The appearance of the source of the Rugarella 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 in Acquapendente. The source, which is located within the city, is known as the “source of Sugarelle or Rugarella” due to its location in the street of the same name. At the end of the nineteenth century, thanks to the intervention of the architect Guglielmo Meluzzi, the source was renovated, giving it its monumental appearance.
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SOURCE OF RUGARELLA
HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION
The appearance of the source of the Rugarella 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 in Acquapendente. Since its origins, the town has been a land rich in natural springs, which spring from the contact of tuffaceous deposits with the underlying lava flows. The source was already in use in the sixteenth century, as evidenced by the writings of Biondi, a local chronicler of the sixteenth century, who defines it with the name “source of the canal”. 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 source, which is located within the city, is known as the “source of Sugarelle or Rugarella” due to its location in the street of the same name. At the end of the nineteenth century, thanks to the intervention of the architect Guglielmo Meluzzi, the source was renovated, giving it its monumental appearance. Four large arches, open and protected by grates to allow ventilation of the collection compartment, are each placed in correspondence with a lion’s head, from which the water flows through the torches and pours into the collection tank below, wide all the way. width of the square. The source sets the scene for the widening, and through its monumental construction characterized by lion masks inserted within arches, pilasters and cornices, it perfectly frames the appearance of the source within a typology that can be defined as neo-Renaissance.
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.
