Ancient Romans had an understanding of water that was nothing short of spectacular in their time. The Aqueducts carried water from distant springs and streams into the city of Rome.

1. Water in Ancient 1
Running head: WATER IN ANCIENT ROME
Water in Ancient Rome
Gina M. Martino
John Cabot University

2. Water in Ancient 2
Water in Ancient Rome
People coming to Rome from all over the world have certain monuments they are able to
recognize almost instantaneously: the Coliseum, the Pantheon, Saint Peters, and among many
others, the ancient Roman Aqueducts. Even in their ruined state, the aqueducts can be seen
stretching far outside the city of Rome and one must wonder what they would have looked like
in their completed form. Beyond simply appearance however, the aqueducts played a crucial
role in the lives of ancient Romans, from allowing the individual citizens the freedom to live in
places where water would not normally be available, to supplying the great public baths, in turn
providing a central gathering place.
Ancient Romans had an understanding of water that was nothing short of spectacular in
their time. The Aqueducts carried water from distant springs and streams into the city of Rome.
With a water source as large as the Tiber River running right through the middle of Rome
however, one wonders why the ancient Romans even developed a need to carry water from so far
away. While it is true that initially the Romans did rely on the Tiber River as well as from local
wells and springs, eventually the poor sanitary conditions of the ancient city contributed to
polluting the local waters, creating a need to import water from outside the main city. It is no
wonder when considering their initial drainage system, the Cloaca Maxima, built by the
Etruscans several centuries B. C. is an outstanding creation. Still in existence 28 centuries later,
this 600 meter drain empties into the Tiber River and is so wide at some sections, that a wagon
could comfortably fit inside of it.1 Even were the waters not have become polluted however,
the Romans probably would have invented the aqueducts as a way to allow the city of Rome to
expand further than the area immediately next to the Tiber.
1
Water and wastewater systems in imperial Rome.

3. Water in Ancient 3
On average, each citizen of Rome received about 84 gallons per day from the aqueducts.1
All together there were eleven major aqueducts in ancient Rome built between 312 B.C. and 226
A.D and each one could hold up to three pipelines. The first aqueduct built was Aqua Appia
which carried water from the Anio valley, as did five other aqueducts. This aqueduct alone
supplied Rome with 73,000 cubic meters per day.2 The last aqueduct built was the Aqua
Alexandrina, which delivered water from the Alban hills. Between these two where the Anio
Vetus (269 B.C.), Aqua Marcia (140 B.C.), Aqua Tepula (125 B.C.), Aqua Julia (33 B.C.), Aqua
Virgo (19 B.C.), Aqua Alsietina (2 B.C.), Aqua Claudia (52 A.D.), Anio Novus (52 B.C.), and
the Aqua Traiana (109 A.D.). Of all of the aqueducts, the longest one was Anio Novus, which
stretched a total of 59 miles.3
Aqueducts work by utilizing gravity flow and were only raised on arches just before
entering the city to allow enough pressure for distribution.4 The water is carried to either its
terminus or a distribution chamber, generally underground through a conduit (specus). Of
course there was the problem of uneven terrain. Generally, construction lead the aqueducts
around extreme terrain, however, when it was necessary to carry the water through lower
grounds and valleys, either multi-tiered viaducts or occasionally the more costly inverted siphons
could be used. Conversely, when hills were the problem, tunnels were dug that even included
vertical shafts to fit individuals to allow for the occasional inspection.1
Along the way there may be several settling tanks (piscinae), as well as covered
catch-basins, that would filter the water to remove any foreign matter or sediment. Eventually
the water would reach a castellum where the water was distributed through terracotta or lead
1
Morgan, 1902, p. 35.
2
Claridge, 1998, p58.
3
Roman aqueducts.
4
Roman aqueducts.

4. Water in Ancient 4
pipes (fistulae) that would carry the water below ground level to one of three places: basins and
fountains, baths, or to private houses.2 Private connections were rare however, and likely rather
expensive, so most citizens obtained their water from public fountains.
Two aqueducts, the Julia and the Virgo, were constructed by Agrippa, a close friend of
Augustus, as was the reworking of the Aqua Tepula.3 The only ancient aqueduct still in
function today is the Aqua Virgo, built at Agrippa’s own expense as the last in a water supply
public works to improve the quality of life in the city of Rome. When first built, the Aqua
Virgo both supplied water to an area of Rome that was thus far inadequately served as well as to
complete Agrippa’s baths,4 the ruins of the Basilica of Neptune is all that remains of the great
structure, which can be seen today in the back of the Pantheon. The structure as it stands today
actually dates back only as far as the Hadrian who rebuilt it in 125 A. D. The original complex
was destroyed by a fire in 80 A. D., however it is the 2.5 meter depth below the current street
level gives away the original age. The original Pantheon was built between 27-25 B. C. It
was rebuilt by Domition, burned down again after being struck by lightning in 110 A. D., and
then was rebuilt once again by Hadrian, who, rather than claim recognition, dedicated the
building to Agrippa. Behind this, was the Basilica of Neptune, the remains of which can still be
seen today.1
On the opposite side of the Pantheon to the Basilica would have been the large outside
basin of the baths and on the other side of that was the main Laconicum, an early form of heated
bath that after the construction of the Aqua Virgo become a full thermae.2 Next to the
Laconicum were the great gardens of Agrippa which featured in the center, the large artificial
1
Water and wastewater systems in imperial Rome.
2
Evans, 1982, p. 402.
3
Evans, 1982, p. 401.
4
Lloyd, 1979, p195.

5. Water in Ancient 5
lake, known as the Sagnum. The Aqua Virgo served Agrippa’s Thermae and Sagnum, as well
as supplying the water the Euripus, a large artificial channel for swimming which ran from the
baths to the Tiber River3 where it emptied just north of the modern Victor Emanuel Bridge.4
The baths of Agrippa were actually built in 25 B.C., six years before the Aqua Virgo.
These baths were the first great public bath complex and were probably very experimental. As
a consequence, the bath is missing anything serving as a swimming pool to have it be considered
a full scale bath; however the Stagnum and the Euripus could be seen as replacements for this
feature. Before the Aqua Virgo was built, the bath contained nothing but a sweat-bath
(Laconicum), so it is clear that the aqueduct was a necessity to complete the complex.
Obviously the baths of Agrippa, as well as the baths that followed, served the purpose of
public facilities that for cleaning oneself in an age in which bathrooms were not yet in existence.
However, ancient Roman baths were more than simply bathing facilities; they were the center of
the social world. Baths were places of gathering where one could play games, listen to lectures
and musical performances, gossip, and even patronize prostitution.1 As the Romans had
conquered a large portion of their known world, they left baths behind in locations outside of
Rome. The Roman baths in the British city appropriately named Bath were still very popular in
17th and 18th centuries as a place to go to “take the waters,” a prescription given by doctors for
everything from gout to an inability to produce a male heir. The popularity of the baths
transcended medical purposes however, and the town and facilities became one of the most
fashionable places to go to see and be seen. Even today, as there are no baths in Rome left
standing as they were in ancient times, and even the Roman baths in Bath have been shut down,
1
Claridge, 1998, p. 179.
2
Claridge, 1998, p. 179.
3
Evans, 1982, p. 408.
4
Claridge, 1998, p. 179.

6. Water in Ancient 6
people still flock to the town of Bath to see the remains of the ancient complex and even to visit
the new Thermae Spa where one can bathe in mineral waters, have a meal, a massage, or even sit
in one of four scented saunas. The Thermae spa lends us a small glimpse into the past as it
retains the social aspect of the original Roman baths as groups of anywhere from two to ten and
more gather to take the famous mineral waters together.
In the 537 A.D, the Goths sacked Rome, and to paralyze the city, destroyed all of the
aqueducts leading into the city but the Aqua Virgo which was saved by the fact that it ran
entirely underground.2 For centuries after this the city of Rome was without their great
aqueduct system. There was some restoration in the middle ages, but the population of the city
and dwindled severely and what remained had little resources or reason to restore them.3 The
remaining population relocated to the areas surrounding the bend of the Tiber River and relied on
that as their main water source. The Aqua Virgo was the only aqueduct until the renaissance
period that any major renewal of the system took place. Aqua Alexandrina was rebuilt by
Sixtus V in 1586 and renamed the Aqua Felice. A few decades later, in 1612, the Aqua Traiana
was similarly rebuilt by Paul V and renamed the Aqua Paula.4 The most recent aqueduct to be
reconstructed was just before the unification of Italy in 1970. The Aqua Marcia was rebuilt and
would have been renamed in the same style as its predecessors to the Aqua Pia were it not for the
secularization bill being applied to Rome in 1873.
The great baths, as mentioned, did not survive time as well as the aqueducts did. Not a
single one of the ancient public baths still stands in its original form today. The great baths
were a luxury that required far too much water and maintenance. As they no longer had
1
Nielsen, 1990, p. 144.
2
Roman aqueducts.
3
Matthews, 1947, p. 125.
4
Aicher, 1993, p. 343

7. Water in Ancient 7
practical functions, the structures were either used for their building materials, or like the Baths
of Diocletian and the Pantheon were turned into large churches or other buildings. Some of the
greatest structures of ancient Rome have faded back to become yet another of the many layers
coexisting in the eternal city.

8. Water in Ancient 8
References
Aicher, P. J. (1993). Terminal display fountains (“mostre”) and the aqueducts of
ancient Rome. Phoenix 47(4), 339-352.
Baths of Agrippa. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2009, from Maquettes de Rome Web
site: http://www.maquettes-historiques.net/P23.html.
Claridge, A. (1998). Rome: An Oxford archaeological guide. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Evans, H. B. (1982). Agrippa’s water plan. American Journal of Archaeology 86(3),
401-411.
Lloyd, R. B. (1979). The Aqua Virgo, Eurippus and Pons Agrippae. American
Journal of Aarchaeology 83(2), 193-204.
Matthews Sanford, E. (1947). The destruction of ancient Rome. The Classical
Weekly 40(16), 122-127.
Morgan, M. H. (1902). Remarks on the water supply of ancient Rome. Transactions
and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 33, 30-37.
Nielsen, I. (1990). Thermae et balnea. Denmark: Aarhus University Press.
Rome: Baths of Agrippa. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2009, from Livius Web site:
http://www.livius.org/ro-rz/rome/rome_baths_agrippa.html
Roman aqueducts. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2009, from Info Roma Web site:
http://www.inforoma.it/feature.php?lookup=aqueduct.
Thermae Agrippae. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2009, from Lacus Curtius Web site:
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Europe/Italy/Lazio/Roma/Rome/
_Texts/PLATOP*/Thermae_Agrippae.html.

9. Water in Ancient 9
Water and wastewater systems in imperial Rome. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2009,
from Waterhistory.org Web site: http://www.waterhistory.org/histories/rome/.

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Figure 1

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Figure 2

12. Water in Ancient 12
Figure 3

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Figure Captions
Figure 1. Ground level and remains of the original Basilica of Neptune
Figure 2. Ground level and remains of the original Basilica of Neptune
Figure 3. Remaining décor of the Basilica of Neptune