Lake Nemi
| Lake Nemi | ||
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| Lake Nemi | ||
| Geographical location | Central Italy | |
| Location close to the shore |
Nemi Genzano di Roma |
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| Data | ||
| Coordinates | 41 ° 42 ′ 44 " N , 12 ° 42 ′ 12" E | |
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| Altitude above sea level | 316 m slm | |
| surface | 1.67 km² | |
| Maximum depth | 33 m | |
The Nemisee (Italian Lago di Nemi ) is a lake in the Alban Hills of central Italy, around 30 km southeast of Rome . It is a crater lake in the volcanic complex of Vulcano Laziale . The Nemisee is separated from the neighboring Lake Alban by the Monte Cavo .
The lake belongs to the mark of the municipality Nemi . The south-western shore of the lake borders on the municipality of Genzano .
In the ancient
In ancient times, the sanctuary of Diana Nemorensis , located below today's town of Nemi, was an important place of worship. The lake also developed into a recreational area for wealthy Romans and numerous villas were built around it, including one for Julius Caesar .
The Roman Emperor Caligula (37–41 AD) had two magnificent ships , the Nemi ships , built on the lake for his private pleasure and for cultic purposes . How long these giant barges were in use on the lake is unclear. However, they must have sunk or sunk a short time after Caligula's fall.
The drainage tunnel
Presumably in pre-Roman times, the inhabitants of Ariccia dug a tunnel through the south-western crater wall in order to lower the level of Lake Nemi and to irrigate their own valley. So farmland was gained in both the Nemi crater and in the valley of Ariccia, also an extinct volcanic crater. The tunnel was a technical masterpiece with a length of 1,653 m and a gradient of 12.63 m, which was initially protected with wooden filters, after expansion in Roman times with marble filters. At the time of the Nemi ships , the lake was probably lowered even further to calm the water surface, as the ships with their stone superstructures were sensitive to waves. The tunnel fell into disrepair in the Middle Ages. However, it was repaired again from 1927 in order to pump out the water of the lake through it and thus to expose the ancient ships again.
Web links
- Nemi ships (Deutschlandfunk on the latest research)
- Research by Sotterranei di Roma on various aspects of the emissary
- Roma sotterranea to the tunnel
- EU project "Diana"