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The activities conducted in the large villa on the promontory certainly required large quantities of water, especially for the baths. The water supply was at least partly ensured by a cistern that was identified on the Acropolis. The cistern, which can be attributed to Roman ages, consists of a large rectangular room with a barrel vault, walls covered with hydraulic mortar and a cocciopesto floor. The structure is currently divided into two distinct sectors (2,15 meters and 15 meters, respectively) due to the changes that occurred in the modern age, when it was used as a sheepfold and for cheese-making; some air vents were opened and a fireplace and dividing walls were built. In ancient times, the cistern, which is aligned with the service areas of the villa, had to be completely buried.
As the area of Saturo was rich in water springs, an aqueduct was probably built there between the I century B.C. and the I century A.D. The aqueduct, whose first section is located in the village of Leporano (NE of Saturo), developed underground at a depth of approximately 2,5 meters for the most part of its route (approximately 13,5 km in total). In its last section, at the entrance to the city of Tarentum, it rose on arches and supporting walls. A section of this ancient infrastructure is still visible on today’s Corso Italia, in Taranto.
Indirizzo: Viale Saturo, 74020 Leporano TA
Telefono: 340 9247013
Email: parcosaturo@libero.it
