A few meters from the Fontana di Trevi is Vicus Caprarius, known as the City of Water. This archaeological site, hidden in the interior of Rome, was discovered less than twenty years ago during the construction of a new cinema. Located in the center of Rome, steps from the famous fountain, you can descend down a modern path to access a complex of imperial-era buildings, where the remains of a water reservoir are found.
After the devastating fire of 64 A.D., Emperor Nero devised a new urban concept and built here a multi-storey housing block (island) that accommodated numerous families. This type of “intensive” residence brought multiple people together under one roof. In the 4th century, the island was transformed into a noble residence (domus), and the ground floor was repurposed for the installation of toilets. The walls were decorated, and the stairs, still visible, were clad in marble. The main floor served as a family representation space, adorned with beautiful mosaic.
During the 2nd century AD, the southern part of the building was adapted to house a large water reservoir, known as Castellum Aquae, which drained the waters of the Roman aqueduct Vergine, the only one still in operation. This aqueduct supplies not only the Fontana di Trevi, but also the Fountain of the Four Rivers in Piazza Navona and the Barcaccia Fountain in Piazza di Spagna. Castellum Aquae, with a capacity of approximately 150,000 cubic meters of water, consists of two communication rooms, coated with a mixture of bricks and lime to isolate the walls from moisture (cocciopesto). In Roman times, water flowed to Castellum from Vicus Caprarius via the Via Salaria Vetus and then distributed through two ducts to the south. A splash of water still flows inside this ancient tank.
Next to Castellum Aquae, two houses dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries were found, whose walls were built with decayed marble and Roman bricks, following the medieval custom of reusing pre-existing architectural elements.
