Aqua Augusta (Naples)

[2] The eastern parts of the route of the aqueduct[3][4][5] are well known thanks to the writings of two Italian engineers,[6] who were asked to see if it could be brought back in use as the main water supply of Naples in the 16th and 19th centuries.

The aqueduct's main source (caput aquae), the Fons Augusteus (now known as Acquaro-Pelosi), was in the Terminio-Tuoro mountains near the modern town of Serino not far from the city of Avellino and at 376 m above sea level.

The Serino aqueduct was constructed during the Augustan period of the Roman Empire, probably from 33 BC when Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (close friend and ally of Emperor Augustus) was curator aquarum in Rome, principally in order to refurnish the Roman fleet of Misenum and secondarily to supply water for the increasing demand of the important commercial harbour of Puteoli as well as for big cities such as Cumae and Neapolis.

In Rome, a letter from the emperor was required to gain a private connection and so it seems that imperial favour was also a factor in accessing the Augusta's water.

Later, this harbour was seen as less ideal because of silting problems and a new major naval base was built further west at Misenum to become the basis of the western Mediterranean fleet.

The cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabiae were also originally supplied by the aqueduct but, being buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, they did not appear on this list.

[citation needed] In modern times, parts of the aqueduct including the Piscina Mirabilis were vital to the region's survival as air-raid shelters during World War II.