The Aqua Augusta, or Serino Aqueduct (), was one of the largest, most complex and costliest aqueduct systems in the Roman world; it supplied water to at least eight ancient cities in the Bay of

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

including

Pompeii Pompeii ( ; ) was a city in what is now the municipality of Pompei, near Naples, in the Campania region of Italy. Along with Herculaneum, Stabiae, and Villa Boscoreale, many surrounding villas, the city was buried under of volcanic ash and p ...

and

Herculaneum Herculaneum is an ancient Rome, ancient Roman town located in the modern-day ''comune'' of Ercolano, Campania, Italy. Herculaneum was buried under a massive pyroclastic flow in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Like the nearby city of ...

. This aqueduct was unlike any other of its time, being a regional network rather than being focused on one urban centre.

Route of the aqueduct

The eastern parts of the route of the aqueduct are well known thanks to the writings of two Italian engineers, who were asked to see if it could be brought back in use as the main water supply of Naples in the 16th and 19th centuries. The western part beyond Naples was less known until recent research. There were ten branches, seven of which were for cities while three were for some of the numerous luxurious villas in this area popular with rich Romans, such as the Villa Pollio at

Posillipo Posillipo (; ) is an affluent residential quarter of Naples, southern Italy, located along the northern coast of the Gulf of Naples. From the 1st century BC the Bay of Naples witnessed the rise of villas constructed by elite Romans along the mo ...

. Including the branches, the total length of the aqueduct was approximately , making it the longest Roman aqueduct system in the Roman world, with the possible exception of the Gadara Aqueduct, until the 5th century AD when the Valens Aqueduct was extended in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. The Aqua Augusta was one of the most difficult and costly aqueducts ever constructed by an ancient civilisation due to its length and the difficult terrain it crossed. Despite its size and complexity, the Aqua Augusta is today largely unknown as a major monument because most of it is underground. The aqueduct's main source (''caput aquae''), the ''Fons Augusteus'' (now known as Acquaro-Pelosi), was in the Terminio-Tuoro mountains near the modern town of

Serino Serino is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Avellino, Campania, southern Italy. Famous for its very clean water source, Serino is from Naples, from Salerno, from Avellino and from Rome. Serino is known for its production of chestnuts a ...

not far from the city of

Avellino Avellino () is a city and ''comune'', capital of the province of Avellino in the Campania region of southern Italy. It is situated in a plain surrounded by mountains east of Naples and is an important hub on the road from Salerno to Benevento. ...

and at 376 m above sea level. It is likely that there were several supplementary sources at other points in the network, including the branches from

and at Scalandrone near

Baiae Baiae (; ) was an ancient Roman town situated on the northwest shore of the Gulf of Naples and now in the ''comune'' of Bacoli. It was a fashionable resort for centuries in antiquity, particularly towards the end of the Roman Republic, when i ...

. One of its main terminations was the enormous Piscina Mirabilis cistern at the naval base and port of

Misenum Miseno is one of the ''frazione, frazioni'' of the municipality of Bacoli in the Italy, Italian Province of Naples. Known in ancient Roman times as Misenum, it is the site of a great Roman port. Geography Nearby Cape Miseno marks the northw ...

. Since the aqueduct traversed such a distance, many difficulties were encountered when building it: several long tunnels were cut through mountains; the Monti di Forino tunnel crossed a watershed in the Apennines (one of the longest Roman tunnels), and a tunnel crossed into the Sarno plain; also at the Crypta Neapolitana road tunnel and the Grotta di Cocceio road tunnel. A raised section on arches was built at Pomigliano d’Arco. There was ground movement due to seismic activity and a sea crossing was needed to the island of

Nisida Nisida is a volcano, volcanic islet of the Flegrean Islands archipelago, in southern Italy. It lies at a very short distance from Cape Posillipo, just north of Naples; it is connected to the mainland by a camera-enforced 1km-long pedestrian zone. ...

. The aqueduct passed underground 400m south of the Roman baths at Agnano with its own branch, and a few metres north of the

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (American English, U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meani ...

of Pozzuoli with a 70m branch to the aqueduct.

History

The Serino aqueduct was constructed during the Augustan period of the Roman Empire, probably from 33 BC when Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (close friend and ally of Emperor

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

) was '' curator aquarum'' in Rome, principally in order to refurnish the Roman fleet of Misenum and secondarily to supply water for the increasing demand of the important commercial harbour of Puteoli as well as for big cities such as

Cumae Cumae ( or or ; ) was the first ancient Greek colony of Magna Graecia on the mainland of Italy and was founded by settlers from Euboea in the 8th century BCE. It became a rich Roman city, the remains of which lie near the modern village of ...

and Neapolis.Hodge, A.Trevor (2002). "''Roman Aqueducts & Water Supply",'' 2nd ed. Bristol Classical Press. ISBN 978-0-7156-3171-3 There is evidence that a large number of private users were members of the Rome senatorial class. In Rome, a letter from the emperor was required to gain a private connection and so it seems that imperial favour was also a factor in accessing the Augusta's water. During the war with

Sextus Pompey Sextus Pompeius Magnus Pius ( 67 – 35 BC), also known in English as Sextus Pompey, was a Roman military leader who, throughout his life, upheld the cause of his father, Pompey the Great, against Julius Caesar and his supporters during the la ...

, Augustus ordered the construction of the

Portus Julius (alternatively spelled in the Latin ) was the first harbour specifically constructed to be a base for the Imperial Rome, Roman western Roman navy, naval fleet, the . The port was located near Baiae and protected by the Misenum peninsula at the n ...

harbour just west of Puteoli. Later, this harbour was seen as less ideal because of silting problems and a new major naval base was built further west at

to become the basis of the western Mediterranean fleet. Large quantities of fresh water were needed for the base itself and for the ships which may have been one of the reasons the new aqueduct was built. Such a major monument required constant maintenance; there were major repairs in the Flavian period (1st century AD) with the addition of parallel tunnels and the Emperor Constantine also engaged in a massive restoration documented on an inscription tablet discovered in Serino and dated to AD 324. Its text proved that the aqueduct dated to Augustus and not to

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; ; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54), or Claudius, was a Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusus and Ant ...

as previously thought. The destinations listed on the tablet are:

Nola Nola is a town and a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, southern Italy. It lies on the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is traditionally credited as the diocese that introduced bells to Christian worship. ...

, Acerrae, Atella,

, Pozzuoli,

, and

. The cities of

and

Stabiae Stabiae () was an ancient city situated near the modern town of Castellammare di Stabia and approximately 4.5 km (2.79 miles) southwest of Pompeii. Like Pompeii, and being only from Mount Vesuvius, it was largely buried by tephra ash in ...

were also originally supplied by the aqueduct but, being buried by the

eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD In 79 AD, Mount Vesuvius, a stratovolcano located in the modern-day region of Campania, erupted, causing List of volcanic eruptions by death toll, one of the deadliest eruptions in history. Vesuvius violently ejected a Eruption column, cloud of ...

, they did not appear on this list. Castellum Aquae Pompeii 271

The next major eruption in 472 AD left the aqueduct covered in ash, and of the duct, the Pomigliano d’Arco arcade, collapsed prior to the actual eruption. This cut off the supply of water to all the towns except Nola and Acerrae. The poor administrative and economic situation in Campania at this time, and Italy in general, prevented major repairs to the Augusta and after this time only other aqueducts in the area were referred to. In modern times, parts of the aqueduct including the Piscina Mirabilis were vital to the region's survival as air-raid shelters during World War II.

Visible remains

There are few visible remains of the aqueduct today, although much of it still exists below ground. Traces of the original structure may be found at a number of sites in and around Naples. These include: * supporting wall for arches of a raised aqueduct section at Muro d'Arce near via Muro d'Arce, Sarno * "Ponte Tirone": two parallel sections in Palma Campania (Tirone District), * the two parallel Ponti Rossi aqueduct bridges * a section next to the Crypta Neapolitana in the Parco Vergiliano at Piedigrotta where it occupied a parallel tunnel * a branch to the Pozzuoli amphitheatre and the main aqueduct to the north * a water catchment cave near Scalandrone, comune di Bacoli. * a section next to the entrance to the Baia archaeological park. * the well-preserved Piscina Mirabilis at Misenum. This is one of the largest such reservoirs on an aqueduct known in the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

and survives almost intact to this day. It was probably intended for a large villa, or possibly as a strategic water resource for the naval base though it lies about distant.

In basements between via Arena and vico Traetta

Recently, arches of the twin aqueduct have been revealed in cellars of buildings in Rione Sanità, in 6 via Arena alla Sanità, and are open to the public. They run from north to south for a long section at a separation of 10m and then come as close as 2m in the southern part. The western channel is Augustan, whereas the eastern part was added later. They sparked increased interest in research, which has led to more exploration of the line of the monumental aqueduct. An immense cistern on the line of the channels has been found next to the Hellenistic necropolis. Also a new piece of the ancient aqueduct has been identified uphill from via Foria in the “Miracoli” district where the channel runs underground for 220 m.

Literary depictions

It features prominently in the novel ''

'' by Robert Harris, whose

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a ...

is a water engineer ("Aquarius") sent from

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

to maintain the aqueduct in AD 79 during the time around the eruption of

Mount Vesuvius Mount Vesuvius ( ) is a Somma volcano, somma–stratovolcano located on the Gulf of Naples in Campania, Italy, about east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is one of several volcanoes forming the Campanian volcanic arc. Vesuv ...

References

External links

*
Roman aqueducts
by Wilke D. Schram (Univ. of Utrecht, NL), Cees Passchier (Univ. of Mainz, DEU), Driek van Opstal (ret.)
The Atlas Project of Roman Aqueducts
{{WikidataCoord, display=title 1st-century BC establishments in the Roman Empire Buildings and structures completed in the 1st century BC Roman aqueducts in Italy Archaeological sites in Naples Aqueducts in Italy Pompeii (ancient city) Archaeological sites in Campania Herculaneum Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa