Menu :

Histoire

Personnages

Nature

Itinéraires par région

La Casa Rossa (“The Red House”), also known as the Casa Delle Cateratte (“The House of the Sluice-Gates”), is an imposing practical structure built in the years following 1765, on the design of the Jesuit Leonardo Ximenes, commissioned by Grandduke Pietro Leopoldo di Lorena to move forward the reclamation plan of the Grossetan Maremma. The scientist argued that the Lago di Castiglione did not need to be completely drained, as had been previously attempted, but instead correctly controlled within the entire water system, to avoid stagnation. Thus the lake could remain an important source of income and employment, for fishing, hunting, and the use of marshland vegetation. The building, of a distinctive red colour, presents three large archways; on the first floor is the room of the winch, in which the drainage machinery was placed, along with the pulleys used to operate the sluice-gates (this term was used for the barrage works, appointed to retain and hinder the flow of water). The central one weighed approximately 40 quintals, or more than two tons, composed of oak wood and sheathed in iron. The structure enabled the control of the runoff flow of the great ditch, called the Royal or Master-Canal, which permitted changes and renewals of the lake’s waters. Beyond hydraulic, sanitation, and hygienic purposes, this reclamation infrastructure served to propel mills and olive presses, to ensure the viability of the canal, and to regulate a reasonable utilization of fishing, in ways that would rehabilitate the ancient role of the lake as a centre for the supply of fish in Granducal Tuscany.

La Casa Rossa (“The Red House”), also known as the Casa Delle Cateratte (“The House of the Sluice-Gates”), is an imposing practical structure built in the years following 1765, on the design of the Jesuit Leonardo Ximenes, commissioned by Grandduke Pietro Leopoldo di Lorena to move forward the reclamation plan of the Grossetan Maremma. The scientist argued that the Lago di Castiglione did not need to be completely drained, as had been previously attempted, but instead correctly controlled within the entire water system, to avoid stagnation. Thus the lake could remain an important source of income and employment, for fishing, hunting, and the use of marshland vegetation. The building, of a distinctive red colour, presents three large archways; on the first floor is the room of the winch, in which the drainage machinery was placed, along with the pulleys used to operate the sluice-gates (this term was used for the barrage works, appointed to retain and hinder the flow of water). The central one weighed approximately 40 quintals, or more than two tons, composed of oak wood and sheathed in iron. The structure enabled the control of the runoff flow of the great ditch, called the Royal or Master-Canal, which permitted changes and renewals of the lake’s waters. Beyond hydraulic, sanitation, and hygienic purposes, this reclamation infrastructure served to propel mills and olive presses, to ensure the viability of the canal, and to regulate a reasonable utilization of fishing, in ways that would rehabilitate the ancient role of the lake as a centre for the supply of fish in Granducal Tuscany.

Castiglione Della Pescaia

Accessibilité :

:

Contact :