Every time we travel on the autostrada to and from lovely Lucca we pass the Nottolini aqueduct. I have wanted to find where it goes to in Lucca for years.
I decided it had to be near the train station, so I went there and asked a knowledgeable looking gentleman where it was. He told me to go through the underpass to the other side of the tracks, turn left and then take the first street to the right and I would find it. I did.
I first came to the cistern of San Concordio, where the aqueduct ends. Water was drawn from several springs on the northern slope of Mount Pisano and travelled along 3 kilometres of aqueduct to the cistern.
It is cut in 2 by the autosrada, but that is not the only road that goes through the aqueduct.
The city of Lucca has grown outside the walls and the aqueduct is surrounded by houses for some of its length. As I walked further along beside it the houses were left behind and the walk became quite lovely.
People still collect water from several taps along the way.
It is constructed from bricks and stone.
It was designed by Lorenzo Nottolini and work began in 1823 and was completed in 1851 – sorry to disappoint those who thought it was of Roman origin.
It is well worth taking the time to find the aqueduct and walking for a while beside it, even if it is not 2,000 years old.