The construction was built by the podestà (the mayor) Ildebrandino of Pisa in 1265,  as showed by the epigraph above the second arcade.
It was the main water supply facility of the city.
Originally the tanks were filled with water and the walls were richly decorated with frescoes.
Just one of them remained intact, the so-called Albero della Fecondità, the Fertility Tree, which features a tree with particular fruits, for which many women are competing.
Upstairs there are the Magazzini dell’Abbondanza, built in the XV century and used as barns to ensure the food supply for the citizens.
Today, they have been transformed into multipurpose rooms, which hosts events, exhibitions, conventions and more.