Exclusive tours on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 October

 

As part of the special openings of the 14th edition of the FAI Autumn Days, Acea is offering a unique opportunity to discover two symbolic sites representing the history and management of water, energy, and the environment in the capital. On Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 October, visitors will be able to access – by reservation and exclusively for FAI members – the Trevi Fountain control room, a hidden gem in the heart of Rome. For the first time ever, Acea Heritage: il Palazzo dell’Acqua e della Luce (the Palace of Water and Light), Acea’s historic headquarters, will also be open to the public. Among more than 700 sites exceptionally open in 350 Italian cities, from north to south, the country’s leading industrial group renews its collaboration with FAI, confirming its commitment to promoting culture and enhancing the national heritage.

The secrets of Trevi Fountain

Visitors will be able to access the Trevi Fountain Control room, a site normally closed to the public and managed by Acea. This is a unique opportunity to discover the technological heart of the famous Roman monument, hidden beneath its spectacular surface. The tour will take visitors through the equipment that controls the fountain’s operation: pumps, water softeners, and water-level regulation systems, all the way to the “multifunction vacuum cleaner”, used to collect the coins thrown each day by tourists.

The visit will include the historic control room, which provides direct access to the fountain’s basin through small openings set among its sculptures: a privileged vantage point from which to admire the monument from a unique perspective and to understand its maintenance needs. Here, beneath the floor, still flows the water of the Vergine aqueduct, while a series of historical artifacts – pipelines, fittings, stoppers, and distribution panels – bear witness to the operation of the water system over the centuries.

During the visit, participants will also explore the current role of the Vergine aqueduct, which has been operating almost continuously for over two thousand years and still supplies the fountain with its clear water. The monument stands at the foot of the Quirinal Hill, in the heart of the Trevi district, which takes its name from the ancient trivium located beside the fountain, an area of Rome inhabited since the Augustan age, thanks to the water brought by the Vergine Aqueduct. In the early seventeenth century, a project for a new fountain was launched under the direction of Gian Lorenzo Bernini who designed its initial layout. However, work was suspended due to a lack of funds and resumed only a century later. The project was completed in 1762 under the supervision of Giuseppe Pannini, who succeeded Nicola Salvi, the creator of the original project. Financed through the proceeds of the Lotto game, the construction of the fountain involved nine artists over a span of thirty years. Pannini reinterpreted its style, introducing Neoclassical elements such as regular basins with smooth marble rims, replacing the earlier rockwork.

 

The Trevi Fountain today stands as the most important stone sculptural work created in Rome between the Late Baroque and Neoclassical periods. Although it has drawn criticism over time, from Valadier to Piacentini, it is universally recognized as one of the city’s most iconic marvels, thanks also to the dramatic effect enhanced by the narrow space of the square that surrounds it.

 

Il Palazzo dell’Acqua e della Luce

On the occasion of the FAI Days, Palazzo dell’Acqua e della Luce, Acea’s historic headquarters, will exceptionally open its doors to the public. It is located between Ostiense and Testaccio, a corner of Rome where past and present surprisingly meet. Built between 1956 and 1961, the building is an interesting example of Italian brutalist architecture. What makes it truly special is the collection preserved within: a heritage of objects and works of art that tell the story of energy, technology, and creativity in Italy. 

The tour unfolds along two main routes. The first is a journey through technological memory: alternators, transformers, token-operated meters, historic lamps – instruments that accompanied Italy’s modernization and today stand as witnesses to an era.

 

The second path is dedicated to art, focusing on the work of two major figures of twentieth-century Italian culture: Gino Marotta and Pietro De Laurentiis. Through sketches, drawings, and original studies – many of them previously unpublished and lent by the Marotta Archive and the De Laurentiis heirs – visitors will discover how these artists helped make Acea’s headquarters truly unique, seamlessly and visionary integrating art and architecture.

 

Access information

Acea Heritage – il Palazzo dell’Acqua e della Luce: free entry

Trevi Fountain Control room: reserved for FAI members, by advanced reservation only. Fully booked.

 

For more information, click here.