Description of the attraction
Cisternoni di Livorno are three huge neoclassical buildings erected between 1829 and 1848 as part of the Leopoldino aqueduct water treatment complex and reservoirs. The fourth Chternone, which was to appear in the Castellaccia area, was never built.
Translated from the Italian language "chternone" means "huge cistern". They supply the city, which is today a major Mediterranean port, with fresh water. In addition, the cisterns, designed by the architect Pasquale Pochcianti, are an example of an aesthetic approach to the design of utilitarian structures.
The Leopoldino Aqueduct, also known as the Aqueduct di Colognole, and the neoclassical cisterns of Livorno were part of a project not only to supply the city with water, but also to purify it. The centerpiece of the project was an approximately 18 km long aqueduct that brought water from the Colognele. This engineering masterpiece was commissioned in 1816, long before the final completion of construction. Until 1912, the aqueduct was the city's only water supplier.
The construction of the aqueduct began in 1793 by order of Duke Ferdinad III and by the project of the architect Giuseppe Salvetti. In 1799, work stopped due to the death of Salvetti due to political differences that arose in Tuscany during the Napoleonic wars. Only in 1806, Queen Maria Louise ordered to continue the construction of the aqueduct - work continued until 1824. Subsequently, the structure of the aqueduct was modified more than once.
La Gran Conserva, also known as Ile Cisternone, is Livorno's largest and most famous covered cistern. It was built in 1829-42 according to the project of Pasquale Pochcianti. In 1833, in order to immortalize the wedding of the ruling Tuscan Duke Leopoldo II and Marie Antoinette, the facade of the Gran Cannery was completed ahead of schedule, although the entire structure remained inoperative until 1842. Today, this structure has a surreal appearance, thanks to its dome, for which the Roman Pantheon served as a model.
A smaller cistern, Cisternino di Pian di Rota, was built in 1845. It is also made in a neoclassical style, but at the same time resembles the Palladian villas of Veneto. The symmetrical façade is crowned with a massive prostyle-shaped portico, and inside is a huge rectangular reservoir.
Finally, the Cisternino di citta was built in 1848. It is notable for its large loggia with Ionic columns and narrow windows. This building has never been used for storing water, and since 1945 it has been the seat of the city's cultural center.
