If you have ever visited Siena, you may have wondered why the city has so many fountains.
It is because long ago Siena’s hilltop location was excellent for its defence but meant that the citizens were a long way from water. Therefore, in the eleventh century, the city’s planners began digging underground channels, using hidden streams and rivulets to build aqueducts. From these, water was collected in huge basins and fountains which were placed around the city and on its outskirts. These containers had roofs to protect the water from pollution as the citizens had to use it for all their water needs.
Now you can learn all about the aqueducts and more about the city’s water history at the new Museo dell’Acqua on the site of the historic Fontana di Pescaia. The Museum, which cost 1.8 million euros, aims to show visitors how the 25 kilometres of underground waterways were constructed but also to demonstrate how the location of water sources shaped citizens’ lives over many centuries.
The aqueducts have been used within living memory and some are still active today. Fountains outside the city walls eventually became its gateways and every contrada in Siena has a fountain depicting its symbol.
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