THE BOLLENTE

THE BOLLENTE

You are now in front of the symbolic monument of the city, the exclusive prerogative of Acqui Terme: La Bollente!

A characteristic attraction and destination for every visitor, it is an extraordinary gift of nature that almost leaves one incredulous at the abundance of water that has been gushing continuously for centuries, so hot it can scald the fingers – hence the nickname "the boiling"!! - and admiring it clouds the view with large and fascinating steam clouds, but to fully enjoy its beauty and feel its greater suggestion, it is advisable to wait until dusk to see it illuminated by LED light shows that color it, making it even more spectacular!!

From a historical point of view, this spring was already known in Roman times.

Pliny the Elder, in 77 AD (Naturalis Historia), mentions these hot waters considering them among the best in the Roman Empire. The fame of the thermal establishments and the growing commercial importance, as well as its strategic position as an important road junction, enriched the ancient Aquae Statiellae with aqueducts, hot water pools, along with sumptuous buildings, theaters, and amphitheaters.

From an architectural point of view, this is the first work by Architect Giovanni Ceruti (1842-1907), called in 1870 by Senator Giovanni Saracco, then Mayor of the spa town, to redevelop the area of the Square, used from 1731 to 1848 as a Jewish ghetto, and to celebrate, with the construction of the new fountain and in the 1880s the perspective colonnade of the porticoes, named after him, the importance for the city of this spring.

The new monument, inaugurated on May 16, 1879, has the appearance of a Greek temple: the granite base is surmounted by a aedicula in white Carrara marble, octagonal in plan.

In the middle, you can notice the basin shaped like a shell that receives the water directly from the source, then pouring it into a semi-circular sub-basin and from there, through an underground channel, passing into another covered basin, it then emerges from two circular bronze mouths in the middle of the square.

The flow rate is about 560 liters of water per minute and it gushes out at a temperature of around 75°C. It is precisely the high flow rate of this spring that, suitably channeled into underground pipes, feeds the mud baths of the New Baths establishment in Via XX Settembre, inaugurated in 1889.

The water, besides being drinkable, is mainly used in the therapy of rheumatological, orthopedic, otorhinolaryngological, pneumological, angiologic, and gynecological conditions. It can also be used in dermatology and gastroenterology, as well as in aesthetic medicine.

In the past and until the early 1960s, there were the so-called "brentau", that is, the bearers of steaming water from the Bollente fountain.

It was a unique profession in the world, for an important public service: the "brentau", in fact, brought the precious hot water with the "brente", zinc-plated metal containers carried on the shoulder that contained up to fifty liters of healthy water to the citizens' homes when there were no boilers and centralized heating systems.

A curiosity: do you know why the locals of Acqui are called "sgaientò" in the local dialect?

The term, which translated into Italian literally means "scalded", is the nickname with which the native people of Acqui like to recognize themselves. According to popular legend, in the past, it was customary for newborns in Acqui Terme to be taken to the Bollente fountain and quickly immersed there, thus earning the nickname of "sgaientò" – that is, scalded.

The small square in front of this fountain is the "living room of the city", with its cafes and restaurants and is the focus of the most important events and numerous manifestations.

Finally, while admiring the Bollente, looking to the left, you can see the Porta della Bollente then called the Civic Tower without foundations that strongly characterizes the square. This tower was one of the main gates of the city already from the end of the 1100s. In 1763 it was transformed into the Civic Tower.