May 17, 2024 - Classic Italy
Heart of Rome Walking Tour
We left Pompeii and drove to Rome in the nice tour bus. Along the way tour director Tony said "outside the right window is Monte Cassino, where a famous World War II battle was fought." I had always pictured Monte Cassino atop a high mountain peak, amidst a sea of other mountains, and certainly not astride a major superhighway. Monte Cassino did not look that high up either. That couldn't be it I told myself. But later, I looked on Google Maps, and sure enough, it was Monte Cassino. The main thoroughfare -- A1 -- from Naples to Rome runs just to the west of it. So I can say I saw it.
The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome, was a series of four military assaults by the Allies against German forces in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II. The objective was to break through the Winter Line and facilitate an advance towards Rome. In the beginning of 1944, the western half of the Winter Line was anchored by German forces holding the Rapido-Gari, Liri, and Garigliano valleys and several surrounding peaks and ridges. Together, these features formed the Gustav Line. Monte Cassino, a historic hilltop abbey founded in 529 by Benedict of Nursia, dominated the nearby town of Cassino and the entrances to the Liri and Rapido valleys. Lying in a protected historic zone, it had been left unoccupied by the Germans, although they manned some positions set into the slopes below the abbey's walls. -- Wikipedia
We arrived at our hotel in the late afternoon and had the rest of the day (and evening) to ourselves. Lynnette and I decided to do Rick Steves' Heart of Rome Walking Tour.
We started the walking tour at the top of the famous Spanish Steps. At the top was the Sallustiano Obelisk, one of thirteen ancient obelisks in Rome, the most in the world. Eight are ancient Egyptian and five are ancient Roman.
This obelisk was made around 2nd or 3rd century AD by the Romans, making use of quarried red granite from Aswan. The date of transport to Rome is not known. Initially, it was erected in the Horti Sallustiani - hence the name - between the Quirinale and the Pincio hills. Upon the death of the owners, the obelisk and the Horti were acquired by Emperor Tiberius.
It remained fortunately unscathed and standing during the devastations of 410 by the hands of Alaric and the Goths. Finally, it fell. Although it was abandoned on the ground in 3 pieces for centuries, it was never forgotten.
Pope Sixtus V wanted to erect it in front of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri; he entrusted the restoration to Maderno, but the project did not follow. About a century later, Athanasius Kircker, who had discovered the secret of the inscriptions, asked Pope Alexander VII to erect it again.
It was not until 1734 that Pope Clement XII managed to have it transported to Piazza San Giovanni in Laterano, nearby the Holy Staircase, but this time, it was not raised, and laid horizontal. For 50 years, the three pieces stayed on the ground. In the same years, negotiations to transport it to Paris were carried out. The Fench wanted to erect it in front of the Cathedral of Notre Dame.
Eventually, Pope Pius VI decided to erect the obelisk at the top of the staircase of Trinità dei Monti despite a chorus of adverse opinions, and with some concern on the part of the Minim Fathers of the Trinity worrying for the facade of their church. The architect Giovanni Antinori accepted the task.
The top of the Sallustian Obelisk was crowned with heraldic symbols of the Pope and a cross containing a fragment of the Holy Cross, the relics of Saint Joseph, Saint Francis of Paola, Pius V, and the apostles Peter and Paul. The works ended in 1787, and the inauguration took place on 20 April of the same year.
Obviously people come here to see and be seen.
Constructions on the steps were completed in 1725. There are 138 steps.
At the foot of the steps is the Sinking Boat Fountain (Fontana della Barcaccia).
Pope Urban VIII commissioned Pietro Bernini in 1623 to build the fountain as part of a prior Papal project to erect a fountain in every major piazza in Rome. The fountain was completed between 1627 and 1629.
The source of the water comes from the Acqua Vergine, an aqueduct from 19 BC. All of Rome's fountains are aqueduct-powered.
100 yards down the Piazza di Spagna is the Column of the Immaculate Conception.
The column was dedicated on 8 December 1857, celebrating the recently adopted dogma of the Immaculate Conception of 1854.
The monument has a square marble base with statues of biblical figures at the corners that uphold a column of Cipollino marble. The Corinthian column itself was sculpted in ancient Rome, and was discovered in 17 September 1777 during the construction of the monastery. Due to its incomplete construction, it had probably never been used and perhaps was in the remains of a marble workshop.
Atop the column is a bronze statue of the Virgin Mary, the work of Giuseppe Obici. The standard imagery of the immaculate conception is used: a virgin on a crescent, atop the world, stomping a serpent (a symbol of the original sin assigned to all humans since Adam and Eve; except the perfected sinless Virgin Mary).
At the base are four statues of Hebrew figures that gave portent of the virgin birth, each accompanied by a quote of a biblical verse in Latin.
At left is Patriarch Moses. At center is King David.
"This watery Baroque avalanche by Nicola Salvi was completed in 1762. Salvi used the entire Neoclassical facade of the palace behind the fountain as a theatrical backdrop for the figure of Neptune, who represents water in every form. The statue surfs in his shell-shaped chariot through his wet kingdom -- with water gushing from 24 spouts and tumbling over 30 different kinds of plants." ... Rick Steves
The best known and most persistent tradition consists of throwing a coin into the fountain before leaving "the eternal city", a superstition associated with the fountain being that whoever makes this gesture would favor a future return to the city. Coins are purportedly meant to be thrown while turning one's back to the fountain, using the right hand over the left shoulder.
Whoops! Lynnette is using the wrong hand. Guess she isn't coming back to Rome anytime soon.
And enter the Piazza Colonna dominated by the Column of Marcus Aurelius.
I'm a big Marcus Aurelius fan, so imagine my disappointment to learn that Marcus Aurelius is no longer on the top of the column. They replaced him with a statue of Saint Paul. I mean no disrespect to Saint Paul, but Marcus Aurelius deserves his own column, especially when it is covered with carvings of his military victories.
Marcus Aurelius is commemorated as being the last of the Five Good emperors between the years 96AD-180AD. This was a time of semi-peaceful borders, prosperous growth, and a stable government with leaders who had with a desire to serve. The Roman Empire at the time was at the height of its influence, its borders spreading far across modern Asia, Europe, and Africa. The Northern Border didn’t spread past the Germanic (barbarian) borders on the Rhine and Danube Rivers. Marcus Aurelius was revered as a stoic and wise emperor.
The construction of the column is said to have begun at either the end of the wars in 176AD and at the time of his Marcus Aurelius's death in 180AD; ultimately the construction of the monument was completed in 193AD.
The spiral picture relief tells the story of Marcus Aurelius' Danubian or Marcomannic wars, waged by him from 166 to his death. The story begins with the army crossing the river Danube, probably at Carnuntum.
The base of the Column was reconstructed by Domenico Fontana and was commissioned by Pope Sixtus V, in 1588. The original base had 4 original inscriptions on the base, that were changed during the restoration. The original inscriptions have been lost. The new inscriptions were one on each side of the Column. The North side said the Column was dedicated to Saint Paul and the defeat of barbarianism. The eastern inscription says its new Christian role with Saint Paul. The south inscription records the restoration of the Column under Domenico Fontana and Pope Sixtus V. Finally, the western inscription is the Column being dedicated by Marcus Aurelius to his predecessor, Antonis Pius.
This building on the Piazza Colona houses the Public Prosecutors Offices. Don't want to mess with them!
We enter the Piazza di Montecitorio which features a sixth-century B.C. Egyptian obelist taken as a trophy by Augustus after his victory in Egypt over Mark Antony and Cleopatra. This obelisk is the only one in Rome still capped with a pre-Christian ornament.
In the background is Italy's parliament building, where the lower house meets.
Next up was the famous Pantheon, which Rick Steves calls perhaps the most magnficent building surviving from ancient Rome.
The Pantheon is a former Roman temple and, since AD 609, a Catholic church. It was built on the site of an earlier temple commissioned by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa during the reign of Augustus (27 BC – AD 14); then, after the original burnt down, the present building was ordered by the emperor Hadrian and probably dedicated c. AD 126.
Almost two thousand years after it was built, the Pantheon's dome is still the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. It is one of the best-preserved of all Ancient Roman buildings, in large part because it has been in continuous use throughout its history.
At the southern end of the rectangular Piazza was a fountain featuring a Moor wrestling with a dolphin called the Fontana del Moro. In 17th-century Rome, Moors (Africans) represented all that was exotic and mysterious.
Designed by Giacomo della Porta in 1575 and later enhanced by Bernini, it features a central figure of a Moor wrestling with a dolphin, surrounded by tritons and seashell motifs. The fountain’s intricate sculptures, set against the backdrop of the bustling piazza, highlight the Baroque elegance of the square. It’s a delightful spot for admiring Roman artistry while soaking in the vibrant atmosphere of Piazza Navona.
Looking down the Piazza. In the center is a fountain with an Roman-made, Egyptian-style obelisk sticking out of it. Per Rick Steves, obelisks were popular with Roman emperors because Egyptian society saw its rulers as divine -- an idea Rome liked to promote).
The Four Rivers Fountain was designed in 1651 by Gian Lorenzo Bernini for Pope Innocent X whose family palace, the Palazzo Pamphili, faced onto the piazza as did the church of Sant'Agnese in Agone of which Innocent was the sponsor.
Close-up, is the Fountain of the Four Rivers. created by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, the man who remade Rome in the Baroque style. As the water of the world gushes everywhere, four burly river gods (representing the four quarters of the world).
Bernini enlivens the fountain with horses plunging through rocks and the exotic flora and fauna of faraway lands.
The center figure represents the Ganges (for Asia), holding an oar. The figure at left is the Dauabe representing Europe.
This is Pasquino, a third-century B.C. statue. Per Rick Steves, Pasquino is one of Rome's "talking statues." For 500 years, this statue has served as a kind of commuity billboard, allowing people to complain anonymously whenit might be dangerous to speak up. To this day, you'll see old Pasquino strewn with political posters, strike annoucements, and grumbling graffiti. The statue looks literally worn down by centuries of complaining about bad government."
The City Museum is in the building behind but it was closed by this time of day.
In the center of Campo de' Fiori is the statue of Giordana Bruno, an intellectual heretic who was burned on this spot in 1600.
And so ended our Heart of Rome Walk. Outstanding!
