The current denomination of source of the “Mascheroni” came into use only when the source was renovated in the nineteenth century thanks to the intervention of the architect G. Meluzzi, who oversaw the project with pilasters and cornices, placing grotesque masks around the torches water. The source is the scene of the small square that opens below the level of Via XV Maggio.
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SOURCE OF RIGOMBRO
HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION
The current appearance of the source of the Rigombo is due to the urban reorganization of some of the areas of the city which took place in the second half of the nineteenth century. Since its origins, Acquapendente has been a land rich in natural springs, which spring from the contact of tuffaceous deposits with the underlying lava flows. The fountain was already in use in the 16th century, as is clear from the writings of Biondi, a local chronicler of the 16th century, who mentions it “and the source towards Santaa Vittoria is asked by Rigombo”. At the beginning the spring was collected in pits and was used only for animals, while where it came out, the water was perfectly clear and drinkable. The name of the source of Rigombo probably derives from the Latin “recumbere”, that is to rest, but also to stop, meaning that the source was the place of interruption of the journey for the traveler and his mount, an aspect also put in analogy with the path of the via francigena which passed right next to the fountain .. The current denomination of the source of the “Mascheroni” came into use only when the source was renovated in the nineteenth century thanks to the intervention of the architect G. Meluzzi, who oversaw the project with pilasters and cornices, placing grotesque masks around the water pipes. The source is the scene of the small square that opens below the level of Via XV Maggio. Six blind arches with a more advanced body in the center, where the central niche houses a fake rocky concretion from which a wave of water flows. On the sides, three on each side, arranged symmetrically with respect to the central body, are masks that spray the water through small spouts. This is collected inside a tank that runs along the entire monument. The insertion of pilasters, grotesque masks and cornices perfectly frames the appearance of the source within a typology that can be defined as neoclassical.
ESSENTIAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
AA.VV. Acquapendente e il suo territorio. Regione Lazio, Assessorato alla Cultura, Spettacolo, Sport e Turismo. Direzione regionale cultura, sport e turismo, area valorizzazione del territorio e del patrimonio culturale. Avellino 2004.
Agostini, Le chiese di Acquapendente, Acquapendente 1987;
Biondi P., Le origini del comune di Acquapendente e la Madonna del Fiore, Acquapendente 1966;
Costantini N., Memorie storiche di Acquapendente, Acquapendente 1982;
Chiovelli R. Mengalli M. A. L., Guglielmo Melluzzi architetto di Acquapendente post unitaria. Acquapendente 2003.
Lise G., Acquapendente. Storia. Arte. Figure. Tradizioni, Acquapendente 1971.
Nardini S., Acquapendente. Guida alla scoperta. Acquapendente 2008.
Pietro Paolo Biondi, Le Croniche di Acquapendente. Descrizione della terra d’Acquapendente con la sua antiquità, nobiltà, governo, usanze ed altre cose (ed. a stampa del manoscritto ddl 1588) Acquapendente 1984.
Rossi M., Cenni storici di Acquapendente. Viterbo 1989.
Acquapendente città d’arte, fonte della Rugarella.
