Cisternoni of Livorno

Last updated
"La Gran Cisterna" at Livorno designed by Pasquale Poccianti. Cisternone Livorno.jpg
"La Gran Cisterna" at Livorno designed by Pasquale Poccianti.

The Cisternoni of Livorno are a series of three large buildings in the neoclassical style at Livorno, in Tuscany, Italy. They were constructed between 1829 and 1848 as part of a complex of purification plants and storage tanks to the Leopoldino aqueduct; a fourth cisternone planned at Castellaccia was never built. The cisternoni , literally "great cisterns", provided Livorno a city that is still today one of the principal ports of the Mediterranean with fresh and, more importantly, clean water throughout the 19th and 20th centuries.

Contents

Designed by the architect Pasquale Poccianti, the cisternoni are architecturally important, as they represent the advent of an aesthetically considered approach to the design of utilitarian public work. This movement, whose followers are sometimes known as "Utopians", was pioneered by such architects as Étienne-Louis Boullée and Claude-Nicolas Ledoux at the close of the 18th century. [1] The movement resulted in great palaces and temples of industry and commerce, their palatial and temple-like facades concealing the mundane reality of their true use, which were to dominate many towns and landscapes from the 19th century onwards.

Pasquale Poccianti

Villa del Poggio Imperiale with the facade envisaged and drawn by Pasquale Poccianti. Villa del poggio imperiale, esterno 02.jpg
Villa del Poggio Imperiale with the facade envisaged and drawn by Pasquale Poccianti.

Pasquale Poccianti, the reservoirs' architect, was "Engineer to the Commune of Livorno" and "Architect of the Royal Works". Poccianti had trained at Florence's Accademia di Belle Arti. In his capacity as court architect, Poccianti worked on many prominent Tuscan buildings both private and municipal, including the grand ducal residence, the Palazzo Pitti. Poccianti was a keen disciple of the architect Gaspare Maria Paoletti, who had redesigned much of the Villa del Poggio Imperiale leaving only the main facade unchanged. In 1807, Giuseppe Cacialli redesigned the principal facade of the Villa from drawings by Poccianti. [2]

In their use of monumental neoclassical architecture for industrial buildings, the Livorno cisterns can be compared with works of radical French neoclassicists Étienne-Louis Boullée and Claude-Nicolas Ledoux. Thus their dominating, over-scaled proportions emphasize the new prominence which was to be given throughout the 19th century to functional buildings proving mundane services not only celebrating the innovations of the forthcoming industrial age but attempting to realise the Utopian approach to town planning envisaged from the late 18th century. Previously such buildings, when they existed, had been given little aesthetic architectural consideration and had often been hidden from view or, when unavoidably visible, disguised to conceal their true use. Occasionally the disguise could draw more attention than necessary, as was the case with the pumping station designed by Ludwig Persius built in Sanssouci Park in 1842, which was disguised as a grandiose mosque complete with minarets.

La Gran Conserva

"La Gran Conserva" of Livorno designed in 1829 Caos davanti al Cisternone di Livorno.JPG
"La Gran Conserva" of Livorno designed in 1829
The 1766 design by Ledoux for Marie-Madeleine Guimard's Parisian mansion with a similar niche to that of the Gran Cisternone. Hotel de Mlle Guimard - Paris - Elevation.jpg
The 1766 design by Ledoux for Marie-Madeleine Guimard's Parisian mansion with a similar niche to that of the Gran Cisternone.
One of Ledoux's plans for the ideal city of Chaux: The "House of Supervisors" at the source of the Loue. Published in 1804. The River Inspector's house straddles the river. Chaux - Maison de surveillants de la source de la Loue.jpg
One of Ledoux's plans for the ideal city of Chaux: The "House of Supervisors" at the source of the Loue. Published in 1804. The River Inspector's house straddles the river.

La Gran Conserva, or "Il Cisternone" ( 43°33′09″N10°19′10″E / 43.5525°N 10.3195°E / 43.5525; 10.3195 (La Gran Conserva) ), situated on what were the outskirts of 19th-century Livorno, is the largest and best known of the city's's covered cisterns. It was constructed between 1829 and 1842 to the design of Pasquale Poccianti. While the facade of the Cisternone was completed by 1833 to commemorate the marriage of Tuscany's ruling Grand Duke Leopoldo II to his second wife Maria Antonietta, the water system was not fully operational until 1842.

It is thought that the architect, Antonio Antolini (better known for his work at the Bonaparte Forum in Milan, a circular piazza of palazzi with the Castello Sforzesco at its centre) [3] may have also been involved in the design, as correspondence between him and Poccianti regarding the Cisternone exists. [4]

The building appears almost surreal in its design, due to its dominant dome which resembles more a "cut-away" illustrative architectural drawing, a section, than a realised project. Inspired by the Pantheon in Rome the "dome" is unique, appearing as a half-dome or "semi-cupola." It is in reality an enormous niche open to the elements thus it seems that one views the interior from the exterior. A similar, but less theatrical, construction can be seen crowning the classical temple front of Alberti's Basilica of Sant'Andrea in Mantua, built in 1470.

At Livorno, the great niche surmounts a massive portico supported by eight columns in the Tuscan order, the order theorists considered most appropriate to military architecture. Attention is drawn to the niche by its proportions which dwarf the lower floors beneath it. One explanation for the individuality of the great niche is that large niches and concave recesses ornamenting pediments were a defining feature of Italian Baroque architecture. In Italy the Baroque style was superseded more swiftly by the neoclassical style than elsewhere in Europe; thus there can be found a confusing blend of the two styles in parts of Italy. However, the Gran Cisterno is very late for this fusion of styles, so the influence of Ledoux seems the most likely reason for this magnificently eccentric feature. There are obvious similarities between the Gran Conserva and Ledoux's drawings for the "House of Supervisors" at his idealistic vision of the city of Chaux, a late 18th-century example of modern town planning [5] and more obviously still in a design by Ledoux for a Parisian mansion for Marie-Madeleine Guimard, which was conceived as early as 1766. In its turn, the Gran Cisternone was to be the inspiration for the design of half-dome Beaux-Arts bandshells, such as the Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park, New York. [6]

The interior of the building is divided into two halves. The first and most visible is the principal facade and its flanking wings, which house the apartments for caretakers and staff; behind lies the second half and main body of the building which contains the T-shaped reservoir itself. This is subdivided by Tuscan columns supporting the roof above, giving it the air of a cavernous aquatic cathedral.

The cisterns were not only places for storing the city's water but were also "purgatori" places for purifying the water. Water entered the reservoir from the Acquedotto Leopoldino through layers of gravel and carbon, a method of filtration which was later replaced by a more modern chlorine treatment system. The later removal of the gravel filtering system meant that the cistern could be used to its maximum capacity to store 10,000 cubic metres of water. This reservoir and purification plant is still in use today.

Cisternino di Pian di Rota

Cisternino di Pian di Rota designed in 1827 Livorno - Cisternino di Pian di Rota 7-12-2008.jpg
Cisternino di Pian di Rota designed in 1827
Villa Badoer designed by Palladio in 1557 VillaBadoer 2007 07 14 01.jpg
Villa Badoer designed by Palladio in 1557

The smaller Cisternino di Pian di Rota( 43°34′07″N10°21′52″E / 43.5686°N 10.3645°E / 43.5686; 10.3645 (Cisternino di Pian di Rota) ), in the Pian di Rota area of the city, was begun in 1845, although it had been planned as early as 1827. While, like the architect's other works, it is strictly speaking in the neoclassical style, the Cisternino di Pian di Rota also has the air of a Palladian villa of the Veneto. The symmetrical facade is dominated by a massive prostyle portico clearly based on that of the Pantheon in Rome while the composition of the facade could be emulating Scamozzi's Villa Rocca Pisani or Palladio's Villa Badoer. Whatever the inspiration, the architect's vision of achieving Utopian ideals in architecture by emulating the temples of antiquity is very evident. Such philosophies had been advocated and popularised in the paintings of the idealised Italian landscape by Claude, Poussin and Dughet. A temple similar to the Cisternino di Pian di Rota had been built in the 1750s as a garden folly in the gardens at Stourhead in England. [7]

The interior houses the large rectangular reservoir, originally divided into two, as with the other cisternoni. One half houses a filtration system of beds of gravel and carbon. The roof of the reservoir is supported by 28 Tuscan columns.

Cisternino di Città

Cisternino di Città( 43°33′08″N10°18′47″E / 43.5523°N 10.3130°E / 43.5523; 10.3130 (Cisternino di città) ) is an austere neoclassical design which was approved in 1837 and completed in 1848. The design was greatly altered during its construction: originally the close proximity of neighbouring buildings meant that only one facade would be visible, but alteration and demolitions in the city during 1840 caused the building to face two different new thoroughfares. The result of the redesign was a great loggia supported by ionic columns raised above a heavy base pierced only by sparse and narrow windows. The sides of the building are embellished by apses with lunette windows.

The "Cisternino di citta" in the centre of Livorno was also designed by Pasquale Poccianti. Cisternino citta.jpg
The "Cisternino di città" in the centre of Livorno was also designed by Pasquale Poccianti.

This severe almost startling form of neoclassicism had become popular in the first decade of the 19th century. It was pioneered by such architects as Peter Speeth and Friederich Gilly and is in contrast to the more elegant neoclassicism of such architects as Robert Adam and John Nash. This form of street architecture was most popular in Germany, where it was used to great effect in such squares as Munich's Theresienwiese.

This building was never used for its intended purpose and has been used in several different roles. Most recently it has since 1945 served as Livorno's cultural centre.

Cisternoni

Cisternoni are not peculiar to Livorno; they have been constructed from Roman times in many other locations in Italy. Most notably in Albano Laziale in the 3rd century AD, and Spasiano in Sorrento. Both of these examples, like the comparatively new Gran Conserva, are today still in use. Like their earlier counterparts the Cisternoni of Livorno are today places of public interest.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Livorno</span> Port city in Italy

Livorno is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 158,493 residents in December 2017. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrea Palladio</span> 16th-century Italian Renaissance architect of the Republic of Venice

Andrea Palladio was an Italian Renaissance architect active in the Venetian Republic. Palladio, influenced by Roman and Greek architecture, primarily Vitruvius, is widely considered to be one of the most influential individuals in the history of architecture. While he designed churches and palaces, he was best known for country houses and villas. His teachings, summarized in the architectural treatise, The Four Books of Architecture, gained him wide recognition.

The year 1848 in architecture involved some significant events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Filippo Juvarra</span> Italian architect

Filippo Juvarra was an Italian architect, scenographer, engraver and goldsmith. He was active in a late-Baroque architecture style, working primarily in Italy, Spain, and Portugal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Villa del Poggio Imperiale</span> Former grand ducal villa in Arcetri, Italy

Villa del Poggio Imperiale is a predominantly neoclassical former grand ducal villa in Arcetri, just to the south of Florence in Tuscany, Central Italy. Beginning as a villa of the Baroncelli of Florence, it was seized by the Medici, became the home of a Medici princess, and a lavish retreat for a Grand Duchess with imperial pretensions. Later given to Napoleon's sister, it was reclaimed by the hereditary rulers of Tuscany before being finally converted to a prestigious girls' school. During its long history, it has often been at the centre of Italy's turbulent history, and has been rebuilt and redesigned many times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neoclassical architecture</span> 18th–19th-century European classical revivalist architectural style

Neoclassical architecture, sometimes referred to as Classical Revival architecture, is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy, France and Germany. It became one of the most prominent architectural styles in the Western world. The prevailing styles of architecture in most of Europe for the previous two centuries, Renaissance architecture and Baroque architecture, already represented partial revivals of the Classical architecture of ancient Rome and ancient Greek architecture, but the Neoclassical movement aimed to strip away the excesses of Late Baroque and return to a purer and more authentic classical style, adapted to modern purposes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claude Nicolas Ledoux</span> French Neoclassical architect

Claude-Nicolas Ledoux was one of the earliest exponents of French Neoclassical architecture. He used his knowledge of architectural theory to design not only domestic architecture but also town planning; as a consequence of his visionary plan for the Ideal City of Chaux, he became known as a utopian. His greatest works were funded by the French monarchy and came to be perceived as symbols of the Ancien Régime rather than Utopia. The French Revolution hampered his career; much of his work was destroyed in the nineteenth century. In 1804, he published a collection of his designs under the title L'Architecture considérée sous le rapport de l'art, des mœurs et de la législation. In this book he took the opportunity of revising his earlier designs, making them more rigorously neoclassical and up to date. This revision has distorted an accurate assessment of his role in the evolution of Neoclassical architecture. His most ambitious work was the uncompleted Royal Saltworks at Arc-et-Senans, an idealistic and visionary town showing many examples of architecture parlante. Conversely his works and commissions also included the more mundane and everyday architecture such as approximately sixty elaborate tollgates around Paris in the Wall of the General Tax Farm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Architecture of Italy</span> Overview of the architecture in Italy

Italy has a very broad and diverse architectural style, which cannot be simply classified by period or region, due to Italy's division into various small states until 1861. This has created a highly diverse and eclectic range in architectural designs. Italy is known for its considerable architectural achievements, such as the construction of aqueducts, temples and similar structures during ancient Rome, the founding of the Renaissance architectural movement in the late-14th to 16th century, and being the homeland of Palladianism, a style of construction which inspired movements such as that of Neoclassical architecture, and influenced the designs which noblemen built their country houses all over the world, notably in the United Kingdom, Australia and the United States of America during the late-17th to early 20th centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giuseppe Puini</span> Italian engineer and architect

Giuseppe Puini was an Italian engineer and architect who worked in the neoclassical style in Tuscany, largely at Livorno, where he was largely responsible for the piazza that provides an urbanistic setting of the Cisternone (1842) and the Church of Sant’Andrea, and for the Church of San Giuseppe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Italian Neoclassical architecture</span>

Italian Neoclassical architecture refers to architecture in Italy during the Neoclassical period (1750s–1850s).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tommaso Temanza</span>

Tommaso Temanza was an Italian architect and author of the Neoclassic period. Born in Venice, he was active both in his natal city and the mainland towns of the Republic of Venice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neoclassical architecture in Milan</span> Medieval artistic movement

Neoclassical architecture in Milan encompasses the main artistic movement from about 1750 to 1850 in this northern Italian city. From the final years of the reign of Maria Theresa of Austria, through the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy and the European Restoration, Milan was in the forefront of a strong cultural and economic renaissance in which Neoclassicism was the dominant style, creating in Milan some of the most influential works in this style in Italy and across Europe. Notable developments include construction of the Teatro alla Scala, the restyled Royal Palace, and the Brera institutions including the Academy of Fine Arts, the Braidense Library and the Brera Astronomical Observatory. Neoclassicism also led to the development of monumental city gates, new squares and boulevards, as well as public gardens and private mansions. Latterly, two churches, San Tomaso in Terramara and San Carlo al Corso, were completed in Neoclassical style before the period came to an end in the late 1830s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giacomo Moraglia</span> Italian architect

Giacomo Moraglia was a prolific Italian architect in the late Neoclassical period, remembered above all for his Porta Comasina in Milan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph di Pasquale</span> Italian architect

Joseph Di Pasquale is an Italian architect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arnaldo dell'Ira</span> Italian architect

Arnaldo Dell'Ira was an Italian architect.

Bruno Sacchi was an Italian architect and collaborator of Giovanni Michelucci. He is known for his work on the Museo Marino Marini at the former church of San Pancrazio in Florence, the Museo Marino Marini at the TAU Convent in Pistoia, collaborations with Giovanni Michelucci and designs of private houses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Villa di Poggio a Caiano</span>

The Medici Villa of Poggio a Caiano, also called Ambra, is one of the most famous Medici villas and is located in Poggio a Caiano (Prato). Today it is state owned and it houses two museums: one of the historic apartments and the Museum of Still Life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aqueduct of Colognole</span> Water system in Livorno

The Acquedotto Leopoldino and the neoclassical cisterns of Livorno were part of a sophisticated scheme to not only provide water to Livorno, but also clean it. The scheme was centred on the 18 km (11 mi) long aqueduct which runs south to north bringing water to the city from Colognole. This feat of engineering first carried water to the city in 1816, long before its completion. It was Livorno's sole water supply until 1912, still serving some areas of the city.

Gaetano Orzali was an Italian engineer and architect, a significant figure in the Art Nouveau style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neoclassical architecture in Tuscany</span> Neoclassical architecture in Tuscany, Italy

Neoclassical architecture in Tuscany established itself between the second half of the eighteenth century and the first half of the nineteenth century within a historical-political framework substantially aligned with the one that affected the rest of the Italian peninsula, while nonetheless developing original features.

References

  1. Vidler, Claude-Nicolas Ledoux: Architect of the Revolution Between Vision and Utopia.
  2. Villa del Poggio Imperiale retrieved 17 August 2007
  3. M. Giulia Marziliano, Giovanni Antonio Antolini architetto e ingegnere (1753 1841). Faenza Editrice, Faenza - Bologna 2000. ISBN   88-8138-057-9
  4. F. Gurrieri and L. Zangheri (eds.) (1977), Pasquale Poccianti architetto, 1774 1858. Contributi al convegno per la celebrazione del secondo centenario della nascita, Firenze, p.39.
  5. This theory is explored further in D. Matteoni (1992), Pasquale Poccianti e l'acquedotto di Livorno, Roma - Bari.
  6. Naumberg Concerts Archived 2007-08-17 at the Wayback Machine .
  7. While the Stourhead "Pantheon" has a rotunda, their facades are almost identical. Stourhead Landscape Garden. The National Trust 2000. P 14.

Sources