![Aqua appia planrome](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/Aqua_appia_planrome.PNG)
The Aqua Appia was the first
Roman aqueduct, constructed in 312 BC by the co-censors
Gaius Plautius Venox and
Appius Claudius Caecus
Appius Claudius Caecus ( 312–279 BC) was a statesman and writer from the Roman Republic. The first Roman public figure whose life can be traced with some historical certainty, Caecus was responsible for the building of Rome's first road (t ...
, the same
Roman censor
The censor (at any time, there were two) was a magistrate in ancient Rome who was responsible for maintaining the census, supervising public morality, and overseeing certain aspects of the government's finances.
The power of the censor was ab ...
who also built the important
Via Appia
The Appian Way (Latin and Italian: ''Via Appia'') is one of the earliest and strategically most important Roman roads of the ancient republic. It connected Rome to Brindisi, in southeast Italy. Its importance is indicated by its common name, ...
.
The Appia fed the city of
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
with an estimated of water per day.
Route
Its source was said by
Frontinus
Sextus Julius Frontinus (c. 40 – 103 AD) was a prominent Roman civil engineer, author, soldier and senator of the late 1st century AD. He was a successful general under Domitian, commanding forces in Roman Britain, and on the Rhine and Danube ...
to be about 780
paces
A pace is a unit of length consisting either of one normal walking step (approximately ), or of a double step, returning to the same foot (approximately ). The normal pace length decreases with age and some health conditions. The word "pace" is al ...
away from
via Praenestina
The Via Praenestina (modern Italian: Via Prenestina) was an ancient Roman road in central Italy.
Initially called Via Gabiana, from Gabii, the ancient city of Old Latium to which it ran, it received a new name having been extended as far as Pr ...
. It flowed for to
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
from the east and emptied into the
Forum Boarium
The Forum Boarium (, it, Foro Boario) was the cattle '' forum venalium'' of ancient Rome. It was located on a level piece of land near the Tiber between the Capitoline, the Palatine and Aventine hills. As the site of the original docks of R ...
near the
Porta Trigemina
The Porta Trigemina was one of the main gates in the ancient 4th century Servian Wall of Rome, Italy. The gate no longer exists, but it is frequently mentioned by ancient authors as standing between the north end of the Aventine Hill and the Tiber ...
. Nearly all of its length before entering the city was underground, which was necessary because of the relative heights of its source and destination, and which also afforded it protection from attackers during the
Samnite Wars
The First, Second, and Third Samnite Wars (343–341 BC, 326–304 BC, and 298–290 BC) were fought between the Roman Republic and the Samnites, who lived on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains south of Rome and north of the Lucanian tribe. ...
that were underway during its construction.
[
After entering the hilly area of Rome, the aqueduct alternated between tunnels through the ]Caelian
The Caelian Hill (; la, Collis Caelius; it, Celio ) is one of the famous seven hills of Rome.
Geography
The Caelian Hill is a sort of long promontory about long, to wide, and tall in the park near the Temple of Claudius. The hill over ...
and Aventine Hills and an elevated section. A detailed modern model of ancient Rome shows the aqueduct running along the top of the Servian Wall
The Servian Wall ( la, Murus Servii Tullii; it, Mura Serviane) was an ancient Roman defensive barrier constructed around the city of Rome in the early 4th century BC. The wall was built of volcanic tuff and was up to in height in places, wide ...
above the Porta Capena
Porta Capena was a gate in the Servian Wall in Rome, Italy.
The gate was located in the area of Piazza di Porta Capena, where the Caelian Hill, Caelian, Palatine Hill, Palatine and Aventine Hill, Aventine hills meet. Probably its exact position ...
. It dropped only over its entire length, making it a remarkable engineering achievement for its day.
The Appia ended at the ''Clivus Publicus'' at a place called ''Salinae'' below the Aventine Hill. The water was distributed to twenty reservoirs through piping. The aqueduct served the private Baths of Decius and Baths of Licinius Sura on the Aventine. The level of the channel was too low to be able to provide water to the hills.
In 2017, a section of the aqueduct was excavated beneath Piazza Celimontana and has been removed for reconstruction elsewhere.
Historical context
As Frontinus
Sextus Julius Frontinus (c. 40 – 103 AD) was a prominent Roman civil engineer, author, soldier and senator of the late 1st century AD. He was a successful general under Domitian, commanding forces in Roman Britain, and on the Rhine and Danube ...
explains: "for four hundred and forty-one years from the foundation of the City, the Romans were satisfied with the use of such waters as they drew from the Tiber, from wells, or from springs...But there now run into the City: the Appian aqueduct, Old Anio, Marcia, Tepula, Julia, Virgo, Alsietina, which is also called Augusta, Claudia, New Anio". Rome's first aqueduct was in response to the growing city and population which may have suffered a prolonged drought and major sanitary issues which affected their existing water supplies.
The Aqua Appia was the first test of Roman engineering of its type and is quite unsophisticated in comparison to Rome's ten other aqueducts. Raffaelo Fabretti, one of the first to excavate the Appia, characterises it as "The first fruits of Rome's Foresight and greatness". Nevertheless, the Appia was kept in use into the era of Augustus Caesar through regular maintenance, renovations and even an expansion. Little of the original material remains today and much of information on the aqueduct comes from Frontinus who was appointed as water commissioner and recorded the technical, and some historical, details of the Appia about four hundred years after its completion.
Although there were no formal Roman predecessors for the Aqua Appia, there were plenty of examples that existed in the Greek and Etruscan __NOTOC__
Etruscan may refer to:
Ancient civilization
*The Etruscan language, an extinct language in ancient Italy
*Something derived from or related to the Etruscan civilization
**Etruscan architecture
**Etruscan art
**Etruscan cities
** Etrusca ...
world. Greek influence came from their use of terracota pipes that were laid along the bottom of a channel or a large tunnel. This technique relates to the Roman technique in that it uses a water channel within a larger tunnel. The difference between the two is the fact that the Romans began to favour masonry conduits rather than the terracotta pipes which were generally used by the Greeks throughout the history of their aqueducts. A. Trevor Hodge, in his book "Roman Aqueducts and Water Supply", mentions the possibility that the Romans could indirectly have been influenced by the Iranian qanat
A qanat or kārīz is a system for transporting water from an aquifer or water well to the surface, through an underground aqueduct; the system originated approximately 3,000 BC in what is now Iran. The function is essentially the same across ...
which is a tunnel driven into a hillside to tap an aquiferous stratum deep inside it. It is believed that the Etruscan water channel system, the ''cuniculi'' is a form of the qanat and Hodge asserts that since the Romans had contact with the Etruscans and openly adopted other aspects of their culture they could have been implementing techniques and skills that were originally of Eastern descent. Etruscan water channels are also generally believed to have a great amount of influence on the Roman Aqua Appia. Their expertise in underground tunnelling served the function of draining water rather than supplying water. Nevertheless, undoubtedly the Romans gained much practical knowledge in underground water channelling from the Etruscans.
The beginning of the Aqua Appia
Gaius Plautius Venox chose the source of the aqueduct thus giving him the nickname ''Venox'' (Hunter). However, Appius Claudius had the aqueduct named after him as, according to Frontinus, at the time that the aqueduct was being built the eighteen month terms of Plautius and Appius as censors was coming to an end and under the assumption that Appius was going to resign in appropriate fashion, Plautius went ahead and resigned in a timely manner. However, Appius kept his position by "various subterfuges" in order to extend his term to finish the Via Appia and the Aqua Appia.
The water source that Plautius is credited for is "on the Lucullen estate, between the seventh and eighth milestones, on the Via Praenestina, on a crossroad, 780 paces to the left."[Frontinus 5] Frontinus' text about the source of the Appia has been interpreted as "The source of the original aqueduct lay within the bounds of the vast estate of Lucullus between seven and eight miles from the city, 780 paces 1,153.62 m.) along a crossroad to the left of the Via Praenestina". Although Deman does acknowledge Frontinus' records which indicate that the source is to the left of the Via Praenestina, he also brings up that rather than being left of the Via Praenestina, it is more probable that "it was left of the Via Collatina". Nevertheless, the exact location of the source is unknown but the general location can be pinpointed. It is probable that the Appia had as a source one group of springs with a single collecting basin or reservoir. The source is thought to have come from the bottom of the Alban Hills in which a stretch of marshland held the springs that fed the Appia.
Construction
From the reservoir of the source of the Appia, the water was directed into an underground conduit which ran for into the city. The conduit was carved out of the bedrock and the walls of the channel were lined with carved tufa stone. Furthermore, the stones were poorly cut and poorly fitted which speaks to the structural integrity of the conduit. The roof was ridged with broad shelves on either side. The earliest archaeological evidence was excavated by Raffaello Fabretti and Rodolfo Lanciani whose records show "It consisted of a considerable stretch of channel cut into the tufa of the hill, and lined, possibly at a later time, with walls of rough cut stone". Furthermore, "the channel that was cut into the rock was five and a half feet square with a vaulted roof with a rise of six inches. The walls with which the channel was lined consisted of three courses of ''cappellaccio'' (tufa) blocks, 50 to 55 cm high, laid without mortar". Later, a second section was found at the corner of Via di Porta S. Paolo and Via di San Saba which measured in height and in width. The characteristics are the same as those described by Fabretti in his excavations except for the roof. The roof was ridged by the joining of two slabs of ''cappellaccio'' to form a gable. This is a similar construction found in the Anio Vetus
The Aniene (; la, Aniō), formerly known as the Teverone, is a river in Lazio, Italy. It originates in the Apennines at Trevi nel Lazio and flows westward past Subiaco, Vicovaro, and Tivoli to join the Tiber in northern Rome. It formed th ...
aqueduct which could be evidence of renovations made in 144 BC.
As with most aqueducts, the conduit was big enough to allow maintenance crews to walk inside to clean out any debris or make any repairs. Also, it is most likely that there were shafts with footholes within the countryside giving access. Regular cleaning up of debris was necessary since, as Frontinus' records indicate, there was no settling tank in the route of the Appia, "Neither Virgo, nor Appia, nor Alsietina has a receiving reservoir or catch-basin".
For the most part, the channel was underground throughout its course which is relatively shallow in comparison to the other aqueducts perhaps because the Romans were adapting what they knew about their practice in sewers.
Renovations and expansion
Over the years more aqueducts were built with increasing sophistication and the Aqua Appia was neglected for some time. Nevertheless, the Appia was still kept in use with a few renovations were made and it was expanded by Augustus to allow it to supply more water. In 144 BC the Senate ordered Quintus Marcius Rex to repair the leaks that were forming in the channel and to reclaim the water that was being illegally redirected by citizens who had tapped into the aqueduct.[Pliny, 36.121] Agrippa Agrippa may refer to:
People Antiquity
* Agrippa (mythology), semi-mythological king of Alba Longa
* Agrippa (astronomer), Greek astronomer from the late 1st century
* Agrippa the Skeptic, Skeptic philosopher at the end of the 1st century
* Agri ...
made minor repairs again in 33 BC. This phase of renovation is thought to be part of the promise made by Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
to renovate all of the older aqueducts and add to the Appia by building a new branch called the ''ramus Augustae'' whose source was near the source of the Appia "at the sixth milestone, on the Via Praenestina, on a crossroad, 980 paces to the left, near the Via Collatina". The ''ramus Augustae'' ran an independent course of 6,380 paces to the ''spes setus'' where it joined the Appia. It is this point that Frontinus refers to as ''Gemelli'' (the Twins).
Decline
By the end of the 1st c. BC, part of it seems to have been used as a sewer as a recently found section in the Metro C line below Piazza Celimontana contained household waste, particularly food remains.
See also
*Ancient Roman technology
Roman technology is the collection of antiques, skills, methods, processes, and engineering practices which supported Roman civilization and made possible the expansion of the economy and military of ancient Rome (753 BC – 476 AD).
The Roma ...
*Parco degli Acquedotti
The Parco degli Acquedotti is a public park to the southeast of Rome, Italy. It is part of the Appian Way Regional Park and is of approximately 240 ha.
Description
The park is named after the aqueducts that run through it. It is crossed on o ...
*List of aqueducts in the city of Rome
This article lists ancient Roman aqueducts in the city of Rome.
Introduction
In order to meet the massive water needs of its huge population, the city of Rome was eventually supplied with 11 aqueducts by 226 AD, which were some of the city's ...
*List of aqueducts in the Roman Empire
This is a list of aqueducts in the Roman Empire. For a more complete list of known and possible Roman aqueducts and Roman bridges see List of Roman bridges.
Aqueducts in the Roman Empire
See also
* List of aqueducts
Map of Roman Aqueduct i ...
*List of Roman aqueducts by date
This is a list of aqueducts in the city of Rome listed in chronological order of their construction.
Ancient Rome
Modern Rome
* Acqua Vergine Antica
** built in 1453
** source: springs in Salone, east of Rome
** length: ; underground from ...
References
Other References
* Coarelli, Filippo. ''Rome and environs: an archaeological guide''. Berkeley: University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by facult ...
, 2007.
* Van Deman, Esther Boise. ''The building of the Roman aqueducts''. Washington: Carnegie institution of Washington, 1934.
* Frontinus, Sextus Julius. ''The Stratagems and The Aqueducts of Rome''. 1925. Reprint. London: William Heinemann LTD, 1961.
*. ''Roman aqueducts & water supply''. London: Duckworth, 1992.
"Website on Roman aqueducts." Website on Roman aqueducts. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 June 2014.
*. ''The aqueducts of Rome'' The Water Supply of Ancient Rome. Amsterdam: J.C. Gieben, 2001.
N.p., n.d. Web. 13 June 2014.
Website on Roman aqueducts." Website on Roman aqueducts. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 June 2014.
*Winslow, E. M.. ''A libation to the gods; the story of the Roman aqueducts.'' London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1963.
External links
*
Information on Roman aqueducts
From a list of 25 aqueducts described in detail
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aqua Appia, The
Buildings and structures completed in the 4th century BC
Appia
312 BC
4th century BC in Italy
310s BC establishments