it. The fact that the arcade with the _specus_ of the
aqueduct is always built of large squared stones, is strongly in favour
of the Codex Urbinas. It is also certain from the nature of the work,
that a large number of men must have been employed upon it. This passage
seems to have been omitted in the Codex Cassinensis, which is a proof
that the Codex Urbinas is not a _copy_ from it. Dederich, p. 15, suggests
after “commodo,” the words “trium millium opera fabrorum.”
[68] Frontinus, lib. i. c. 7.
Frontinus states in another chapter (c. 12) that Augustus brought
underground another stream, which should be supplementary to the Marcian
whenever the dryness of the season rendered extra supply necessary. It
was called from the name of the contriver, Augusta, and had its rise
above the spring of the Marcian. This additional _ductus_, or Specus
Augusta, was 800 paces long.
[69] Frontinus, c. 18.
[70] “Salientibus aquis instruxit urbem.” Ibid., c. 9.
[71] Ibid., c. 87.
[72] Ibid., c. 8.
[73] Ibid.
[74] Ibid., c. 9.
[75] Ibid.
[76] Frontinus, c. 19.
[77] ‘The three aqueducts’ in this passage may mean either the Anio
Vetus, the Marcia, and the Claudia, all of which come from the
neighbourhood of Subiaco, and follow the same line on the bank of the
river Anio, and the cliffs above it as far as Tivoli, but diverge
considerably between Tivoli and the Piscinæ; or it may mean that the
Tepula and the Julia coming from near Marino, and the Marcia coming from
Tivoli, meet at this point—both are true. The _piscinæ_ of the Claudia,
the Anio Novus, the Marcia, the Tepula, the Julia, are all within
half-a-mile of each other.
[78] Dr. F. Gori says that the lake of S. Lucia, in the territory of
Arsoli, near Subiaco, is _not_ the source of the Aqua Marcia, but of the
Aqua Claudia only, and that the sources of the Aqua Marcia are nearer to
Subiaco, and are called by the people _Acque Serene_. He also considers
that the branch of the Aqua Augusta added to the Marcian by Augustus, now
called _Le Rosoline_, comes from near the village of Agosta, and that the
spring, now called _La Fonte_ (_Fons novus Antoninianus_), added to the
Marcian by Antoninus Caracalla, is under the same village of Agosta. One
of the inscriptions on the Porta S. Lorenzo records this. See Delle varie
Sorgenti dell’ Acqua Marcia, &c., pp. 56, 57.
[79] The new company had at first proposed to draw their chief supply
of water from the small lake called the Lago di S. Lucia, which is
nearer to Rome, and which they had been misinformed was the Aqua Marcia.
Dr. Fabio Gori, from his great local knowledge and his archæological
researches, was able to shew that this was a mistake, and wrote to that
effect a letter in the Roman newspaper called the _Osservatore Romano_.
This letter at first gave great offence, and a very warm controversy was
carried on for some time on that subject. Eventually, however, a new
engineer of the company thought it better to examine the ground himself,
and the result was to establish that Gori’s views were perfectly correct.
He then became a warm advocate for the company, which he thinks entitled
to great praise for the admirable manner in which its works in the valley
of the Anio have been carried out as far as Tivoli. Their works almost
equal those of the time of the Empire, and are carried out on the same
principles; but from Tivoli to Rome the water is carried in metal pipes,
and not in a stone _specus_ as it is above Tivoli. This enables the
company to carry it in a more direct line.
[80] See the Appendix to this Section.
[81] A great deal too much importance has been attached to this Cyclopean
Masonry, _Opus Cyclopæum_. See the Chapter on the Construction of Walls.
[82] It is probably the case that part of this supply was brought in
metal pipes only, from the evidence of this inscription. A stone _specus_
passes under the wall on the bank round three sides of the camp on the
exterior of the walls, and is plainly visible at the north-east corner;
but this agrees with the general character of the Anio Vetus, and was
probably a branch from that aqueduct.
The inscription is as follows:—
IMP. CAES. M. OPELLI . SEVERI . MACRINI
. AVG
M. OPELLI . SEVERI . DIADVMENIANI .
CAES. PRINC. IV
CASTRIS . PRAETORI
TERENTIVS . CASSANDER . FECIT
[83] “[Honorius, Papa III.] Ecclesiam Sanctæ Bibianæ juxta formas aquæ
Martiæ cum Monasterio Monialium restituit.” (Ciaconi, Vitæ Pontif.
Roman., &c., vol. ii. col. 46, C.)
[84] An inscription recording repairs by Agrippa is said by Ligorio to
have been found on a _cippus_ of travertine at the third mile on the
Via Latina. The genuineness of this is doubted by Fabretti, because the
number of miles does not agree; but it seems more probable that this was
an error in transcribing, than that the inscription should be forged
without any motive for doing so:—
AQVAE . IVLIAE . TEPVLAE.
IMP. CAES. DIVI . IVLI . F.
AVGVSTVS . PONTIF.
MAX. COS. X̅I̅I̅. TRIB. POT.
X̅I̅X̅. IMP. X̅I̅I̅I̅. CVRANTE
M. VIPSAN . AGRIPPA .
AEDIL . CVRVL . L. C. C.
P. MILL. X.
Another inscription, also recording repairs of the time of Augustus, was
found by Fabretti himself, in the Vinea Bartholomæi Virginii, two miles
from the Porta Maggiore, between the ruins of the arcades of the Marcian
and Claudian, and was preserved in a private museum:
IVL. TEP. MAR.
IMP. CAESAR.
DIVI . F.
AVGVSTVS.
EX. S. C.
LXIII.
P. CCXI.
[85] _Marrana_ is a general name for a running stream in the Campagna
round Rome, probably a provincial word; but it is also the special name
of this particular stream coming from Marino.
[86] “Tepula concipitur via Latina ad decimum milliarium, diverticulo
euntibus ab Roma dextrorsus millium passuum duum ... inde suo rivo in
urbem perducebatur.” (Frontinus, c. 8.)
[87] It is the building pointed out in guide-books as “The House of
Cicero,” although there does not appear to be any historical ground for
this name.
[88] “... ad milliarium ab urbe duo-decimum via Latina, _diverticulo_
euntibus ab Roma dextrorsus millium passuum duum alterius aquæ proprias
vires collegit et Tepulæ rivum intercepit. Acquisitæ aquæ ab inventore
nomen Juliæ datum est, ita tamen divisa erogatione, ut maneret Tepulæ
appellatio.”—(Frontinus, c. 9.)
[89] “Præter caput Juliæ transfluit aqua quæ vocatur Crabra. Hanc Agrippa
omisit.”—(Frontinus, c. 9.)
[90] Pag. clxxxii. 8, “In tubulo plumbeo reperto ad portam S. Laurentii,”—
P. CORNELIO . DOLABELLA . C . IVN . SILANO . COS—AQVA . MAR
[91] Gruter, pag. clxxxiii. 4,—
Q. AQVILLIO . SABINO . II.
SEX . AVR . ANVLLINO
CASTR . PRÆT . L. VRBIS . OFF . PED .
COS . CCCLXXXIII.
AQVA . MARC
[92]
HAC RIVI AQVAR
TRIVM EVNT CIPPI
POSITI IVSSV
A. DIDI. GALLI
T. RVBRI. NEPOTIS
M. CORNELI FIRMI
CVRATORVM AQVAR
[93] Frontinus, c. 10.
[94] “Concipitur Virgo via Collatia ad milliarium octavum palustribus
locis, _signino circumjecto_ continendarum scaturiginum causâ.”
_Signinum_ is the particular kind of cement to hold water, always used
to line the walls of the Aqueducts. It was not used after the time of
the Empire, and the art of making it is said to be lost. It is the usual
characteristic of the remains of an aqueduct.
[95] Frontinus, c. 10.
[96] Ibid., c. 22.
[97] This water is now usually called Acqua di Trevi, because its
terminus is at the great fountain of Trevi. The sources are in the
estate of Salone, as above described. It is still in use, and was long
considered as the best water brought into Rome. The line now used is
the one repaired and restored by the Popes; but, near Rome, it has been
altered, probably after it had been damaged by the Goths or the Lombards.
The old _specus_ passed through the Catacomb of S. Priscilla, in the Via
Salaria, where it may be seen. This is demonstrated by the _cippus_ of
the aqueduct of Virgo, discovered in the Via Salaria, and so recorded by
Muratori, Thes. Vet. Inscr., ccccxlii. 7, “Romæ in Via Salaria:”—
VIRG.
TI . CÆSAR . AVG.
PONTIF . MAXIM.
TRIB. POT. XXXVIII.
COS . V̅. IMP. V̅I̅I̅I̅.
I.
P. CXL.
This inscription is A.D. 36.
It was then brought to the bank or _mœnia_ on which the wall of Aurelian
was afterwards built near the Porta Salaria, and may be traced upon or in
that bank under the present wall of Rome for about a mile. For a short
distance, where this ground is low, it was carried on an arcade, of which
there are remains under the wall built upon it. After this it goes on as
far as the garden of the Villa Borghese and the French Academy, under
which it now passes through the Pincian Hill.
[98]
TI . CLAVDIVS . DRVSI . F. AVG. GERMAN. PONT.
MAX. TRIBVNIC. POT. V. IMP. IX. P.P. COS. III.
DESIG. IIII. ARCVS . DVCTVS . AQVÆ . VIRGI
NIS . DISTVRBATOS . PER . C. CÆSAREM . A. FVN
DAMENTIS . NOVOS . FECIT . AC . RESTITVIT
This inscription was erected A.D. 46.
[99] There are remains of the Septa in the cellars under the houses on
the west side of the Corso, in its lower part. These remains of the
arcade are now chiefly underground, owing to the filling up of the great
foss, called in this part Via Lata, because the wide foss under part of
the Quirinal and of the Capitol had at one time been made into a wide
street or place, on the eastern side of which is situated the Church of
the “SS. Apostoli in Via Lata” and that of S. Maria in Via Lata on the
western side, at the north-west corner. The great public building called
the Septa went down the western side of this wide place from S. Maria to
the Venetian Palace, with an arcade towards the street or place, of which
many of the arches remain in the cellars. These arches under the church
of S. Maria are absurdly called the house of S. Paul. They are visible
also under the Palazzo Doria to the south of that church, and in other
cellars.
[100] “Idem et Virginem adduxit ab octavi lapidis diverticulo duobus
millibus pass. Prænestina Via.
“Juxta est Herculaneus rivus quem refugiens Virginis nomen obtinuit.”
(Plinii Nat. Hist., lib. xxxi. c. iii. § 25.)
[101] Of this stream and its introduction into Rome in the twelfth
century, an account will be found in the second part of this chapter.
Frontinus, c. 15 and 19.
[102] Frontinus, c. 11.
[103] Ibid., c. 18.
[104] Ibid., c. 71.
[105] The draining of the lakes in the hills round Rome is a great
mistake, and very injurious to the health of the city. Such lakes are a
wise provision of nature for collecting some of the surplus water in the
rainy season, and preserving it for use in the hot and dry season, when
the evaporation from the lakes helps to cool the air. The water also
drawn from these lakes was most useful for the irrigation of the country
round Rome, and watering the gardens in Rome itself, thereby promoting
vegetation, which is essential for health in a hot and dry climate. It
is well known that the leaves of plants and trees (more especially of
deciduous trees) absorb _nitrogen_, which is the part injurious to human
life, and give out _oxygen_, that portion which is beneficial to, and
necessary for, human life. Where there is no vegetation, therefore, the
climate cannot be healthy, and without water there can be no vegetation;
for water is the necessary food of plants.
[106] The line of this subterranean aqueduct can also be traced by the
wells descending into the _specus_, in the same manner as the Aqua Appia
was traced in 1870, that is, by the bushes growing at the top of each of
the wells, and generally enclosed by a wooden railing to prevent animals
from falling into them.
[107] The rock in which the tunnel is cut is a sort of peperino, hard and
rough, covered with a bed of clay.
[108] This lake, called Sabatina in the time of Frontinus, was called
Anguillara in the Middle Ages, and is now called Bracciano, in both cases
from the names of the proprietors. The great family of Anguillara had
their origin from this village, of which they were the proprietors, and
where they had a castle on the bank of the lake. The present proprietors
are the Dukes of Bracciano. The lake produces a great abundance of fish,
especially a small fish much resembling the white-bait of London, at
least when cooked.
[109] There is a small construction over this flood-gate, and at the back
of it is this inscription:—
ACQVA PAOLA
ALLA PRESA DELL’ ACQVA
ALSEATINA
[110] There are interesting remains of the Necropolis of this ancient
city close to the fountain before mentioned, on each side of a deep
ravine. On one side, there are nine chambers cut out of the rock on the
edge of the cliff, the entrance being in the central chamber, with four
others on either side of it. All are full of small square _columbaria_,
of very early character. On the opposite side of the ravine, is a similar
series of tombs, but in a less perfect state.
[111] There is _Opus Reticulatum_ of rude and early character (more like
the _Opus Incertum_ of the Emporium than the mausoleum of Augustus) at
the entrance of this passage, which is mentioned by Nibby. There is a
stone-quarry also at the entrance, of the hard, dark-coloured stone used
for making roads, and excellent for that purpose. This is the same stone
that is called _selce_ or _silex_ in Rome, and seems to be similar to
the hard lava under which Herculaneum is buried, and of which there are
quarries near the tomb of Cecilia Metella.
[112] The persons employed by Mr. Parker went down to the bottom of this
steep tunnel-passage to ascertain this.
[113] Nibby, Analisi storico-topografico-antiquaria della carta de’
Dintorni di Roma, tom. i. Roma, 1837, 8vo. art. _Alsietina_.
[114] Cassio, Corso delle Acque, vol. i. p. 147.
[115] Nibby considers this a mistake, and is of opinion that the water
was the Sabatina, not the Alsietina; but the mistake is made by Nibby
himself, not by the engineers of Pope Paul, who certainly brought the
water from the Lacus Alsietina and the other small lake above it (as
mentioned on p. 50). By the draining of these lakes, the aqueduct is
_now_ made to depend on the Lacus Alsietina only. The sources of the
Alsietina are very different from those of the Sabatina. The former
was taken by Augustus from the lake Alsietinus, now called Lago di
Martignano, and the latter by Trajan from the sources between the lake
Sabatinus and the villages of Vicarello, Bassano, and Oriolo. The
Alsietina was at the lowest level of all the aqueducts, and the Sabatina
at the highest. The first _specus_ was for the most part subterranean,
and the other was carried upon arcades for part of its course.
[116] By the more usually received computation, the second year of
Caligula would be A.U.C. 791; and the year of the consulship of Sulla and
Titian, A.U.C. 805.
[117] It surpassed all the others _in quantity_, and being the highest,
was used to supply the others when the water fell short; but the water
was not so good for drinking.
[118] Frontinus, c. 13.
[119] That is, higher than any other aqueduct.
[120] Frontinus, c. 20.
[121] The road to Subiaco.
[122] Frontinus, c. 14.
[123] Ibid.
[124] Ibid.
[125] Ibid., c. 18.
[126] _In Subruino_ is the reading given in the text by Dederich. _In suo
rivo_ is the reading adopted by Polenus, Jocundus, and other editors. A
third reading has been suggested, “In Simbrivio,” or in Simbruino, that
is, referring to the Simbruine hills. This is the reading of Buecheler
(1868), who follows verbatim the manuscript of Monte Cassino. The
reading, however, bears little upon the evidence.
[127] _Herculaneus Rivus._ This is not the same _Herculaneus Rivus_ as
the one mentioned by Frontinus in connection with the Anio Vetus, in ch.
19. The same name is given in these places to different streams, all
strong and rapid.
[128] Frontinus, c. 15.
[129] Ibid., c. 93.
[130] Ibid., c. 91.
[131] Frontinus, c. 76.
[132] “At ex alia parte Anio in monte Trebanorum ortus lacus tres
amœnitate nobiles, qui nomen dedere Sublaqueo defert in Tiberim.” (Plinii
Nat. Hist., iii. 109.)
[133] The inhabitants of Filettino probably belonged to the tribe of the
Trebani, or of Trebula, who were located in the neighbourhood of Trevi,
where was a Roman colony and principality. Inscriptions giving the names
and titles of Augustus, Septimius Severus, and Commodus, were found here,
and are published by Signor Gori in his Trattato dell’ Acqua Marcia, &c.,
12mo., 1866, p. 37. Another inscription at Anagni, on the front of the
Governor’s palace, gives the name of Publius Vecellius, curator of the
Republic of the Trebani.
Martial mentions the Treba Augusta of Frontinus, under the name of
Trebula:
“Trebula nos genuit, commendat gratia duplex Sive levi flamma, sive
domamur aqua.” (Lib. v. epigr. 65, and lib. xiii. epigr. 33.)
Livy also mentions it: “Eodem anno Arpinatibus Trebulanisque civitas
data.” (Livii Hist., x. 1.)
[134] IMP CAESARIS NERVAE TRAIA(_ni_) ... OP(T)IMI AVG GERMANIC DACICI.
[135] “Lacus monasterii ad nihilum redactus, quia duo monachi levaverunt
duo lapides, qui fuerunt firmati cum aliis petris; et sic aqua
destruxit.” (Chronicon Sublacense, apud Muratori, Rer. Ital. Script.,
tom. xxiv. col. 962, D.) The author of this Chronicle was living in the
year 1390.
[136] Gruter, Inscriptiones, p. clv. 4.
[137] Probably the text of Frontinus here is corrupt, because the Piscina
Limaria and the _specus_ of Claudius are at the forty-sixth mile on
the Via Sublacensis, “ad milliarium quadragesimum _secundum_,” for “Ad
milliarium quadragesimum _sextum_.”
[138] Dr. Fabio Gori, who is a native of Subiaco, claims the credit of
being the first person to point out what this great work of Trajan really
was. He also states that the Rivus Herculaneus, rising at thirty-eight
miles on the Via Sublacensis, must have been a clear stream, which he
finds on the left side of the river, opposite to the lake of S. Lucia and
to this source of the aqueduct of the Claudia, called Acqua dell’ Arco,
or water of the aqueduct.
[139] Frontinus, c. 72.
[140] The _piscina_ made in one of the towers in the wall at the point
where it enters Rome, has the four chambers visible, the inner wall of
the tower having been destroyed.
[141] Inscriptions on the Porta Maggiore:—
TI . CLAVDIVS DRVSI F. CAISAR AVGVSTVS
GERMANICVS PONTIF MAXIM
TRIBVNICIA POTESTATE X̅I̅I̅. COS. V.
IMPERATOR X̅X̅V̅I̅I̅. PATER PATRIÆ
AQVAS . CLAVDIAM EX FONTIBVS . QVI
VOCABANTVR CAERVLEVS ET CVRTIVS
. A MILLIARIO X̅X̅X̅X̅V̅.
ITEM ANIENEM NOVAM A. MILLIARIO
L̅X̅I̅I̅. SVA IMPENSA IN VRBEM PERDVCENDAS
CVRAVIT.
IMP . CAESAR . VESPASIANVS AVGVST .
PONTIF . MAX . TRIB. POT. I̅I̅. IMP.
V̅I̅. COS. I̅I̅I̅. DESIG. I̅I̅I̅I̅. P.P
AQVAS CVRTIAM ET CAERVLEAM PERDVCTAS
A DIVO CLAVDIO . ET POSTEA
INTERMISSAS DILAPSASQVE
PER ANNOS NOVEM . SVA IMPENSA
VRBI RESTITVIT.
IMP . T. CAESAR DIVI F. VESPASIANVS
AVGVSTVS PONTIFEX MAXIMVS . TRIBVNIC
POTESTATE X. IMPERATOR X̅V̅I̅I̅. PATER
PATRIAE . CENSOR . COS . V̅I̅I̅I̅.
AQVAS CVRTIAM ET CAERVLEAM PERDVCTAS
A DIVO CLAVDIO ET POSTEA
A DIVO VESPASIANO PATRE SVO VRBI
RESTITVTAS . CVM A CAPITE AQVARVM
A SOLO VETVSTATE DILAPSAE
ESSENT . NOVA FORMA REDVCENDAS
SVA IMPENSA CVARVIT. (Orelli, vol.
i. p. 77, Nos. 54-56.)
These inscriptions shew that considerable repairs were made by Vespasian
and Titus to the Claudian aqueducts; and these repairs were continued by
their successors, Nerva, Trajan, and Hadrian. Many parts and branches
belong to the time of these Emperors.
[142] Vide “Delle vere Sorgenti dell’ Acqua Marcia,” &c., “trattato di
Fabio Gori.” Roma, 1866. An admirable map shewing the sources and the
line of each of the Aqueducts, has been made for me under the direction
of the author.
[143] Frontinus (c. 15) gives the length of the _specus_ of the Anio
Novus as 58 miles and 700 _passus_; add to this the length of the Piscina
Limaria and of the three lakes, and we have the distance of 62 miles from
Rome for this aqueduct.
[144] “Qui colles, (mons Cœlius et Aventinus,) priusquam Claudia
perduceretur, utebantur Marcia et Julia. Sed postquam Nero Imperator
Claudiam, opere arcuato altius exceptam, usque ad templum Divi Claudii
perduxit, ut inde distribueretur, priores non ampliatæ, sed omissæ sunt:
nulla enim castella adjecit, sed iisdem usus est, quorum, quamvis mutata
aqua, vetus appellatio permansit.” (Frontinus, c. 76)
[145] The large square part of the Cœlian Hill, with scarped cliffs
round three sides of it and part of the fourth, which had probably been
originally the _arx_ or citadel of the Cœlian when that was a separate
fortress, and on which Claudius erected some great public building with a
temple, is marked on the modern maps of Rome as a _castellum aquæ_: this
is an exaggeration. A _specus_ runs along the western side opposite to
the Palatine in the wall, and goes straight towards the Colosseum, and
there are remains of a piscina of the first century at the north-west
corner of the Claudium, near the Colosseum, and the Meta Sudans; but this
is at a low level, and does not agree with there being a large reservoir
under the whole of that space.
[146] Frontinus did not live to see this completed.
[147] Cap. 86, 91, 92, and 105.
[148] These are at present almost hid by modern houses built up against
them, but it is expected that these modern erections will shortly be
removed. The remains of the bridge project at a right angle from the
palace of Domitian. It had the aqueduct at the top at a very high level,
and a road for horses by the side of it at a lower level, as at the Ponte
Lupo, Ponte S. Antonio, and other bridges of the aqueducts.
[149] These imperial “Edicts” or “Decrees,” or Laws and Constitutions,
have been published in various works. The later ones relating to this
subject are published by Polenus, in the Appendix to his edition of
Frontinus, 4to. Pataviæ, 1722; and by Rondelet, as a supplement to
Frontinus, who had published those issued up to his time. See Commentaire
de Frontin sur les aqueducs de Rome, 2 parts, 4to. and atlas folio,
Paris, 1802; and Rondelet, Opere, 6 vols. 4to. Mantova, 1841, tom. vi. p.
117, &c.
[150] This water was celebrated for its coolness, as mentioned in the
life of Alexander Severus by Lampridius, c. 30.
[151] The new company for bringing these springs into Rome again, under
the name of the Aqua Marcia-Pia, has been obliged to make compensation
to the town of Tivoli for the possible injury to the manufactories
established there, which depend upon the force of the water, although
the damage was in a great degree imaginary. This new aqueduct brings the
water of the Marcia only. The water is nearly of the same quality as
that of the Claudia, and is still found as cool as it was in the time of
the early Empire, notwithstanding that it is brought into Rome in metal
pipes for the last ten miles. A number of shops for the sale of this
cool water have been opened in different parts of Rome. Nature never
changes, and the same qualities of particular springs which prevailed
two thousand years ago, prevail still. It is said by persons who have
witnessed the experiment tried, that in the hot summer weather of Italy,
when the thermometer of Fahrenheit stands above 100, the contrast between
the heat of the air and the coldness of the water is so great that if a
glass tumbler is suddenly put into the water near its source, the glass
will break in the same manner as a glass tumbler will break in England if
boiling water is poured into it in frosty weather.
[152]
In the above the _m_ = to the Roman mile = 1,000 Roman
passus.
_p_ = to the Roman passus = 5 Roman feet.
The Roman mile (_mille passus_) = 1,618 English yards.
The Roman passus = 4 English feet 10·428 inches.
The Roman foot = 11·6496 English inches.
[153] The Roman foot was nearly as long as our own, being, according to
the most accurate estimate, about 11½ English inches (11.6496).
[154] Frontinus, c. 24.
[155] Dederich reads “unciæ in popularibus rationibus adhuc observantur,”
which seems better. The _uncia_ was an Italian, the _digitus_ a Greek
measure.
[156] It is evident from his making the square of the diameter ³⁄₁₄
greater than the area of the circle drawn upon the same diameter, that he
takes the ratio of the area to the diameter as ¹¹⁄₁₄ to diameter 1. This
is very near to the truth. The converse as given by him also agrees, as
is seen by ¹¹⁄₁₄ + ³⁄₁₁ of ¹¹⁄₁₄ = 1.
[157] Frontinus, c. 65.
[158] It is of little consequence, but perhaps it may be interesting to
know more accurately the result of the calculation. If we take 1.25 as
the diameter of the quinary, and multiply the square of this by 0.7854
(the corrected ratio), we obtain the result in square digits, 1.22718.
This multiplied by the 1825 gives 2239.6, that is, the result within one
digit as given by Frontinus.
[159] An Anglo-Roman company has now (1872) brought the Aqua Marcia
(III.) again into Rome at so high a level, that it will supply cisterns
at the tops of the houses. At present a number of ingenious contrivances
are in use for sliding small buckets of water from the well or reservoir
in the courtyard, to the upper windows and galleries round the central
courts of the old houses or palaces. These reservoirs, whether large or
small, are called _lacus_ by Frontinus and in the Regionary Catalogue.
[160] The expression _reddita_ would imply that originally the Marcian
had supplied the Aventine, and that, it having been superseded by the
Claudian, it was now restored and used in addition to the other. See the
extract—Frontinus, c. 76.
[161] Frontinus, c. 89.
[162] Ibid., c. 90, 91.
[163] The division of the surface water from the sewerage, in the
question of the drainage of large towns, is meeting with much favour,
as it appeals to reason that what is good for the purposes of manure,
is destructive to the healthy condition of the river, while the surface
water, which finds its proper place in the river, interferes with the
proper distribution of sewage. In Rome, there is frequently a small
_specus_ or channel for pure water, contrived in the vault or upper part
of the great _cloacæ_ or drains for the refuse water. Could not the same
plan be adopted in London with advantage? But while this is canvassed,
it seems singular that we hear little of the division of the _supply_,
which, on the same principle, should certainly be divided. There are
several towns so situated, that a fair supply of pure water might be
brought very acceptable for drinking, but not in sufficient quantities to
be applicable to other offices. The words of Frontinus are very concise
and pointed:—
“Marciam ut ipsam, splendore et frigore gratissimam, balneis ac
fullonibus et relatu quoque fœdis ministeriis deprehenderimus servientem.
Omnes ergo discerni placuit, tum singulas ita ordinari, ut in primis
Marcia potui tota serviret, et deinceps reliquæ secundum suam quæque
qualitatem aptis usibus assignarentur, sicut Anio Vetus pluribus ex
causis, quo inferior excipitur minus salubris, in hortorum rigationem
atque in ipsius urbis sordidiora exiret ministeria.” (Frontinus, c. 91,
92.)
[164] See C. C. J. Bunsen’s _Beschreibung der Stadt Rom._ Stuttgart und
Tübingen, 1830, 8vo.
[165] The mother of Cola di Rienzi was one of those who gained a
livelihood by selling water in the streets.
[166] The ruined _castellum_ at the Porta Furba, two miles from Rome,
(previously mentioned,) seems to have been of this description; it rises
considerably above the level of the conduits, vertically, as if either
for water or air to rush up it.
[167] Cassiodori Var., lib. vii. 6, and iv. 31.
[168] Procopius, de Bello Gothico, lib. i. c. 19.
[169] This is shewn by the large corbels in the wall on the bank of the
river at this point, opposite to the Cloaca Maxima, which are pierced
with holes through them, in which a pole was placed to attach the chain.
These corbels remain perfect on the western side; on the eastern side,
they have been destroyed, or covered over by medieval houses. Those
which remain are carved into the form of gigantic lions’ heads, of the
character called Etruscan, but are of the time when the Port of Rome was
made in the Tiber, B.C. 180.
[170]
IMP. CAESAR DIVI
NERVAE F. NERVA
TRAIANVS AVG
GERM. DACICVS
PONT. MAX. TR. POT. XIII
IMP. VI. COS. V. P.P
AQVAM TRAIANAM
PECVNIA. SVA
IN VRBEM PERDVXIT
EMPTIS LOCIS
PER LATITVD. P. XXX
[171]
PAVLVS V. PONT. OPT. MAX
FORMIS AQVAE ALSIETINAE
OLIM AB AVG. CAES. EXSTRVCTIS
MOX COLLAPSIS. AB. ADRIANO I. P.M
INSTAVRATIS
IISDEM RVRSVS OB VETVSTATEM
DIRVTIS. OPERE SVBTERRANEO. ET
ARCVATO AQVAM EX AGRO
BRACHIANENSI DITIONIS VRSINORVM
SALVBRIORIBVS FONTIBVS DERIVATAM
IN VRBEM PERDVXIT
ANN. SAL. MDCXI. PONT. SVI VII.
[172] In the life of Hadrian by Spartianus (c. 20), we are told that a
number of aqueducts were made in his time and called after him. But his
name is not retained in the Regionary Catalogue.
[173] Frontinus, c. 88.
[174] We have seen before that Eadmer mentions the malaria in Rome as
early as the twelfth century. (Historiæ Novor., lib. ii. ad calcem S.
Anselmi operum, p. 51, D. Lut. Par. 1675, fol.) In the following century,
the author of “Sir Bevis of Southampton” gives a strange account of the
fevers arising from the Pontine Marshes into the Campagna di Roma. There
were, says he, two dragons there; one having fled to Toscan [Tusculum?],—
“That other dragoun ’is flight nome (took)
To Seinte Peter ’is brige of Rome:
Thar he schel leggen ai (lay for ever)
Til hit come domesdai;
And everi seve yer ones,
Whan the dragoun moweth (moves) ’is bones,
Thanne cometh a roke (reke, smoke) & a stink
Out of the water, under the brink,
Than men therof taketh the fevere,
That never after mai he kever (recover);
And who that n’el nought leve (believe) me,
Wite (know, inquire) al pilgrimes that ther hath be;
For thai can tell yow, I wis,
Of that dragoun how it is.”
(Weber, “Metrical Romances,” &c., vol. iii.
p. 315. Edinburgh, 1810, 12mo.)
[175] The fragment of an inscription relating to this aqueduct was found
near Gabii, and is described by E. Q. Visconti in his _Monumenti Gabini_,
Roma, 1797, 8vo. maj., p. 14.
IMP. CAESAR DIVI TRAiani
(Parthici filius Trajanus Hadrianus)
AVG. PONTIF[ex Maximus]
AQVAE DVCTVM GABINIS . . .
QVAM . . . . .
The second line appears to be an interpolation of the editor, but this is
not material. The aqueduct begun by Nerva was not finished till the time
of Hadrian. The aqueduct of Gregory XIII. and Sixtus V. (Felice) (A.D.
1572-1590) receives the water of this aqueduct, but at Colonna other
springs are collected and added to it; this was the work of Fontana.
[176] The Torre Pignattara is so called from the earthenware pots
(_pignatte_) of which the vault was built. Other remains of buildings of
importance have been found near the Mausoleum of S. Helena, and there is
some reason to believe that another imperial villa was situated there
during the first three centuries.
[177] Some say the popular name is _Torre de Scavi_, or of the
excavations from some great works of excavation made there in the twelfth
century.
[178] Note f, p. 88. “Aquarum ductus etiam infinitas hoc nomine
(Hadriani) nuncupavit.” (Spartianus in Hadriano, c. 20.)
[179] It is immediately opposite to the Palatine, and there is a
remarkably fine view from the portion of the _specus_ that remains, the
vault of which has been removed, and it is used as a terrace.
[180] Mémoire sur les fouilles exécutées à Santa Sabina. Paris,
Imprimerie Impériale, 1868, 4to.
[181] EX . FIG . . . . AEAM . . AUGVS . RUST . IT . ET . AQVI . . (Ap.
Fea, Fasti Consul., p. cxviii. No. 62.) Junius Rusticus et Aquilinus were
Consuls, temp. Marci Aurelii, A.D. 162.
[182] Commodus was emperor from 180 to 192, but was slain at the early
age of 31; and it is probable that this great work was left unfinished,
and was completed by his successor, Septimius Severus. In the Regionary
Catalogue they are mentioned together, and there was probably no division
between them.
[183] It was usual to take advantage of the _castella aquæ_ of the great
aqueducts to construct bath-chambers of various kinds, both for hot and
cold and swimming baths.
[184] This is also mentioned in our account of the Anio Vetus (II.), as
the branch at the second mile from Rome according to Frontinus. From the
low level, it is more probable that this branch came from the Anio Vetus
than from the Marcia, and an itinerant pilgrim of the eighth or ninth
century may have been mistaken on this point.
[185] This was probably the branch that now runs under the Via dei
Condotti. The main line to supply the Thermæ of Agrippa has been traced
beyond the fountain of Trevi to the Piazza di S. Ignazio, very near the
Pantheon, which was the entrance-hall to these _thermæ_. Those of Nero
and Alexander Severus were more to the north.
[186] See Aqueduct XI. Trajana.
[187]
HERCVLI . CONSERVATORI
INVICTO . COMITI
D. N. SEVERI . ALEXANDRI
PII . VICTORIS . SEMPER
AVG. AC. OPTIMI . PRINCIPIS
M. AVRELIVS . PRISCILLIANVS
V. C. CVRATOR . NYMPHAEI
DEVOT . NVM . M. Q. E.
[188] The great Thermæ of the third century in the Esquiliæ, where the
building known as the Minerva Medica stands, and to which the other
building, called after the Trophies of Marius, is supposed to have
been the entrance; this has been identified as a Nymphæum of Alexander
Severus, by the representation of it on one of his coins.
[189] SOPRA TREBIA (TREVI) VICINO ARCINAZZO (upon Trevi, near Arcinazzo).
[190]
MINERVAE . MEMORI
COELIA . IVLIANA
INDVLGENTIA . MEDICI
NARVM . INFIRMITATE . EIVS
GRAVI . SANATA . D. P
[191] There is a subterranean reservoir under it, and there are several
other subterranean reservoirs in this ground.
[192] This great Pantheum was a temple of all divinities, and also a hall
for the men, being connected by a large vaulted passage at the back with
the _thermæ_, of both of which there are visible remains.
[193] This spring is considered by some authors as the one source of the
river Almo; but it is only one of many, and it falls into the deep bed of
the river, coming from some miles beyond that point.
[194] In the valley of the Caffarella, a stone _specus_ has been made by
the side of the natural bed of this branch; it is open at the top, has
lochs in it, and is on a higher level than the natural stream. The object
of this was obviously to keep a supply of water from the springs in dry
weather.
[195] The two arches of the Porta Metronia remain, both built of brick
of the time of Aurelian. The outer arch is visible in the city wall; the
inner one is concealed by a medieval tower built up against it. In the
year 1871, Signor Rosa made a new gate on the east side of the Porta
Metronia for his carts to pass through, in which the earth, excavated
from the Palatine, is carried out into the meadow beyond, outside of the
walls. This is certainly better than continuing to fill up the valley
between the Aventine and the Pseudo-Aventine, and thereby concealing more
of the Wall of the Kings under S. Balbina and burying more of the Aqua
Appia, than has already been done under his orders.
[196] Cicero, Epist. ad Q. Fratrem, lib. iii. ep. 7.
[197] “Hic etiam derivavit aquam de antiquis Formis, et ad Portam
Lateranensem conduxit, ibique lacum pro adaquandis equis fieri fecit.
Plurima quoque molendina in eadem aqua construxit, et multas vineas cum
fructiferis arboribus secus ipsum lacum plantari studiosissimè fecit.”
(Muratori, Rerum Italic. Script., tom. iii. p. 420, col. 2, E.)
[198] “Aquam ad Urbem reduxit, molendina cum vineis juxta lacum aptavit,”
&c. (Pandolphus Pisanus, ibid., p. 419, col. 1, E.)
[199]
SIXT. V. PONT. MAX. PICENVS.
AQVAM . EX . AGRO . COLVMNAE.
VIA . PRAENEST . SINISTRORSVM.
MVLTARVM . COLLECTIONE . VENARVM.
DVCTV . SINVOSO . A. RECEPTACVLO . MIL. XX.
A. CAPITE XXII. ADDVXIT.
FELICEMQVE . DE . NOMINE. ANTE PONT. DIXIT.
COEPIT . ANNO. PRIMO. ABSOLVIT III. M.D. L. XXXVII.
[200] See Aqueduct XI.
[201] The Pope insisted on the work being completed at the time
originally fixed, notwithstanding that the blunder of his engineer made
it necessary to rebuild the whole arcade for seven miles.
[202] “Nunc autem in urbem influunt: 1. Aqua Appia, 2. Anio Vetus, 3.
Marcia, 4. Tepula, 5. Julia, 6. Virgo, 7. Alsietina (quæ eadem vocatur
Augusta), 8. Claudia, 9. Anio Novus.” (Frontinus, 4.)
[203] Id., c. 19.
[204] See Aqueduct III.
[205] Frontinus, c. 15, in both cases called by him, Herculaneus.
[206] Frontinus, c. 12.
[207] Id., c. 5.
[208]
“Quid loquar aërio pendentes fornice rivos,
Qua vix imbriferas tolleret Iris aquas?
Hos potius dicas crevisse in sidera montes,
Tale giganteum Græcia laudat opus.
Intercepta tuis conduntur flumina muris;
Consumunt totos celsa lavacra lacus.”
(Cl. Rutilii Itiner., l. 1, v. 97. and following.)
[209] “In formis autem Romanis utrumque præcipuum est ut fabrica sit
mirabilis et aquarum salubritas singularis. Quod enim illuc flumina
quasi constructis montibus perducuntur, naturales credas alveos
soliditates saxorum, quando tantus impetus fluminis tot sæculis firmiter
potuit sustineri. Cavati montes plerunque subruunt, meatus torrentium
dissipantur, et opus illud veterum non destruitur, si industria
suffragante servetur.”—(Cassiodori Variar., l. vii. c. 6.)
[210] It is possible that the number of nineteen was made up by adding
the different branches that supplied the Thermæ of the later Emperors,
(Septimius) Severus, Antoninus, Alexander (Severus), (Aurelius) Commodus,
Constantinus.
To these must now be added the two modern aqueducts, the Marrana and Aqua
Crabra [XVII.], united and brought through Rome in the twelfth century in
the bed of that branch of the river Almo, and the Aqua Felice [XVIII.],
made in the sixteenth; also the Aqua Marcia-Pia, made between 1860 and
1870, which now brings the water of the Aqua Marcia into Rome by a
different line.
[211] This was also the principal gate of the Sessorian Palace, and was
sometimes called the Porta Sessoriana.
[212] See Diagrams III. and XIX.
[213] See the Plans and Sections of this, Plate XXI.
[214] The water pumped out by the steam-engine employed by Signor Rosa
was always good clear drinking water, and had all the appearance of
coming from an aqueduct; it was sent along an open channel the whole
length of the Colosseum, and made a great swamp round the arch of
Constantine for several months in the spring of 1875, the outlet for it
being made on the outer side of the drain under that arch, which had
been constructed by the Municipality about 1866. At last it was observed
that an aperture into that drain might easily be made on the inner side,
and so avoid the swamp in the road, and washing the foot of the arch.
Soon after this the steam-engine was stopped on account of the enormous
expense of it, after it had gone on for more than a year, always pumping
out good drinking water, and sending it to waste.
[215] This article will be found in the _Annales de l’Institut de
Correspondance Archéologique_, 1873.
[216] Near the Porta Maggiore, and under the arches of Nero. There are
two large reservoirs close together in this vineyard, probably the
Gemelli of Frontinus.
[217] _Descending_ from the reservoir into the old _specus_ under the
arches of Nero.
[218] The Aqua Marcia was brought again into Rome by a new water
company in the year 1870, after several years of very arduous work, and
overcoming many difficulties. The company who made this great aqueduct
consisted chiefly of English shareholders, with a mixture of French and
Italian. It was long under the direction of the late Mr. Shepherd, an
Englishman, whose loss was much regretted in Rome, and latterly under a
Belgian engineer.
[219] See Frontinus de Aqueductibus, c. 5.
[220] There is a large and deep reservoir for it near the arch of
Dolabella, under the garden of the Villa Mattei, now called the Villa
Cœlimontana, and from thence it passed, still underground, to the cliff
of the Cœlian, opposite to the Aventine. A short tunnel was made from
this deep reservoir to a Nymphæum under the Cœlian, now S. Stefano
Rotondo, called of Septimius Severus. The ruins of it are shewn in 895; a
_specus_ has been traced from one to the other.
[221] See Frontinus de Aqueductibus, c. 6.
[222] Ibid., c. 125, and 93.
[223] Frontinus de Aqueductibus, c. 6.
[224] Frontinus, c. 125.
[225] Ibid., c. 93.
[226] They remind English people of the Clapham Junction of the railways
near London, where trains crossing each other at different levels can be
seen.
[227] Supra Portam Capenam, F. i. 19.
[228] See Frontinus de Aqueductibus, caps. 11, 18, 22, and 71.
[229] Frontinus de Aqueductibus, cap. 13, 14, 18, 20.
[230] Cohen. Méd. Imp. Alex. Sev., (Nos. 239, 334).
[231] This water is not mentioned in the Regionary Catalogue, and its
whole history appears doubtful. Some think the name is a corruption of
Argentina, the short stream that rises in the Lupercal or Wolf’s Cave,
under the north-west corner of the Palatine, as before mentioned.
[232] These sources are on the cliffs above the river Anio, at from five
seven miles from Rome, and two miles from Ponte Nono, in swampy meadows
called “the meadows of Lucullus,” and some in old stone quarries.
[233] See also the Photo-engravings, Plates I. and II.; and Historical
Photographs, Nos. 865, 866, 867.
[234] See page 3, and Historical Photographs, Nos. 632, 710, 1138, 1139,
1140, 1141, 1142, 1253; and Plates X. and XI. of the Supplement to Part I.
[235] See Photos., Nos. 1116 and 889.
[236] This is now, in 1876, taken possession of by the British and
American Archæological Society, with the consent of the owner of the
ground, who has allowed a door to be put up at the entrance.
[237] See also Plate XX.
[238] This map is to be had on either of these two larger scales, for
those who require more minute information.
[239] See p. 3.
[240] See p. 13.
[241] See p. 32.
[242] See p. 46.
[243] See p. 39.
[244] See p. 41.
[245] See p. 92.
[246] See p. 55.
[247] See p. 54.
[248] See p. 86.
[249] See p. 92.
[250] See p. 97.
[251] See p. 100.
[252] See p. 106.
[253] See No. VII., p. 50.
THE
AQUEDUCTS OF ANCIENT
ROME,
TRACED FROM THEIR SOURCES TO THEIR MOUTHS,
CHIEFLY BY THE
WORK OF FRONTINUS;
VERIFIED BY A SURVEY OF THE GROUND.
BY
JOHN HENRY PARKER, C.B.
HON. M.A. OXON., F.S.A. LOND., &c.
AND ASSISTANTS.
=OXFORD:=
JAMES PARKER AND CO.
=LONDON:=
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE-STREET.
1876.
[Illustration: CHARTA TOPOGRAPHICA]
[Illustration: CHARTA TOPOGRAPHICA]
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