Rome
Information
(Rome, Italy)
(One of the most remarkable cities in the world)
 There's
no escaping it: Rome means history. There's layers of the stuff -
Etruscan tombs, Republican meeting rooms, Imperial temples, early
Christian churches, medieval bell towers, Renaissance palaces and
baroque basilicas. In this city a phenomenal concentration of history,
legend and monuments coexists with an equally phenomenal concentration
of people busily going about their everyday life. It's hard to say what
you'll find most breathtaking about the eternal city - the opulence of
the Vatican, the timelessness of the Forum.
Rome is halfway down Italy's western coast, about 20km (12mi) inland.
It's a vast city, but the historic centre is quite small. Most of the
major sights are within a reasonable distance of the central railway
station, Stazione Termini. It is, for instance, possible to walk from
the Colosseum, through the Forum, up to Piazza di Spagna and across to
the Vatican in one day, but you wouldn't really want to.
All the major monuments are west of the train station, but make sure you
use a map. While it can be enjoyable to get off the beaten track in
Rome, it can also be very frustrating and time-consuming.
The Palatine Hill and the Forum are the centre of ancient Rome. Via del
Corso runs north from the Forum to Piazza del Popolo, with the Spanish
Steps and the Trevi Fountain just to its east. The Vatican is northwest
of the Forum, across the River Tiber.
Rome's marvellous collection of piazzas makes for great resting places
on your walks around the city. Vast and beautiful, Piazza Navona was
laid out on the ruins of Domitian's stadium. It's lined with baroque
palaces and holds three fountains, including Bernini's Fountain of the
Rivers. In Renaissance times, the piazza was flooded on festive
occasions and used to stage mock naval battles. Perhaps Rome's most
popular spot to hang out and be pickpocketed or hassled is the Piazza di
Spagna, at the foot of the Spanish Steps. The Keats-Shelley Memorial
House is nearby, and the piazza is graced by Bernini's boat-shaped
Barcaccia fountain. Elegant Via Condotti (shoppers' heaven) runs into
the piazza, and Rome's oldest café, Caffè Greco, can be found at No 86.
One of the most popular places to hang out isn't a piazza but a fountain
- the Trevi Fountain. It attracts more tourist coins than any other
fountain in Rome, due to the clever rumour that a thrown coin will
ensure your return to the Eternal City. Piazza del Quirinale offers
stunning views of Rome and St Peter's, while the Piazza Venezia is
overshadowed by 'the Typewriter', otherwise known as the Victor Emmanuel
Monument. Piazza Barberini features the fantastic Triton Fountain. Via
Veneto was the place to be in the 1950s and '60s, when the truly
astonishing Swedish import Anita Ekberg personified La Dolce Vita. It's
a shadow of its former self today, but it still has fashionable
pretensions.
It's also home to a bizarre attraction that is definitely more morta
than vita: the creatively decorated Santa Maria della Concezione dei
Capuccini, with rococo decorations and pyramidal stacks created solely
from the bones and skulls of the monks' long-departed fellows. The Campo
de' Fiori is a lively piazza which is home to a daily (except Sunday)
flower and vegetable market. The magnificent Renaissance Farnese Palace
is just off the piazza.
Th is is the term commonly used to indicate the Flavian amphitheatre; it perhaps derives from the fact that a gigantic statue of Nero Know as the Colossus was situated adjacent to it. Begun by Vespasian in 72, the Colosseum was completed by his soon Tito in the year 80: Titus set aside 100 days of festivity to celebrate its inauguration. It could contain up to 50.000 spectators, who gathered there to watch the famous games which were often cruel, but which aroused enormous enthusiasm in the spectators.
The shows staged in the Colosseum included contests between gladiators, The hunting of and battles between wild animals, and naval engagement or naumachiae ( mock sea-fights ), to simulate which the arena was flooded
with water. The Colosseum was also the place of martyrdom of many early Christians.
The speedy entry and exit of spectators was ensured by the placing of the eighty entrances right round the ground floor arcades.
Near to it the Arch of Constantine, a magnificent triple-arcade triumphal arch raised in 312. Behind the Colosseum rises the Oppian, one of the three heights of the Esquilin, one of the seven hills of Rome. A park now extends over it, incorporating
various roman ruins, including the remains of the Domus Aurea. This sumptuously decorated building was the palace of the emperor Nero.
 Circo Massimo and the Jewish Quarter.On its southern side, the Palatine Hill drops suddenly down to the Circo Massimo, a long, thin, green expanse bordered by heavily trafficked roads that was the ancient city’s main venue for chariot races. The arena could apparently hold a crowd of around 200.000 betting punters, and if it were still even half-intact it would no doubt match the Colosseum for grandeur. Just back the Jewish Quarter you find Piazza Bocca della Verità, past two of the city’s better preserved Roman temples – the Temple of Portunus and the Temple of Hercules Victor, the latter long known as the temple of Vesta because, like all vestal temples, is circular. Both date from the end of the second century BC, and although you can’t get inside, they’re actually fine examples of republican-era places of worship; and the Temple of Hercules Victor is, for what it’s worth, the oldest surviving marble structure in Rome. More interesting is the church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin on the far side of the square, a typically Roman medieval basilica with a huge marble altar and a colrful and ingenious Cosmati-work floor – one of the city’s finest. Outside in the portico, and giving the square its name, is the Bocca della verità (Mouth of Truth), an ancient Roman drain cover in the shape of an enormous face that in medieval times would apparently swallow the hand of anyone who hadn’t told the truth. It was particularly popular with husbands anxious to test the faithfulness of their wives, now it is one of the city’s biggest tour bus attractions.
Circo Massimo: Cradled in the valley between the Palatine and the Aventine Hills, today's Circus Maximus offers only a grassy shadow of its former glory. Traditionally it was built by Tarquini. In 64 a.C. it was distroyed by the neronian fire and was so rebuilt by Traiano and exended by Caracalla; ever bigger was after Constantino's work. After its construction, more than 300.000 Romans gathered here to watch the breakneck careening of chariots around the quarter-mile track
Platino: Although there are many remnants of Ancient Rome to see on the Palatine Hill, the cool breezees and sweeping view of Rome are reason enough to make the steep climb from the Forum below. Begin from the stairs that ascend to the Giardini Farnesi. Lower down, labeled the Casa di Romulo (House of Romulus). To the right of the village is the podium of the Tempio di Cybele, whose cult statue now sits in an arch in the foundation of Tiberius' palace.To the left of the Temple is the Casa di Livia; she had the house connected to the Casa di Augusto next door, which leads to the vast ruins of a giant palace built by Domitian divided into two wings: the Domus Augustana, the private space for the imperors and the Domus Flavia site of a gigantic fountain.Between these two,stands the Palatine Antiquarium, the museum that houses the major artifacts found during the excavations of the Palatine Hill. The east wing of the palace contains the Stadium which was a garden.
The Pantheon is one of the most important and most imposing of Romans
Temples. It is also the best preserved. It was built by Marcus Agrippa, son in law of Augustus, in 27 B.C.
in honor of all the gods, hence it's name. It was then destroyed by a fire in 80
A.D. in the time of Hadrian between 110 and 125. In the 609 the temple was consecrated as a Christian church by Pope Boniface IV, who
dedicated it to the Virgin Mary and all the Martyr Saints. The church became the burial place of illustrious Italian artists, such as Raffaello Sanzio, the architect Vignola, the painter Caracci, and also the members of Italy's royal family: the Kings of Italy Vittorio Emanuele II and Umberto I and the Queen
Margherita.
Piazza Navona is situated on the site, and retaining the shape, of the ancient stadium of Domiziano, it represents one of the popular and the most characteristic centres of the city. The piazza is adorned with three fountains, of which the central one is the famous Fountain of the river. Commissioned by Pope Innocenzo X it was sculpted by Bernini and some of his pupils in 1650/51. The four statues represent four river: the Ganges, symbolising Asia, the Nile (Africa), the Danube (Europe), and the Plata (America).
This is perhaps the place which
most effectively characterises the true spirit of the Eternal City where
tourists can gain an altogether unique image of the contrasting facets of
Rome. Set apart from the noise and smell of the traffic, Piazza Navona
seems to be permanently on holiday: the balloon-seller has his pitch
beside a caricaturist who sketches his customer with a few deft strokes of
charcoal; a dear old boy lovingly feeds the pigeons next to a
trade-unionist exhorting his comrades; tourists and locals come to savour
a tartuffo on the terrace of the Tre Scalini.
The long and narrow shape of the square is due to Domitian; in AD 86 he
had a stadium built on this site and immediately instituted a series of
games in the Greek style. Unlike the games in the amphitheatre where the
gladiators confronted one another with violence, these games were contests
of wit and physical fitness; the speaking, poetry and musical competitions
were held in the Odeon while running, wrestling, and discus and javelin
throwing took place in the stadium.
Domitian’s stadium was stripped of its marbles in 356 by Constantinus II
on a visit to Rome and by the 5C it was in ruins. It came to life again
during the Renaissance when it developed into one of the most beatiful
sights in Rome under the Popes. In 1477 the market from the foot of the
Capitol was moved here and attractions were added to bring in the crowds,
such as the Cuccagna, a greased pole which strong men tried to climb, or
puppet shows.
In the mid-17C the square was partially flooded to accomodate water games
at the weekend in summer. Since 1869 it is only at Christmas and Epiphany
that market stalls appear in Piazza Navona for the fair of the Befana, a
kindly old witch who brings toys for the children.
CAMPO DE' FIORI
 Tradition
would have it that the name comes from Flora, Pompeo's lover, but more
likely it comes from the fact that in the late 1300's, the piazza was
abandoned for a brief period, and became a meadow. Since 1869 it has
been the home to a vibrant and colorful market. In the center rises the
monument to Giordano Bruno, who in 1600 was burned here at the stake as
a heretic for contending that the universe has no center.
Campo de' Fiori is located in the heart of the Centro Storico next to
the Piazza Farnese and a short walk from the Piazza Navona. No churches,
no palaces, no obelisks, but life and death. Julius Caesar was murdered
in a subsidiary building of the Roman senate near the square. Campo de'
fioriis a lively piazza where a flower and vegetable market. In the
center rises the monument to Giordano Bruno, who was burned at the stake
for heresy in the piazza in 1600 and his statue now stands at its
centre.
 Campo
de' Fiori market
Piazza Campode' Fioriowes its name to the " flowers field ". Campo de'
fioriis a lively piazza where a flower and vegetable market. Since 1869
it has been the home to a vibrant and colorful market. By mid afternoon
it becomes the hangout for those in search of nightlife. The square is
characterised by many pubs, cafés and restaurants. Many of the streets
near Campo de' Fioriare named after the artisans who traditionally
occupied them. Campo de’ Fiori become the center of Rome and a meeting
place for people of all
Giordano Bruno's monument
Here on February 17h 1600, the philosopher and astronomer Giordano Bruno
was burned as an heretic for contending that the universe has no center.
Now, in the center of "Campo de Fiori" (Field of flowers) rises his
monument. The statue was erected in 1889 by italian monarchy and it was
built by the patriots who fought for the reunion of Italy. Giordano
Bruno is considered by many to be a martyr for science and by many more
to be a martyr for free thought.
The name derives from the fact that the district is the only one in the historic centre which is away from the Tiber. Originally it was called Castra Lecticarum, or field of the stretcher bearers of Siri; in fact, it was an area dedicated to the cult of Siri. Jews later settled in the area from where they handled their traffic with the Orient. then, when goods traffic on the Tiber came to an end, they settled on the opposite bank. The importance of Trastevere grew ever greater once Bonifacio VIII decided to institute the Studium Urbis there. The area is home to the "Romano de Roma" or the "True Roman".A beautiful church,
It was on this spot in 38 BC that a fountain of oil flowed for a whole day. Christians later interpreted this as a sign of the grace which Christ would spread throughout the world.
Pope Calixtus (217-22) is said to have built the first sanctuary but it was the energetic Pope Julius I (337-52), a keen builder, who constructed a proper basilica. The building was altered in the 9C by Gregory V to provide a crypt in which he laid the saintly remains of Calixtus, Pope Cornelius and
Caleopodius.
The present basilica dates from the 12C; it was built about 1140 during a brief period of calm in the troubled reign of Innocent II who was beset by the anti-popes, Anacletus II and Victor IV.
Despite St. Bernard’s assistance, when Innocent II died, Rome was in the hands of revolutionares who had proclaimed a Republic. His successors restored and embellished the church on many occasions right up to the 19C.
Trevi Fountain - Spanish steps Area
 Elegant and scenic, the Piazza di Spagna
provides a welcoming point of encounter at the centre of Rome. Its peculiar fascination derives from a combination of colour, the 18th century buildings that
surround it, the flowers that adorn the Spanish Steps, and the animate and cosmopolitan atmosphere that pervades it.
From this piazza fan out such prestigious streets as Via Margutta, famous because of the many painters who live and display their works there; via del Babbuino, with its many antiques shop; via Condotti, with its
sophisticated boutiques and celebrated Caffè Greco, dating bank to the 18th century, a historic place of rendezvous of great Italian and foreign artists; via Borgognona, it too f lanked by fashionable boutiques and couturiers; and the lively via Frattina.
Piazza di Spagna, a few steps from one of Rome’s more surprising sights, easy to stumble upon by accident – the Fontana di Trevi, a huge, very Baroque gush of water over statues and rocks built onto the backside of a Renaissance palace; it’s fed by the same source that surfaces at the Barcaccia fountain in Piazza di Spagna. There was a Trevi fountain, designed by Alberti, around the corner in Via dei Crociferi, a smaller, more modest affair by all accounts, but Urban VIII decided to upgrade it in line with his other grandiose schemes of the time and employed Bernini, among others, to design an alternative. Work didn’t begin, however, until 1732, when Niccolò Salvi won a competition held by Clemente XII to design the fountain, and even then it took 30 years to finish the project. Salvi died in the process, his lungs shot by the time spent in the dank waterworks of the fountain.
The Trevi Fountain is now, of course, the place you come to chuck in a coin if you want to guarantee your return to Rome, though you might remember Anita Ekberg throwing herself into in La Dolce Vita (there are police here to discourage you from doing the same thing). Newly restored, it’s one of the city’s most vigorous outdoor spots to hang out.
TREVI
 Near Piazza di Spagna we can find The spectacular Trevi Fountain. Erected for Clemente XII by the architect Niccolò Salvi towards the end of the 17th century, it shows at ita centre the statue of Ocean that riding in a sea chariot drawn by two Triton. Into the basin below, symbolising the sea, it is the
time honored custom to throw a coin to guarantee a return to this splendid city. Near the fountain is via del Tritone, a bustling modern thoroughfare, full of boutiques and crowded whit shoppers at all times of the day.
VIA VENETO
In
the roaring 1950's it reflected the glamour of the Dolce Vita, with Cafes where beautiful people sat all day hoping to be either photographed or discovered, and with the elegant shopping haunts of Hollywood-on-the-Tiber.
The cafes are still here, as are most of the nice shops. The new feature is glass-enclosed outdoor restaurant areas which succeed each other down the street like circus elephants holding each others tails
 The Vatican State, which was created following the Lateran Treaty on 11 February 1929, occupies the Ager Vaticanus, on the right bank of the Tiber, the site which the first Christians, including S. Piter himself, were martyred. \par In the year 324 Costantino, himself a convert to Christianity, erected a sumptuous basilica in
honor of the Apostle.
Enriched and embellishment throughout the Middle Ages, this early Christian basilica eventually became so dilapidated that it was decided to rebuild it completely: the commission to do was entrusted to Bramante in 1506.
In the years that followed numerous alterations to the original plant were made, and Raffaello, Peruzzi, Sangallo and Michelangelo were all successively involved in the project as architects.
The latter, basing himself in part of Bramante's plan ( which had already begun to the build) conceived a huge basilica on a Greek-cross plan, topped by a magnificent double-shell dome. In the early years of the 17th century Maderno transformed the Greek-cross into a Latin-cross by elongating the nave, and also designed the existing facade. Later Bernini laid out the el liptical colonnade embracing St. Peter's square.
In the Vatican City there are the Vatican Museum that contains the Museo delle antichit`, The picture gallery (pinacoteca) and the Museo Gregoriano Profano e Pio Cristiano. In the Musei Vaticani we can also find The Cappella Sistina, designed by the Architect Giovannino
derquote Dolci for Pope Sisto IV, it represent one of the most important complexes both from an artistic and a religious and historical point of view. It consist of a large rectangular hall, surmounted by a richly frescoed barrel vault. The frescoes of the walls of the Sistin Chapel date to 1481/1483; those of the ceiling to quarter century later.
The painters involved in this sublime work of pictorial decoration include the most authoritative names in the whole word Italian painting: first and foremost Michelangelo, then Pinturicchio and Signorelli and the most noted representative of the Florentine school, such as Botticelli, Ghirlandaio and Cosimo
Rosselli.
|
