Palacio de Aguas Corrientes

Palacio de Aguas Corrientes, or Palace of the Running Waters, is Buenos Aires’ stunning water-pumping station. In the late nineteenth century, population growth and several epidemics pressured the city to introduce a modern running-water system. Such a luxury, it seems, called for the construction of a palace—one that would take up the length of an entire city block. Work began in 1887 and was completed seven years later.

Designed by a Swedish-Argentine architect, the building is garnished by hundreds of thousands of imported tiles and glazed bricks, and topped by a roof emblazoned with fourteen emblems representing each Argentine province. Such extravagant splendor is only fitting for the marvel that exists inside. Within its walls sits an immense iron structure that hydrates the city. British engineer John Bateman first provided designs, with tanks that span three floors and can hold upwards of seventy-two million liters of water.

Revered for both facade and function, the Palacio de Aguas Corrientes was designated a national historic monument in 1987. Today, it is owned by Buenos Aires’ water company, garnering it the serviceable, if uninspired, nickname of the Water Company Palace. Visitors are welcome to take a refreshing tour of the pumping station—tissues are encouraged, as the building’s breathtaking architecture, accompanied by lessons in the history of its grandeur and lifesaving efficiency, is still capable of inspiring waterworks.

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