In the first half of the 16th century, an artificial basin was built in the Genoese neighborhood of Lagaccio, which the locals referred to derogatorily as "Lagasso." This basin, commissioned by Andrea Doria, was built near a splendid palace overlooking the sea and surrounded by an Italian garden with fountains fed by the waters of the Lagaccio. An aqueduct, ending with a public washhouse, drew water from the basin and distributed it throughout the city.Later, the government of the Most Serene Republic of Genoa used the waters of the Lagaccio to supply the gunpowder factories that had been established in the Rio San Tomaso valley. During the winter, the waters of the basin froze and the children of the neighborhood skated on the frozen surface, while during the summer they jumped in to swim. However, according to chronicles of the time, there were many cases of drowning.In the 1970s, Lagaccio was filled in and replaced by a soccer field. However, the neighborhood and the reservoir that once characterized it have become world famous for the eponymous Genoese cookie, produced by a small local bakery since 1593. To this day, the Lagaccio Genoese Biscuit is still considered Genoa’s typical cookie par excellence.
