Rome

ROME AREA BY AREA 199

AV E N T I N E

This is one of the most foot of the hill, ancient Rome is
peaceful areas within the preserved in the two tiny
walls of the city. Although Temples of the Forum Boarium

it is largely residential, there are and the Circus Maximus. The

some unique historic liveliest streets are in

sights. From the top of the Testaccio, which has

Aventine hill, crowned by shops, restaurants and

the magnificent basilica of Mask fountain clubs, while to the south,
in courtyard of
Santa Sabina, there are fine Santa Sabina beside Rome’s solitary pyra-
views across the river to mid, the Protestant Cemetery

Trastevere and St Peter’s. At the is another oasis of calm.

SIGHTS AT A GLANCE

Churches and Temples Ancient Sites GETTING THERE
San Giorgio in Velabro 3 Circus Maximus y The quickest way is by Metro
San Giovanni Decollato 6 Monte Testaccio w line B to Piramide or Circo
San Saba t Massimo. For a more interesting
San Teodoro 4 Monuments and Tombs trip, take tram 3. Several buses
Santa Maria della Protestant Cemetery e go down from Piazza Venezia,
Pyramid of Caius Cestius r including 81, 160 and 628, while
Consolazione 5 23 and 280 run along Via
Santa Maria in Cosmedin 1 7*" % $0/40-";*0/& Marmorata to Piramide.
Santa Sabina 9
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• Street Finder, maps 7, 8, 12
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• Restaurants pp323–4

Pines and orange trees on the Aventine hill with the dome of St Peter’s in the distance

200 ROME AREA BY AREA

Street-by-Street: Piazza della Bocca della Verità

The area attracts visitors eager to place their hands inside Sant’Omobono,
the Bocca della Verità (the Mouth of Truth) in the portico a late 16th-century
of Santa Maria in Cosmedin. There are many other sights to church, now stands
see in this quiet corner of the city beside the Tiber, which in isolation in the
was the site of ancient Rome’s first port
and its busy cattle market. Substantial middle of an
Classical remains include two small important
temples from the Republican age and
the Arch of Janus from the later Empire. archaeological site.
In the 6th century the area became The remains of
home to a Greek community from
Byzantium, who founded the churches sacrificial altars and
of San Giorgio in Velabro and Santa two temples from the
Maria in Cosmedin. 6th century BC have

been discovered.

Casa dei Crescenzi
This 11th-century building
used columns and capitals
from ancient Roman
temples 7

Ponte Rotto, as this forlorn ruined
arch in the Tiber is called, means
simply “broken bridge”. Built in the
2nd century BC, its original name
was Pons Aemilius.

. Temples of
Forum Boarium
The tiny round
Temple of Hercule
and its neighbour
the Temple of
Portunus, are th
best preserved
of Rome’s
Republican
temples 8

KEY

Suggested route

0 metres 75
0 yards 75

STAR SIGHTS IA

. Santa Maria in . Santa Maria
Cosmedin in Cosmedin
This medieval church has a
. Temples of the Forum fine marble mosaic floor and
Boarium a Gothic baldacchino 1

AV E N T I N E 201

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Santa Maria della San Teodoro 0TUJFOTF
Consolazione The 15th-century portal of
This 16th-century this ancient round church is LOCATOR MAP
church used to decorated with the arms of See Central Rome Map pp14–15
serve a hospital
nearby 5 Pope Nicholas V 4

San Giovanni Decollato
The plain Renaissance façade
was completed in about 1504 6

San Giorgio
in Velabro
The simple

12th-century
portico of

Ionic columns
was destroyed
by a bomb in
1993 but has
been restored 3

of Janus The Arco degli Argentari,
quare structure dedicated to the Emperor
rches on each side Septimius Severus in AD 204,
is decorated with scenes of
s from the 4th
entury AD 2 religion and war.

DELLA

GRECA here
in 1715. The style shows the
powerful influence of Bernini.

202 ROME AREA BY AREA

Bocca della Verità at docks. Merchants did business sive damage to the front of
in its shade. On the keystones the church. Careful restoration
Santa Maria in Cosmedin above the four arches you can has, however, returned it to
see small figures of the its original appearance.
Santa Maria in goddesses Roma, Juno, Ceres
Cosmedin 1 and Minerva. In medieval times A double row of assorted
the arch formed the base of a granite and marble columns
Piazza della Bocca della Verità 18. tower fortress. It was restored (taken from ancient Roman
Map 8 E1. Tel 06-678 1419. @ 23, to its original shape in 1827. temples) divides the triple
44, 81, 95, 160, 170, 280, 628, 715, nave. The austerity of the
716. Open winter:10am–5pm daily; San Giorgio in cool grey interior is relieved
summer: 9am–6pm daily. 5 7 = Velabro 3 by golden frescoes in the
apse (attributed to Pietro
This beautiful unadorned Via del Velabro 19. Map 8 E1. Cavallini, 1295). The façade
church was built in the 6th Tel 06-6920 4534. @ 23, 44, 63, and the bell tower date from
century on the site of the 81, 95, 160, 170, 280, 628, 715, 716, the 12th century.
ancient city’s food market. 780. Open 10am–12.30pm,
The elegant Romanesque bell 4–6.30pm daily. San Teodoro 4
tower and portico were added
during the 12th century. In the San Giorgio in Velabro after its Via di San Teodoro 7. Map 8 E1.
19th century a Baroque façade restoration in 1999 Tel 06-678 6624. @ 23, 44, 81,
was removed and the church 95, 160, 170, 280, 628, 715, 716.
restored to its original In the hollow of the street Open 9.30am–12.30pm Sun–Fri.
simplicity. It contains many named after the Velabrum, the
fine examples of Cosmati work, swamp where Romulus and If you are in the area on a
in particular the mosaic Remus are said to have been Sunday morning, you will find
pavement, the raised choir, the found by the she-wolf, is a this small round 6th-century
bishop’s throne and the canopy small church dedicated to St church at the foot of the
over the main altar. George, whose bones lie Palatine a delight to visit for
under the altar. the Greek Orthodox services.
Set into the wall of the Inside, the 6th-century mosaics
portico is the Bocca della Verità The 7th-century basilica has in the apse are breathtaking,
(Mouth of Truth). This may suffered over the centuries as is the Florentine cupola
have been a drain cover, from periodic floods, and in dating from 1454. The fetching
dating back to before the 4th 1993 a bomb caused exten- outer courtyard was designed
century BC. Medieval tradition by Carlo Fontana in 1705.
had it that the formidable
jaws would snap shut over The church of San Teodoro, one of
the hand of those who told Rome’s hidden treasures
lies – a useful trick for testing
the faithfulness of spouses.

Arch of Janus 2 The Arch of Janus, where cattle dealers sheltered from the midday sun

Via del Velabro. Map 8 E1. @ 23,
44, 63, 81, 95, 160, 170, 280, 628,
715, 716, 780.

Probably dating from the
reign of Constantine, this
imposing four-faced marble
arch stood at the crossroads
on the edge of the Forum
Boarium, near the ancient

AV E N T I N E 203

its name, San Temples of the
Giovanni
Decollato. In Forum Boarium 8

1490 Pope Piazza della Bocca della Verità. Map 8
Innocent VIII E1. @ 44, 81, 95, 160, 170, 628.
gave this site to

build a church

for a very

specialized

Florentine

confraternity.

Clad in black

robes and

hoods, their

task was to

encourage

Façade of Santa Maria della Consolazione condemned

prisoners to

Santa Maria della repent and to give them a
Consolazione 5 decent burial after they had
been hanged. In the cloisters

there are seven manholes

Piazza della Consolazione 84. (one for women), which

Map 5 A5. Tel 06-678 4654. received the bodies.

@ 23, 44, 63, 81, 95, 160, 170, The oratory contains a cycle

280, 628, 715, 716, 780. of frescoes describing the life

Open 6.30am–noon, 3.30–6.30pm of St John the Baptist by the Temple of Portunus

daily. 5 7 leading Florentine Mannerists,

Jacopino del Conte and These miraculously well-

The church stands near the Francesco Salviati. In style the preserved Republican temples

foot of the Tarpeian Rock, figures resemble some of are particularly appealing by

the site of public execution those in the Sistine Chapel. moonlight, in their grassy

of traitors since the time of enclave under the umbrella

the Sabine War (see p74). Casa dei pines beside the Tiber. They
In 1385, Giordanello degli Crescenzi 7 date from the 2nd century BC
and were saved for posterity
Alberini, a condemned

nobleman, paid two gold when they were reconsecrat-

florins for an image of the Via Luigi Petroselli. Map 8 E1. ed as Christian churches in

Virgin Mary to be placed @ 23, 44, 63, 81, 95, 160, 170, the Middle Ages. They offer

here, to provide consolation 280, 628, 715, 716, 780. rare examples of combined

to prisoners in their final elements from Greek and

moments. Hence the name of Studded with archaeological Roman architecture.

the church that was built here fragments, the house is what The rectangular temple

in 1470. It was reconstructed remains of an 11th-century (formerly known as the Temple

between 1583 and 1600 by tower fortress. The powerful of Fortuna Virilis) was in fact

Martino Longhi who provided Crescenzi family built it to dedicated to Portunus, the

the early Baroque façade. keep an eye on the docks god of rivers and ports – a

The church’s 11 side-chapels (now the site of the Anagrafe reference to the nearby port

are owned by noble families or Public Records Office) and of ancient Rome. Set on a

and local crafts guild members. on the bridge where they podium, it has four Ionic

In the presbytery is the famed collected a toll. travertine columns fluted at

image of Mary, attributed to the front and 12

Antoniazzo Romano. half-columns,

embedded in

San Giovanni the tufa wall
Decollato 6 of the cella –
the room that

housed the

Via di San Giovanni Decollato 22. image of the

Map 8 E1. Tel 06-679 1890. god. Nearby

@ 23, 44, 63, 81, 95, 160, 170, is the small circu-

280, 628, 715, 716, 780. Open lar Temple of

24 Jun, otherwise by appt only. Hercules. It is

often referred to

The main altar is dominated as the Temple of

by Giorgio Vasari’s The Vesta because of

Beheading of St John (1553) its similarity to the

from which the church takes Ancient Roman fragments in the Casa dei Crescenzi one in the Forum.

204 ROME AREA BY AREA

Luminous interior of Santa Sabina Alessio, son of a rich senator the international Benedictine
living on the site, fled East to church, where Gregorian
Santa Sabina 9 avoid an impending marriage chant may be heard on
and became a pilgrim. Sundays (see p356).
Piazza Pietro d’Illiria 1. Returning home after many
Map 8 E2. Tel 06-5794 0600. years, he died as a servant, Doorway of the Priory of the
@ 23, 280, 716. Q Circo Massimo. unrecognized, under the stairs Knights of Malta
Open 6.30am–12.45pm, 3–7pm of the family entrance hall,
daily. 7 clutching the manuscript of Monte Testaccio w
his story for posterity.
High on the Aventine stands Via Galvani. Map 8 D4. Q Piramide.
an early Christian basilica, The original 5th-century @ 23, 95, 673. v 3. Open by appt
founded by Peter of Illyria in church has undergone many
AD 425 and restored to its changes over time. Noteworthy
original simplicity in the early are the 18th-century façade
20th century. Light filters with its five arches, the restored
through 9th-century windows Cosmati doorway and pave-
upon a wide nave framed by ment, and the magnificent
white Corinthian columns Romanesque five-storey bell
supporting an arcade decorated tower (1217).
with a marble frieze. Over the
main door is a 5th-century blue An 18th-century Baroque
and gold mosaic dedicatory chapel by Andrea Bergondi
inscription. The pulpit, carved houses part of the famous
choir and bishop’s throne staircase. Other relics include
date from the 9th century. the well from Alessio’s family
home and the glowing
The church was given to the Byzantine Madonna of the
Dominicans in the 13th century Intercession brought from
and in the nave is the magnif- Damascus to Rome at the end
icent mosaic tombstone of one of the 10th century.
of the first leaders of the order,
Muñoz de Zamora (died 1300). Piazza dei Cavalieri only (see p383).

The side portico has 5th- di Malta q From about 140 BC to AD
century panelled doors carved
from cypress wood, represent- 250 this hill was created
ing scenes from the Bible,
including one of the earliest Map 8 D2. @ 23, 280, 716. by dumping millions of testae
Crucifixions in existence.
Q Circo Massimo. (hence Testaccio) – pieces of
Santi Bonifacio
e Alessio 0 the amphorae used to carry

Piazza di Sant’Alessio 23. Map 8 D2. Surrounded by cypress trees, goods to nearby warehouses.
Tel 06-574 3446. @ 23, 280, 716.
Q Circo Massimo. Open 8.30am– this ornate walled piazza The full archaeological signifi-
12.30pm, 3.30–6.30pm daily. 7
decorated with obelisks and cance of this 36-m (118-ft) high
The church is dedicated to
two early Christian martyrs, military trophies was designed artificial hill was not realized
whose remains lie under the
main altar. Legend has it that by Piranesi in 1765. It is named until the late 18th century.

after the Order of

the Knights of

Malta (Cavalieri

di Malta), whose

priory (at No. 3)

is famous for the

bronze keyhole

through which

there is a miniature

view of St Peter’s,

framed by a tree-

lined avenue. The

priory church, Santa

Maria del Priorato,

was restored in

Neo-Classical style

by Piranesi in the

18th century. To

visit the church,

ask permission in

person at the

Order’s building at

48 Via Condotti. At

the southwest cor-

ner of the square

is Sant’Anselmo, Façade of Santi Bonifacio e Alessio

AV E N T I N E 205

Protestant Detail of carving on sarcophagus in penury by the gift of a bag of
Cemetery e gold from St Nicholas, the
the portico of San Saba future Santa Claus. The
Cimitero Acattolico, Via Caio Cestio 6. beautiful marble inlay in the
Map 8 D4. Tel 06-574 1900. San Saba t main door, the floor and the
@ 23, 95, 280. v 3. remains of the choir are all
Q Piramide. Open 9am–5pm Via di San Saba. Map 8 F3. Tel 06- 13th-century Cosmati work.
Mon–Sat (last adm: 4.30pm). 574 3352. @ 75, 175, 673. v 3.
Donation expected. = Open 8.30am–noon, 4–7pm Mon– Circus Maximus y
Sat; 9.30am–1pm, 4–7pm Sun. 5
The peace of this well-tended Via del Circo Massimo.
cemetery beneath the Aurelian Tucked away in a residential Map 8 F2. @ 81, 160, 628, 715.
Wall is profoundly moving. street on the Little Aventine v 3. Q Circo Massimo.
Non-Catholics, mainly English hill, San Saba began life as an
and German, have been oratory for Palestinian monks What was once ancient
buried here since 1738. In the fleeing from Arab invasions in Rome’s largest stadium is
the 7th century. The existing today little more than a long
oldest part are the church dates from the 10th grassy esplanade. Set in the
graves of John Keats century and has undergone valley between the Palatine
(died 1821), whose much restoration. The portico and Aventine hills, the Circus
epitaph reads: houses a fascinating collection Maximus was continually
“Here lies One of archaeological remains. embellished and expanded
Whose Name was from the 4th century BC until
writ in Water”, and The church has three naves AD 549 when the last races
his friend Joseph in the Greek style and a short were held. The grandstands
Severn (died 1879); fourth 11th-century nave to held some 300,000 spectators,
not far away are the left with vestiges of 13th- cheering wildly at the horse
the ashes of Percy century frescoes of the life of and chariot races, athletic
Bysshe Shelley St Nicholas of Bari. Particularly contests and wild animal fights,
(died 1822). intriguing is a scene of three betting furiously throughout.
Goethe’s son naked young ladies lying in
bed, who are saved from The Circus had a central
Tombstone Julius is also dividing barrier (spina) with
of John Keats buried here. seven large egg-shaped objects
on it used for counting the
Pyramid of laps of a race. These were
Caius Cestius r joined in 33 BC by seven
bronze dolphins that served
Piazzale Ostiense. Map 8 E4. @ 23, a similar purpose. In 10 BC
95, 280. v 3. Q Piramide. Augustus built the Imperial
box under the Palatine and
decorated the spina with the
obelisk that now stands in the
centre of Piazza del Popolo
(see p137). A second obelisk,
which was added in the 4th
century by Constantine II, is
now in Piazza di San Giovanni
in Laterano (see pp178–9).

Memorial pyramid of Caius Cestius

Caius Cestius, a wealthy Reconstruction of the Circus Maximus in its heyday
praetor (senior Roman
magistrate), died in 12 BC.
His one claim to fame is his
tomb, an imposing pyramid
faced in white marble set in
the Aurelian Wall near Porta
San Paolo. It stands 36 m
(118 ft) high and, according
to an inscription, took 330 days
to build. Unmistakable as a
landmark, it must have looked
almost as incongruous when
it was built as it does today.



ROME AREA BY AREA 207

TRASTEVERE

The proud and aggressively rants, clubs and boutiques. Some of
independent inhabitants of Rome’s most fascinating medieval
Trastevere, the area churches lie hidden away in the

“across the Tiber”, consider patchwork of narrow, cobbled

themselves the most authen- backstreets, the only clue to

tic Romans. In one of the most their location an occasional

picturesque old quarters of the glimpse of a Romanesque bell

city, it is still possible to glimpse tower. Santa Cecilia was built on

scenes of everyday life that the site of the martyrdom of the

seem to belong to bygone cen- patron saint of music, San Franc-

turies. There are, however, esco a Ripa commemorates St

signs that much of the earthy, Romanesque Francis of Assisi’s visit to Rome,

proletarian character of the bell tower and Santa Maria in Trastevere is

place may soon be destroyed by the the traditional centre of the spiritual

proliferation of fashionable restau- and social life of the area.

SIGHTS AT A GLANCE SEE ALSO GETTING THERE
• Street Finder, maps 4, 7, 8, 11 The most convenient way is to
Churches • Where to Stay pp306–7 take tram 8 which starts from
San Crisogono 6 • Restaurants pp324–5 Largo di Torre Argentina,
San Francesco a Ripa 0 • Tiber Walk pp274–5 crosses the river and runs
Santa Cecilia in Trastevere 8 along the broad, busy Viale di
Santa Maria della Scala 3 Trastevere. The H bus follows
Santa Maria in Trastevere the same route but starts at
Stazione Termini. From the
pp212–13 5 Vatican it is best to take a 23
or 280 along Lungotevere.
Museums and Galleries KEY
Sant’Egidio and Museo Street-by-Street map

di Roma in Trastevere 4 n Tourist information
City Wall
Historic Buildings
Casa della Fornarina 1
Caserma dei Vigili della

VII Coorte 7
San Michele a Ripa Grande 9

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A typical vicolo (narrow alleyway) between the densely packed buildings of Trastevere

208 ROME AREA BY AREA

Street-by-Street: Trastevere

All year round Trastevere is a major attraction both Casa della Fornarina
Raphael’s beautiful
for its restaurants, clubs and cinemas, and for its mistress is said to have
lived here. There is now
picturesque maze of narrow cobbled alleyways. On a flourishing restaurant
in the back garden 1
summer evenings the streets are packed with jostling

groups of pleasure-seekers, especially during the

noisy local festival, the Festa de’ Noantri (see p59).

Everywhere café and restaurant tables spill out over

pavements, especially around Piazza di Santa Maria

in Trastevere and outside the pizzerias along Viale di

Trastevere. There are also kiosks selling slices of

watermelon and grattachecca, a mixture of

syrup and grated ice. It is usually easier to

appreciate the antique charm of

Trastevere’s narrow

streets in the more Santa Maria

tranquil atmosphere dei Sette Dolori

of the early morning. This church (1643)
is a minor work

by Borromini.

Santa Maria
della Scala
The church’s
unassuming
façade conceals
a rich Baroque
interior 3

Sant’Egidio and
Museo del Folklore
This 17th-century fresco of Sant’
Egidio by Pomarancio decorates the
left-hand chapel in the church.
The convent next door is a museum
of Roman life and customs 4

STAR SIGHT . Santa Maria in Trastevere
The church is famous for its
. Santa Maria in mosaics by Pietro Cavallini but
Trastevere it also has earlier works such
as this mosaic of the prophet
KEY Isaiah to the left of the apse 5

Suggested route The fountain of
Piazza di Santa Maria
0 metres 75 in Trastevere by
0 yards 75 Carlo Fontana (1692)
is a popular meeting
place. At night it is
floodlit and dozens
of young people sit
on the steps around
its octagonal base.

TRASTEVERE 209

Ponte Sisto $".10 %&
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orders of Sixtus IV in 1474 to link
Trastevere to central Rome 2 +"/*$6-6.

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LOCATOR MAP
See Central Rome Map pp14–15

Piazza Belli is named after
Giuseppe Gioacchino Belli
(1791–1863), who wrote satirical
sonnets in Roman dialect rather
than academic Italian. At the
centre of the piazza stands a

statue of the
poet (1913).

e is one of the
ow streets lined
les leading off
in Trastevere.

he Torre degli
guillara (13th
tury) is the only
rvivor of the many
edieval towers that

once dominated the
Trastevere skyline.

Caserma dei Vigili
della VII Coorte
The courtyard of
this antique
Roman fire
station still
stands 7

San Crisogono
The Romanesque
bell tower dates from
the early 12th century. The
plain portico is a later addition
(1626), but is in keeping with the
spirit of this ancient church 6

210 ROME AREA BY AREA

Casa della Gilded Baroque altar of Santa showing scenes of everyday
Fornarina 1 Maria della Scala life in 18th- and 19th-century
Rome, including reconstruc-
Via di Santa Dorotea 20. Santa Maria della tions of shops and a tavern.
Map 4 D5 & 11 B5. Scala 3
@ 23, 280. The museum also has
Piazza della Scala 23. manuscripts by the much-loved
Not much is known about Map 4 D5 & 11 B5. poets Belli and Trilussa who
Raphael’s model and lover, Tel 06-580 6233. @ 23, 280. wrote in local dialect.
La Fornarina, yet over the Church open 9am–noon, 3.30–6pm
centuries she has acquired daily. 5 Watercolour of public scribe (1880)
a name, Margherita, and even a in the Museo di Roma in Trastevere
biography. Her father was a This church belongs to a time
Sienese baker (la fornarina of great building activity that Santa Maria in
means the baker’s girl) and lasted about 30 years from the Trastevere 5
his shop was here in Trastevere end of the 16th to the early
near Raphael’s frescoes in the 17th century. Its rather simple See pp212–13.
Villa Farnesina (see pp220–21). façade contrasts with a rich
interior decorated with multi- San Crisogono 6
Margherita earned a repu- coloured marbles and a
tation as a “fallen woman” number of spirited Baroque Piazza Sonnino 44. Map 7 C1.
and Raphael, wishing to be altars and reliefs. Tel 06-581 82 25. @ H, 23, 280,
absolved before dying, turned 780. v 8. Open 7–11.30am,
her away from his deathbed. Sant’Egidio and 4.15–7.30pm, Mon–Sat;
After his death she took Museo di Roma 8.30am–1pm, 4.15–7.30pm Sun.
refuge in the convent of Santa in Trastevere 4 Adm charge for excavations. 5 7
Apollonia in Trastevere.
Piazza Sant’Egidio 1. Map 7 C1. This church was built on the
She is assumed to have been @ H, 23, 280. v 8. site of one of the city’s oldest
the model for Raphael’s famous Church Tel 06-58 56 61. Open 10am– tituli (private houses used for
portrait La Donna Velata in 12.30pm Sat. Museo di Roma in Christian worship). An 8th-
the Palazzo Pitti in Florence. Trastevere Tel 06-581 6563. century church with 11th-
Open 10am–7pm Tue–Sun. 7 century frescoes can still be
Ponte Sisto 2 seen beneath the present
Built in 1630, Sant’Egidio was church. This dates from the
Map 4 E5 & 11 B5. @ 23, 280. the church of the adjoining early 12th century, a period
Carmelite convent, one of of intense building activity
Named after Pope Sixtus IV many founded in the area in Rome. San Crisogono
della Rovere (reigned 1471– to shelter the poor and was decorated by Pietro
84), who commissioned it, destitute. The convent is
this bridge was built by now a museum, containing Apse mosaic in San Crisogono
Baccio Pontelli to replace an a wealth of material relating
ancient Roman bridge. The to the festivals, pastimes,
enterprising pope also built the superstitions and customs of
Sistine Chapel (see pp244–7), the Romans when they lived
the Hospital of Santo Spirito under papal rule.
(see p226) and restored many
churches and monuments. There are old paintings and
This put him in great financial prints of the city and tableaux
difficulties and he had to sell
personal collections in order
to finance his projects.

Another method of finan-
cing projects was to levy a
tax on the city’s prostitutes.
Several popes are known to

have re-
sorted to
this un-
popular
form of
taxation.

Pope

Sixtus IV

TRASTEVERE 211

Cavallini – the apse mosaic and various chapels. Today
remains. Most of the church’s contemporary exhibitions are
columns were taken from occasionally held here.
previous buildings, including
the great porphyry ones of San Francesco
a triumphal arch. The mosaic a Ripa 0
floor is the result of recycling
precious marble from various Piazza San Francesco d’Assisi 88.
Roman ruins. Map 7 C2. Tel 06-581 9020.
@ H, 23, 44, 75, 280. v 8. Open
Caserma dei Vigili 7am–1pm, 4–7.30pm Mon–Sat;
della VII Coorte 7 7am–noon, 4–7pm Sun. 5 7

Via della VII Coorte. Detail of 13th-century fresco by St Francis of Assisi lived here-
Map 7 C1. Tel 06-6710 3819. Pietro Cavallini in Santa Cecilia in a hospice when he visited
@ H, 23, 280, 780. v 8. Rome in 1219 and his stone
Open by appt with permit (see p383). pillow and crucifix are
preserved in his cell. The
Not all Roman ruins are church was rebuilt by his
Imperial villas or grand follower, the nobleman
temples; one that illustrates Rodolfo Anguillara, who is
the daily life of a busy city is portrayed on his tombstone
the barracks of the guards of wearing the Franciscan habit.
the VII Coorte (7th Cohort),
the Roman fire brigade. It Entirely rebuilt in the 1680s
was built in Augustus’s reign, by Cardinal Pallavicini, the
in the 1st century AD, and the church is rich in sculptures.
excavated courtyard is where Particularly flamboyant are
the men would rest while the 18th-century Rospigliosi
waiting for an alarm. and Pallavicini monuments in
the transept chapel.
Santa Cecilia in
Trastevere 8 The Paluzzi-Albertoni
chapel (fourth on the left,
Piazza di Santa Cecilia. Map 8 D1. along the nave) contains
Tel 06-589 9289. @ H, 23, 44, Bernini’s breathtaking Ecstasy
280. v 8. Open 9.30am–12.30pm, of Beata Ludovica Albertoni.
4–7pm daily. Adm charge
for excavations. Cavallini fresco a distinctive artistic style of its
can be seen 10.15am–12.30pm
Mon–Sat; 11.15am–12.30pm Sun. own. In front of the altar is a Villa Sciarra q
statue of St Cecilia by Stefano
St Cecilia, aristocrat and
patron saint of music, was Maderno, who used her Via Calandrelli 35. Map 7 B2.
martyred here in AD 230. After
an attempt at scalding her to miraculously preserved remains @ 44, 75. Park open 9am–sunset
death, she was beheaded. A
church was founded – perhaps as a model when she was daily. 7
in the 4th century – on the
site of her house. (The house, briefly disinterred in 1599.
beneath the church with the
remains of a Roman tannery, is In Roman times the site of this
well worth a visit.) Her body
turned up in the Catacombs of San Michele small, attractive public park
San Callisto (see p265) and was was a nymph’s sanctuary. It
buried here in the 9th century a Ripa Grande 9
by Pope Paschal I, who rebuilt is especially picturesque in
the church. A fine apse mosaic
survives from this period. spring when its wisterias are

The altar canopy by Arnolfo Via di San Michele. Map 8 D2. in full bloom. The paths
di Cambio and the fresco of
The Last Judgment by Pietro Tel 06-584 31. @ 23, 44, 75, 280. through the park are de-
Cavallini, reached through the
adjoining convent, date from Open for special exhibitions only. corated with Romantic follies,
the 13th century, one of the
few periods when Rome had fountains and statues, and

This huge, imposing complex, there are splendid views over

now housing the Ministry the bastions of the Janiculum.

of Culture,

stretches 300 m

(985 ft) along

the river Tiber.

It was built on

the initiative of

Pope Innocent

XII and con-

tained a home

for the elderly,

a boys’ reform

school, a Bernini’s Ecstasy of Beata Ludovica Albertoni (1674)

woollen mill in San Francesco a Ripa

212

Santa Maria in Trastevere 5

Probably the first official Christian Piazza Santa Maria
place of worship to be built in Rome, in Trastevere
this basilica became the focus of The piazza in front
devotion to the Virgin Mary. Accor- of the church is the
ding to legend, the church was traditional heart of
founded by Pope Callixtus I in the Trastevere. Today it is
3rd century, when Christianity was surrounded by lively
still a minority cult. Today’s church bars and restaurants.
is largely a 12th-century building, Carlo Fontana built
remarkable for its mosaics, in the octagonal
particular those by Pietro Cavallini. fountain in the late
The 22 granite columns in the nave 17th century.
were taken from the ruins of ancient
Roman buildings. Despite some 18th- The bell tower was built The floor, relaid
century Baroque additions, Santa in the 12th century. At in the 1870s, is a
Maria has retained its medieval the top is a small recreation of the
character. This friendly church has mosaic of the Virgin. Cosmatesque
strong links with the local community. mosaic floor of
the 13th century.

. Façade Mosaics
The 12th-century mosaic shows
Mary feeding the baby Jesus
and ten women holding lamps.
Eight of the lamps are lit,
symbolizing virginity; the
veiled women whose lamps
have gone out are
probably widows.

STAR FEATURES
. Façade Mosaics
. Cavallini Mosaics

MODEST DONORS The portico Front 15th-century wall
was remodelled entrance tabernacle
Many of Rome’s mosaics include in 1702 by Carlo
a portrait of the pope or cardinal Fontana. Statues by Mino del Reame
responsible for the building of of four popes
the church. Often the portrait decorate the
is dwarfed by the rest of the balustrade above.
picture, which glorifies the saint
to whom the church is dedicated.

On the façade of
Santa Maria, two
tiny unidentified
figures kneel at
the Virgin’s
feet. Were they
to stand up,
the men would
barely reach
her knees.

Façade mosaic, detail

TRASTEVERE 213

Apse Mosaic VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
The 12th-century
mosaic in the basin Via della Paglia 14c, Piazza
of the apse shows Santa Maria in Trastevere.
the Coronation of Map 7 C1. Tel 06-581 4802.
the Virgin. She sits @ H & 780 to Piazza S.
on Christ’s right Sonnino, 23 & 280 along
hand, surrounded Lungotevere Sanzio. v 8
by saints. from Largo Argentina.
Open 7.30am–9pm daily. 5
5.30pm daily. 7 =

. Cavallini Mosaics
The details in the six
mosaics of the Life
of the Virgin
(1291) display a
touching realism.

Madonna
della

Clemenza
The life-size icon
probably dates from
the 7th century. A
replica is displayed
above the altar of
the Cappella Altemps.

Tomb of Cardinal
Pietro Stefaneschi
The last of his line,
Pietro Stefaneschi died in
1417. His tomb is by an
otherwise unknown
sculptor called Paolo.

TIMELINE

AD 217–22 Pope 1291 Pietro Cavallini 1617 Domenichino designs
Church founded Innocent II adds mosaics of scenes coffered ceiling with
by Pope Callixtus I from the life of the octagonal panel of the
Virgin for his patron, Assumption of the Virgin
Bertoldo Stefaneschi

30 BC AD 200 1400 1650 1900

38 BC Jet of mineral c1138 Pope 1580 Martino Longhi the Elder 1702 Pope
oil spouts from the Innocent II starts restores church and builds Clement XI has
ground on this site. family chapel for Cardinal portico rebuilt
Later interpreted as rebuilding the Marco Sittico Altemps
a portent of the church 1866–77 Church
coming of Christ restored by Virginio

Vespignani



ROME AREA BY AREA 215

JANICULUM

Overlooking the Tiber You will often find puppet
on the Trastevere shows and other kinds of
side of the river, amusements for children. In

the Janiculum hill has often medieval times most of the

played its part in the hill was occupied by mon-

defence of the city. The asteries and convents.

last occasion was in 1849 Bramante built his minia-

when Garibaldi held off ture masterpiece, the Tem-

the attacking French pietto, in the convent of San

troops. The park at the top Pietro in Montorio. The Ren-

of the hill is filled with aissance also saw the devel-

monuments to Garibaldi opment of the riverside

and his men. A popular Puppets in the park at the area along Via della Lun-

place for walks, the park top of the Janiculum hill gara, where the rich and

provides a welcome escape from the powerful built beautiful houses such

densely packed streets of Trastevere. as the Villa Farnesina.

SIGHTS AT A GLANCE SEE ALSO GETTING THERE
• Street Finder, maps 3, 4, 7, 11 The Janiculum (Il Gianicolo)
Churches and Temples • Restaurants p325 is not the easiest part of Rome
San Pietro in Montorio 7 to reach by public transport. It
Sant’Onofrio 6 1*";;" 1POUF can be approached either
Tempietto 8 %&--" 1SJODJQF from the Vatican area (see
307&3& "NFEFP p223) or from Trastevere (see
Museums and Galleries p207). There is only one bus,
Palazzo Corsini and Galleria "/*$0-0 the 870, that goes up to the
" %&- (* - top of the hill, but the 44 will
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6 to Via Giacinto Carini from
Historic Buildings where you can start your walk
Villa Farnesina / up. For sights along Via della
Lungara, take the 23 or 280,
pp220–21 1 ( which go along Lungotevere.

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The staircase fountain in the Botanical Gardens

216 ROME AREA BY AREA

A Tour of the Janiculum Tasso’s Oak is a
memorial to the
The long hike to the top of the Janiculum is rewarded poet Torquato
by wonderful views over the city. The park’s monu- Tasso, who liked
ments include a lighthouse and statues of Garibaldi and o sit here in the
his wife Anita. There is also a cannon which is fired
at noon each day. In Via della Lungara, ys before he
between the Janiculum and the Tiber, d in 1595. The
stand Palazzo Corsini with its national e was struck by
art collection and the Villa Farnesina, tning in 1843.
decorated by Raphael for his friend
and patron, the fabulously wealthy
banker Agostino Chigi.

The Manfredi Lighthouse,
built in 1911, was a gift to
the city of Rome from
Italians in Argentina.

The Monument to Anita
Garibaldi by Mario Rutelli
was erected in 1932. The
great patriot’s Brazilian
wife lies buried
beneath the
statue.

The view from Villa
Lante, a beautiful
Renaissance summer
residence, gives a
magnificent panorama
of the whole city.

Garibaldi Monument
The inscription on the base
of the equestrian statue
says “Rome or Death” 5

JANICULUM 217

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/"70/"

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Botanical Gardens . Palazzo Corsini LOCATOR MAP
These were established in This 15th-century triptych by See Central Rome Map pp14–15
1883 when part of the Fra Angelico hangs in the
grounds of Palazzo . Villa Farnesina
Corsini was given Galleria Nazionale The suburban villa of the
to the Univer d’Arte Antica 2 banker Agostino Chigi is
of Rome celebrated for its frescoes
by Raphael, Baldassarre
Peruzzi and other
Renaissance masters 1

Porta Settimiana
Looking through this
Renaissance gateway from
Via della Lungara, you catch
a glimpse of Trastevere’s
warren of narrow streets 3

EY STAR SIGHTS
Suggested route
. Palazzo Corsini and
0 metres 75 Galleria Nazionale
0 yards 75 d’Arte Antica

. Villa Farnesina

218 ROME AREA BY AREA

Villa Farnesina 1 1603, which once included and exotic species are
Galileo among its members. grouped to illustrate their
See pp220–21. botanical families and their
In 1797 Palazzo Corsini was adaptation to different climates
Palazzo Corsini and the backdrop to momentous and eco-systems. There are
Galleria Nazionale events: French General Duphot also plants such as the ginkgo
d’Arte Antica 2 (the fiancé of Napoleon’s that have survived virtually
sister Pauline) was killed here unchanged from earlier eras.
Via della Lungara 10. Map 4 D5 in a skirmish between papal The gardens were originally
& 11 A5. Tel 06-6880 2323. troops and Republicans. The part of the Palazzo Corsini,
@ 23, 280. Open 8.30am–1.30pm consequent French occupation but since 1983 have belonged
Tue–Sun. Closed 1 May, 15 Aug, of the city and the deportation to the University of Rome.
25 Dec & 1 Jan. Adm charge. of Pope Pius VI led to the
^=78 proclamation of a short-lived Garibaldi
www.galleriaborghese.it Roman Republic (1798–9). Monument 5

Porta Settimiana 3 Piazzale Giuseppe Garibaldi.
Map 3 C5. @ 870.
Between Via della Scala and Via
della Lungara. Map 4 D5 & 11 B5.
@ 23, 280.

This gate was built in 1498 by
Pope Alexander VI Borgia to
replace a minor passageway
in the Aurelian Wall. The
Porta Settimiana marks the
start of Via della Lungara, a
long straight road built in the
early 16th century.

Queen Christina’s bedroom in the Botanical Base of the Garibaldi Monument
Gardens 4
Palazzo Corsini This huge equestrian statue
Largo Cristina di Svezia 24, off Via is part of a commemorative
The history of Palazzo Corsini Corsini. Map 4 D5. Tel 06-4991 park, recalling the heroic
is intimately entwined with 7107. @ 23, 280. Open Apr–Sep: events witnessed on the
that of Rome. Built for Cardinal 9.30am–6.30pm Mon–Sat (Oct–Mar Janiculum when the French
Domenico Riario in 1510–12, to 5.30pm). Closed public hols. army attacked the city in 1849.
it has boasted among its many Adm charge. 8 (phone to book). Garibaldi’s Republicans fended
distinguished guests Bramante, off the greatly superior French
the young Michelangelo, Eras- Sequoias, palm trees and forces for weeks, until the
mus and Queen Christina of splendid collections of orchids Italians were overwhelmed.
Sweden, who died here in and bromeliads are housed in Garibaldi and his men escaped.
1689. The old palazzo was Rome’s Botanical Gardens The monument, erected in
completely rebuilt for Cardi- (Orto Botanico). These tran- 1895, was the work of Emilio
nal Neri Corsini by Ferdinan- quil gardens contain more Gallori. Around the pedestal
do Fuga in 1736. As Via della than 7,000 plant species from are four smaller sculptures in
Lungara is too narrow for a all over the world. Indigenous bronze showing battle scenes
good frontal view, Fuga and allegorical figures.
designed the façade so it
could be seen from an angle. Steps and tiered fountains at the Botanical Gardens

Palazzo Corsini houses the
Galleria Nazionale d’Arte
Antica, also known as Galleria
Corsini. This outstanding col-
lection includes paintings by
Rubens, Van Dyck, Murillo,
Caravaggio and Guido Reni,
together with 17th- and 18th-
century Italian regional art.
The palazzo is also home to
the Accademia dei Lincei, a
learned society founded in

JANICULUM 219

Raphael’s Transfiguration, now The Tempietto illustrates the

in the Vatican. Two wide chap- great Renaissance dream that

els, one on either side of the the city of Rome would once

nave, were decorated by some again relive its ancient glory.

of Michelangelo’s most famous

pupils. The left-hand chapel Fontana dell’Acqua
was designed by one of the
few artists Michelangelo openly Paola 9
admired, Daniele da Volterra,

also responsible for the altar Via Garibaldi. Map 7 B1. @ 44, 75.

painting, The Baptism of Christ.

The chapel on the right was

the work of Giorgio Vasari,

Courtyard of Sant’Onofrio who included a self-portrait (in

Sant’Onofrio 6 black, on the left) in his altar

Piazza di Sant’Onofrio 2. painting, The Conversion of St
Map 3 C4. Tel 06-686 4498. Fax
06-689 3404. @ 870. Open by appt Paul.
(fax to arrange). Closed Aug, except
saint’s feast day on 12 Aug. 5 The first chapel to the right
Museum open by appt only.
Tel 06-682 8121. of the entrance contains a

Beato Nicola da Forca Palena, powerful Flagellation, by the
whose tombstone guards the
entrance, founded this church Venetian artist Sebastiano del
in 1419 in honour of the her-
mit Sant’Onofrio. It retains the Piombo (1518); Michelangelo
flavour of the 15th century in
the simple shapes of the por- is said to have provided the
tico and the cloister. In the
early 17th century the portico original drawings. Work by
was decorated with frescoes
by Domenichino. Bernini and his followers can Fontana dell’Acqua Paola

The monastery next to the be seen in the second chapel
church houses a small muse-
um dedicated to the 16th-cen- on the left and in the flanking This monumental fountain
tury poet Torquato Tasso.
De Raymondi tombs. commemorates the reopening
San Pietro in
Montorio 7 in 1612 of an aqueduct origi-

Piazza San Pietro in Montorio 2. Tempietto 8 nally built by Emperor Trajan
Map 7 B1. Tel 06-581 39 40. @ 44, in AD 109. The aqueduct was
75. Open 8.30am–noon, 4–6pm
daily. If closed, ring bell at door to renamed the “Acqua Paola”
right of church. 5
Piazza San Pietro in Montorio (in court- after Paul V, the Borghese
San Pietro in Montorio – the-
church of St Peter on the yard). Map 7 B1. Tel 06-581 3940. pope who ordered its restora-
Golden Hill – was founded in
the Middle Ages near the spot @ 44, 75. Open 9.30am–12.30pm, tion. When it was first built,
where St Peter was presumed
to have been crucified. It was 2–4pm (summer 4–6pm) Tue–Sun. See the fountain had five small
rebuilt by order of Ferdinand
and Isabella of Spain at the The History of Rome pp32–3. basins, but in 1690 Carlo Fon-
end of the 15th century, and
decorated by outstanding art- tana altered the design, add-
ists of the Renaissance.
Around 1502 Bramante com- ing the huge basin you can
The façade is typical of a
time when clean, geometric pleted what many consider to see today. Despite many laws
shapes derived from Classical
architecture were in vogue. be the first true Renaissance intended to deter them, gen-
The single nave ends in a deep
apse that once contained building in Rome – the Tem- erations of Romans used this

pietto. The name means sim- convenient pool of fresh

ply “little temple”. Its circular water for bathing and wash-

shape echoes early Christian ing their vegetables.

martyria, chapels

built on the site of

a saint’s martyr-

dom. This was

believed to be the

place where St

Peter was crucified.

Bramante chose

the Doric order for

the 16 columns

surrounding the

domed chapel.

Above the columns

is a Classical frieze

and a delicate bal-

ustrade. Though

the scale of the

Tempietto is tiny,

Bramante’s master-

ly use of Classical

proportions creates

a satisfyingly har-

monious whole. Bramante’s round chapel, the Tempietto

220 ROME AREA BY AREA

Villa Farnesina 1

The wealthy Sienese banker Agostino Chigi,

who had established the headquarters of his far-

flung financial empire in Rome, commissioned

the villa in 1508 from his comp atriot Baldas-

sarre Peruzzi. The simple, harmonious design,

with a central block and projecting wings, made

this one of the earliest true Renaissance villas.

The decoration was carried out between 1510

and 1519 and this has recently been restored.

Peruzzi frescoed some of the interiors himself. North Façade
Later, Sebastiano del Piombo, Raphael and his The Loggia of Cupid and Psyche looks
pupils added more elaborate works. The fres- out on formal gardens that were
coes illustrate Classical myths, and the vault of used for parties and putting on plays.
the main hall, the Sala di Galatea, is adorned

with astrological scenes showing the position of Entrance

the stars at the time of Chigi’s

birth. Artists, poets, cardinals, The Wedding of Alexander
princes and the pope himself and Roxanne by Sodoma
were entertained here Cherubs are shown helping
in magnificent style by
their wealthy and the bride Roxanne to
influential host. In 1577 prepare for her
the villa was bought
marriage.

by Cardinal Alessandro

Farnese. Since then, it has been

known as the Villa Farnesina.

. Triumph
of Galatea
by Raphael
The beautiful
sea nymph
Galatea was
one of the 50
daughters of
the god Nereus.

THE ARCHITECT The Gabinetto
delle Stampe
Baldassarre Peruzzi, painter and sometimes hol
architect, arrived in Rome from exhibitions o
Siena in 1503 aged 20 and became rare prints.
Bramante’s chief assistant. Although
his architectural designs were typical Frescoes in
of Classicism, his painting owes the Room of G
more to Gothic influences, as his Perseus beheads M
figurework is very highly stylized. a scene from one of P
On Raphael’s death, he became series of mythological fr
Head of Works at
St Peter’s, but
was captured in
the Sack of Rome
(see p33), exiled
to Siena until
1535, and died
in 1536.

Baldassarre
Peruzzi

JANICULUM 221

. Salone delle VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
Prospettive
Peruzzi’s frescoes Via della Lungara 230. Map 4 D5
create the illusion & 11 A5. @ 23, 280 to Lungo-
of looking out at tevere Farnesina. Tel 06-6802
views of 16th- 7268. Open 9am–1pm Mon–
century Rome Sat. ^ = 7 Adm charge.
through a marble Gabinetto delle Stampe (rare
colonnade. print collection) Tel 06-69 98 01.
Open by appt. Letter of introduc-
tion needed to see originals. ^

Fresco from the Salone
delle Prospettive

This scene shows the
Torre delle Milizie
(see p90) as it
looked in the
1500s.

. Loggia of
Cupid and Psyche
he model for the figure on the
left in Raphael’s painting of The
Three Graces was Agostino Chigi’s
mistress, the courtesan Imperia.

Lunette in the Room of Galatea STAR FEATURES
This giant monochrome head by Peruzzi . Triumph of Galatea by
was once attributed to Michelangelo.
Raphael

. Salone delle
Prospettive

. Loggia of Cupid and
Psyche



ROME AREA BY AREA 223

VAT I C A N

As the site where St Peter collections of Classical sculpture
was martyred and buried, make them the finest museums
the Vatican became the in Rome. The Vatican’s position

residence of the popes who as a state within a state was

succeeded him. Decisions guaranteed by the Lateran

taken here have shaped the Treaty of 1929, marked by the

destiny of Europe, and the great building of a new road, the Via

basilica of St Peter’s draws della Conciliazione. This leads

pilgrims from all over the from St Peter’s to Castel Sant’

Christian world. The papal Angelo, a monument to a far

palaces beside St Peter’s grimmer past. Built originally

house the Vatican Museums. Nuns in St a s t h e E m p e r o r H a d r i a n ’ s

With the added attractions of Peter’s Square mausoleum, this papal fortress

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel and and prison has witnessed many fierce

the Raphael Rooms, their wonderful battles for control of the city.

SIGHTS AT A GLANCE

Churches and Temples Palazzo dei Penitenzieri 8 GETTING THERE
Santa Maria in Traspontina 9 Palazzo del Commendatore 6 The quickest way to reach
Santo Spirito in Sassia 4 Palazzo di Giustizia r the area is by Metro line A to
St Peter’s pp230–33 1 Palazzo Torlonia w Ottaviano S. Pietro. The 40
and 64 buses run regularly
Museums and Galleries Gates from Piazza dei Cinquecento,
in front of Termini station,
Vatican Museums pp234–47 2 Porta Santo Spirito 3 although the 62 is the only
bus which runs along Via della
Historic Buildings Historic Streets and Piazzas Conciliazione. Other routes
Castel Sant’Angelo pp248–9 e The Borgo 0 that serve the area include
Hospital of Santo Spirito 5 Vatican Corridor q the 81 and 492, which stop
Palazzo dei Convertendi 7 in Piazza del Risorgimento.

0 metres 400 SEE ALSO
0 yards 400 • Street Finder, maps 3, 4
• Where to Stay pp307–8
• Restaurants pp325–6

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Dome of St Peter’s dominating the Vatican skyline

224 ROME AREA BY AREA

A Tour of the Vatican

The Vatican, a centre of power for The Madonna of
Catholics all over the world and a Guadalupe shows

sovereign state since February 1929, the miraculous

is ruled by the pope. About 1,000 image of the

people live here, staffing the Vatican’s Madonna which
facilities. There are a post office and appeared on the
shops, Vatican radio, broadcasting to cloak of a Mexican
the world in over 20 languages, a
Indian in 1531.

daily newspaper (l’Osservatore Romano),

Vatican offices and a publishing house.

Papal he

The Grotto of L
is a replica of t
grotto in the
southwest of F
where in 1858
the Virgin
appeared to
St Bernadette.

The Vatican Railway Radio Vatica
Station, opened in 1930, broadcast fro
connects with the line from this tower, p
Rome to Viterbo, but is the Leonine
now used only for freight. built in 847.

The Pa
Chamb
Luigi N
opened
seats u

The infor
gives det
the Vatic

. St Peter’s
The Chapel of St Peter is in the
Grottoes under the basilica.
The rich marble decoration
was added by Clement VIII at
the end of the 16th century 1

STAR SIGHTS Piazza Sa
. St Peter’s by Bernin
. Vatican Museums 1667. The
front of t
into an e
flanked b

VAT I C A N 225

The Eagle 1SBUJ
Fountain was built
to celebrate the 7"5*$"/ 5FWFSF
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Map pp14–15

seums
onna of

is just one
s many
asterpieces 2

mostly the
iche for the
n fountain,
io in 1562.
ed route

Conciliazione

226 ROME AREA BY AREA

St Peter’s 1 Pope Pius IV Medici. Sadly, Sack of Rome had left it in
Sangallo’s design for a monu- ruins in 1527. The façade was
See pp230–33. mental entrance to the Vatican added under Pope Sixtus V
was never completed; the (1585–90). The
Vatican principal columns come to an and side chapel
Museums 2 end somewhat abruptly in a decorated with
modern covering of cement. series of light, l
See pp234–47. ly frescoes. The
Santo Spirito in pretty bell towe
Porta Santo Sassia 4 is earlier, dat-
Spirito 3 ing from the
Via dei Penitenzieri 12. Map 3 C3. reign of Sixtus
Via dei Penitenzieri. Map 3 C3. @ Tel 06-687 9310. @ 23, 34, 46, 62, IV (1471–84). It
23, 34, 46, 62, 64, 98, 870, 881, 982. 64, 98, 870, 881, 982. Open 7am– was probably
noon, 3–7.30pm daily. 5 7 the work of the
This gate is situated at what pope’s architect
was the southern limit of Nave of Santo Spirito in Sassia Baccio Pontelli, Sixtus V’s arms
the “Leonine City”, the area who also built over door of
enclosed within walls by Built on the site of a church the Hospital of Santo Spirito
Pope Leo IV as a defence erected by King Ine of Santo Spirito,
against the Saracens who had Wessex, who died in Rome and the Ponte Sisto (see p210)
sacked Rome in AD 845. The in the 8th century, the church further down the River Tiber.
walls measure 3 km (2 miles) is the work of Antonio da
in circumference. Sangallo the Younger. It was Hospital of Santo
rebuilt (1538–44) after the Spirito 5
Work on the walls started in
AD 846. Pope Leo supervised Borgo Santo Spirito 2. Map 3 C3.
the huge army of labourers @ 23, 34 46, 62, 64, 98, 870, 881,
personally, and thanks to his
encouragement, the job was 982. Octagonal chapel open for
completed in 4 years. He
then led a solemn procession tours 10am & 3pm Mon. Adm charge.
to consecrate his massive feat
of construction. The oldest hospital in Rome,
this is said to have been
Since the time of Pope Leo founded as a result of a night-
the walls have needed much mare experienced by Pope
reinforcement and repair. The Innocent III (1198–1216). In
gateway visible today at Porta the dream, an angel showed
Santo Spirito was built by the him the bodies of Rome’s
architect Antonio da Sangallo unwanted babies dredged up
the Younger in 1543–4. It is from the River Tiber in fishing
framed by two huge bastions nets. As a result, the pope
that were added in 1564 by hastened to build a hospice
for sick paupers.

Fresco of an angel in the octagonal chapel of the Hospital of Santo Spirito

VAT I C A N 227

In 1475 the hospital was
reorganized by Pope Sixtus IV
to care for the poor pilgrims
expected for the Holy Year.
Sixtus’s hospital was a radical
building. Cloisters divided the
different types of patients;
one area is still reserved for
orphans and their nurses.

Unwanted infants were
passed through a revolving
barrel-like contraption called
the rota, still visible to the left
of the central entrance in Borgo
Santo Spirito, to guarantee
anonymity. Martin Luther, who
visited in 1511, was shocked
by the number of abandoned
children he saw, believing
them to be “the sons of the
pope himself”.

In the centre, under the hos-
pital’s conspicuous drum, is an
octagonal chapel, where mass
was said for patients. This
room can be visited while
the rest of the building still
functions as a hospital.

Rusticated doorway of the Palazzo dei Convertendi

sobriety of its owners. The Palazzo dei
frescoes represent the story of Penitenzieri 8
the founding of the Hospital

of Santo Spirito. To the left of

the entrance is the Spezieria, Via della Conciliazione 33.

or Pharmacy. This still has the Map 3 C3. Tel 06-682 8121.
wheel used for grinding the @ 23, 34, 62, 64.

bark of the cinchona tree to Open by appt (fax to 06-6880 2298).

produce the drug quinine, Adm charge (donation) for groups.

first introduced here in 1632

by Jesuits from Peru as a The palazzo owes

cure for malaria. its name to the

Above the courtyard is fact that the place

a splendid clock (1827). was once home

The dial is divided into to the confessors

The rota of Santo Spirito, where six; it was not until 1846 (penitenzieri)
mothers left unwanted babies
that the familiar division of St Peter’s.
Palazzo del
Commendatore 6 of the day into two periods Now the Hotel

Borgo Santo Spirito 3. Map 3 C3. @ of 12 hours was introduced Columbus, it was
23, 34, 46, 62, 64, 98, 881, 982. Tours
10am & 3.30pm Mon. Adm charge. in Rome by Pope Pius IX. Della Rovere arms originally built

As director of the Hospital of by Cardinal
Santo Spirito, the Commen-
datore not only oversaw the Palazzo dei Domenico della Rovere in
running of the hospital, he was Convertendi 7 1480. The palazzo still bears
also responsible for its estates the family’s coat of arms, the
and revenues. This important
post was originally given to oak tree (rovere means oak),
members of the pope’s family.
Via della Conciliazione 43. on its graceful courtyard well-
The palazzo, built next door
to the hospital, has a spacious Map 3 C3. @ 23, 34, 62, 64. head. On the cardinal’s death,
16th-century frescoed loggia
appropriate to the dignity and Not open to the public. the palazzo was acquired by

Cardinal Francesco Alidosi,

With the building of Via della Pope Julius II della Rovere’s

Conciliazione in the 1930s, favourite. Suspected of

Palazzo dei Convertendi was treason, the cardinal was

taken down and later moved murdered in 1511 by the

to this new site nearby. The pope’s nephew, the Duke of

house, which is partly attrib- Urbino, who took over the

uted to the architect Braman- palazzo. A few of the rooms

te, is where the artist Raphael of the palazzo still contain

died in 1520. beautiful frescoes.

228 ROME AREA BY AREA

View of the Tiber and the Borgo between Castel Sant’Angelo and St Peter’s by Gaspare Vanvitelli (1653–1736)

Santa Maria in earlier one which had been in hostels have made the Borgo
Traspontina 9 the line of fire of the a colony of international pil-
cannons defending Castel grims once again. Much of the
Via della Conciliazione 14. Map Sant’Angelo during the Sack area’s character was lost after
3 C3. Tel 06-6880 6451. @ 23, of Rome in 1527. The papal redevelopment in the 1930s,
34, 62, 64. Open 7am–noon, artillery officers insisted that but it is still enjoyable to stroll
4–7pm daily. 5 7 the dome of the new church the old narrow streets on either
should be as low as possible, side of Via della Conciliazione.
so it was built without a
supporting drum. The first Vatican Corridor q
chapel to the right is dedicat-
ed to the gunners’ patron Castel Sant’Angelo to the Vatican.
saint, Santa Barbara, and is Map 3 C3. @ 23, 34, 40, 62.
decorated with warlike motifs. Closed to public.
In the third chapel on the left
are two columns, popularly
thought to be the ones which
SSPeter and Paul were bound
to before going to their
martyrdom nearby.

The façade of the Carmelite church The Borgo 0
of Santa Maria in Traspontina
Map 3 C3. @ 23, 34, 40, 62.

The church occupies the site The Borgo’s name derives from Clement VII, who used the Vatican
of an ancient Roman pyramid, the German burg, meaning Corridor to evade capture in 1527
believed in the Middle Ages town. Rome’s Borgo is where
to have been the Tomb of the first pilgrims to St Peter’s Locally known as the Passetto
Romulus. The pyramid was were housed in hostels and (small corridor), this long pas-
destroyed by Pope Alexander hospices, often for quite sageway was built into the
VI Borgia, but representations lengthy periods. The first of fortifications during medieval
of it survive in the bronze these foreign colonies, called
doors at the entrance to St “schools”, was founded in AD
Peter’s and in a Giotto trip- 725 by a Saxon, King Ine of
tych housed in the Vatican Wessex, who wished to live
Pinacoteca (see p240). a life of penance and to be
buried near the Tomb of St
The present church was Peter. These days hotels and
begun in 1566 to replace an

VAT I C A N 229

times. Intended as a link Palazzo Torlonia (1496), unaffected by changes to the surrounding area
between the Vatican and the
fortress of Castel Sant’Angelo, Castel law courts. Its riverside façade
it constituted a fortified Sant’Angelo e is crowned with a bronze
escape route which could chariot and fronted by giant
also be used to control the See pp248–9. statues of the great men
strategic Borgo area. Arrows of Italian law.
and other missiles could be Palazzo di
fired from its bastions on to Giustizia r The building was supposed
the streets and houses below. to embody the new order
The corridor was used in 1494 Piazza Cavour. Map 4 E3. @ 34, 49, replacing the injustices of
by Pope Alexander VI Borgia 70, 87, 186, 280, 492, 913, 926, papal rule, but it has never
when Rome was invaded by 990. Not open to the public. endeared itself to the Romans.
King Charles VIII of France. It was soon dubbed the
In 1527 it enabled Pope The monumental Palazzo di Palazzaccio (roughly, “the
Clement VII to take refuge Giustizia (Palace of Justice) ugly old palazzo”) both for its
in Castel Sant’Angelo, as the was built between 1889 and appearance and for the nature
troops commanded by the 1910 to house the national of its business. By the 1970s
Constable of Bourbon began the building was collapsing
the Sack of Rome. under its own weight, but it
has now been restored.
Palazzo Torlonia w

Via della Conciliazione 30.
Map 3 C3. @ 23, 34, 40, 62, 64.
Not open to the public.

The palazzo was built in

the late 15th century by the

wealthy Cardinal Adriano

Castellesi, in a style closely

resembling Palazzo

della Cancelleria

(see p149). The

cardinal was a

much-travelled

rogue, who

collected vast

revenues

from the

bishopric of

Bath and

Pope Leo X Wells which

he was given

by his friend King Henry VII

of England. In return he gave

Henry his palazzo for use as

the seat of the English

ambassador to the Holy See.

Castellesi was finally stripped

of his cardinalate by Pope Leo

X Medici and disappeared

from history.

Since then the palazzo has

had many owners and tenants.

In the 17th century it was

rented for a time by Queen

Christina of Sweden. The Tor-

lonia family, who acquired

the building in 1820, owed its

fortune to the financial genius

of shopkeeper-turned-banker

Giovanni Torlonia. He lent

money to the impoverished

Roman nobility and bought

up their property during the

Napoleonic Wars. The ornate travertine façade of the Palazzo di Giustizia

230 ROME AREA BY AREA

St Peter’s 1

The centre of the Roman . Dome of St Peter’s
Catholic faith, St Peter’s Designed by Michelangelo,
draws pilgrims from all though not finished in his
over the world. Few are lifetime, the spectacular
disappointed when they cupola, 136.5 m (448 ft)
enter the sumptuously high, gives unity to the
decorated basilica beneath majestic interior of the
Michelangelo’s vast dome. basilica.

A shrine was erected on The nave’s
the site of St Peter’s tomb in total length is
the 2nd century and the first 218 m (715 ft).
great basilica, ordered by
the Emperor Constantine,
was completed around AD
349. By the 15th century it
was falling down, so in 1506
Pope Julius II laid the first
stone of a new church. It
took more than a century to build and all the
great architects of the Roman Renaissance
and Baroque had a hand in its design.

Papal Altar Baldacchino
The present altar date This magnificent canopy of
the reign of Clement V gilded bronze, supported on
(1592–1605). The pla spiral columns 20 m (66 ft)
of marble found in th high, was designed by
Forum of Nerva stand Bernini in the 17th century.
under Bernini’s
baldacchino, over-
looking the well of the
confessio, the crypt
where St Peter’s body
is reputedly buried.

TIMELINE

AD 61 Burial of St Peter 1506 1547 Michelangelo 1626 New
Julius II named as chief basilica of
324 1452 Nicholas V lays first architect of 1593 St Peter’s
Constantine plans restoration stone St Peter’s Dome consecrated
compleated
builds basilica

AD 60 800 1500 1550 1600

200 Altar built 1503 Pope Julius 1538 Antonio da 1606 Carlo 1614 Maderno
marking grave II chooses Sangallo the Maderno finishes the
of St Peter Younger made extends façade
Bramante as director of works basilica
800 Charlemagne architect for new
crowned Emperor of 1514 Raphael director 1564 Death of
Romans in St Peter’s basilica of works Michelangelo

VAT I C A N 231

. View from the Dome VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
The superb symmetry of Bernini’s colonnade can
be appreciated from the dome. Piazza San Pietro. Map 3 B3. Tel
06-6988 3712 (sacristy), 06-6988
The two minor Pope Urban 1662 (tourist information). @ 62
cupolas at the VIII’s Keys to Via della Conciliazione. 23, 49,
corners of the 81, 492, 990 to Piazza del Risorgi-
transept are At the base of mento. 64 to Largo di Porta Caval-
leggeri. Q Ottaviano S. Pietro.
by Vignola. the columns of the Basilica open 7am–7pm
(Oct–Mar: 6pm). 5 7 8 =
baldacchino, the coat Treasury open 9am–6.15pm
(Oct–Mar: 5.15pm). Vatican
of arms of Pope Urban Grottoes open 7am–6pm (Oct–
Mar: 5pm). Dome open 8am–
VIII features the keys 5.45pm daily (Oct–Mar: 4.45pm).
Adm charge to Treasury and
to the Kingdom Dome. The Pre-Constantinian
Necropolis can be visited by appt;
of Heaven. call 06-6988 5318 well in advance.
Papal audiences: Regular public
audiences, usually Wed morning in
Papal Audience Chamber or Piazza
San Pietro. Tickets (free) are in
great demand. Fax requests well
ahead to Prefettura della Casa
Pontificia (06-6988 5863). Appear-
ances also at noon on Sundays at
library window to bless crowd.
Early arrival recommended. No
bare knees or shoulders.

Façade
by Carlo
Maderno
(1614)

Stairs to
the
dome

Filarete Door
Finished in

1445, Antonio
Averulino’s bronze
door came from the

original basilica.

Entrance

STAR FEATURES Piazza San Pietro
. Dome of St Peter’s On Sundays and re-
. View from the Dome ligious occasions the
Pope blesses the crowds

from his balcony
above the square.

232 ROME AREA BY AREA

A Guided Tour of St Peter’s 5 Baldacchino by Bernini
Commissioned by Pope Urban VIII
The vast basilica’s 187-m (615-ft) long, in 1624, the extravagant Baroque
marble-encrusted interior contains 11 canopy dominates the nave and
chapels and 45 altars in addition to a
wealth of precious works of art. crowns the Papal Altar, at which
Some were salvaged from the original only the pope may celebrate mass.
basilica and others commissioned
from late Renaissance and Baroque Bernini’s Monument
artists, but much of the elaborate to Urban VIII
decoration is owed to Bernini’s work
in the mid-17th century. The two side
aisles are 76 m (250 ft) long and
converge under Michelangelo’s
enormous dome. The central focus of
the building is the Papal Altar
beneath Bernini’s great baldacchino,
filling the space between the four
piers which support the dome. From
the basilica you can visit the Grottoes,
where the late Pope John Paul II is
buried, the Treasury and St Peter’s Sacristy,
or the terrace for panoramic views.

4 Throne of
St Peter in Glory
In the domed apse, look
up to the window above
Bernini’s Baroque sculpture
of 1656–65. It lights the image
of the Holy Spirit, shown as a
dove amid clouds, rays of
sunlight and flights of angels.

Entrance to Treasury
and Sacristy

HISTORICAL PLAN OF THE Entrance to
BASILICA OF ST PETER’S Necropolis

St Peter was buried c.AD 64 in a 3 Monument t
necropolis near his crucifixion site at Alexander VII
the Circus of Nero. Constantine built a Bernini’s last work
was finished in
basilica on the burial site in 1678 and is in an
AD 324. In the 15th century alcove on the left of
the old church was found the transept. The
to be unsafe and had pope sits among
to be demolished. It the figures of
was rebuilt in the Truth, Justice,
16th and 17th cen- Charity and
turies. By 1614 the Prudence.
façade was ready,
and in 1626 the 2 Monument to Leo XI
new church On the left beneath the aisle arch is
was consecrated. Alessandro Algardi’s white marble
1650 monument to Leo XI, whose
KEY reign as pope lasted only 27 days.

Circus of Nero KEY

Constantinian Tour route

Renaissance

Baroque

VAT I C A N 233

6 Angelo della Navicella
A fragment of Giotto’s beautiful 13th-century
mosaic, salvaged from the old basilica, is
now in the Grottoes. A later copy of the
entire mosaic of Jesus and St Peter fishing
on Lake Tiberias decorates the atrium.

Entrance to 7 St Peter
Grottoes Until recently this
famous 13th-century
statue, now attributed to
Arnolfo di Cambio, was
thought to be a late Roman
work. Situated at the end
of the nave, it is sculpted
in bronze with a delicate

filigree halo.

The Tabernacle by The Porta Santa (Holy
Bernini is made of gilt Door) is opened only in
bronze in the shape Holy Years. The Pope
of a temple. knocks on it with a bronze
hammer, it is unlocked
Chapel and remains open
of St throughout the
Sebastian Holy Year.

Stuart
Monument
by Canova

Filarete 8 Pietà
Door This famous marble sculpture
was finished in 1499 when
Navicella Michelangelo was only 25. It
Mosaic stands in a chapel to one side
of the nave, protected by glass
ium by since being damaged in 1972.
arlo Maderno

1 Tomb of Maria
Clementina Sobieski
Near the entrance is Filippo
Barigioni’s sentimentally
expressive18th-century monument
to Maria Clementina, the wife of
James Stuart, the Old Pretender.

234 ROME AREA BY AREA

Vatican Museu

The buildings that house

one of the world’s main

art collections were once

papal palaces built for

Renaissance popes such

as Sixtus IV, Innocent

VIII and Julius II. The

long courtyards and

galleries, linking Innocen

VIII’s Belvedere Palace to

the other buildings, are by Donato Four Gates

Bramante and were commissioned
for Julius II in 1503. Most of the later Built by Camporese in
additions to the buildings were made in 1792–3, this vast domed
the 18th century, when priceless works edifice was the original
entrance to the Vatican
of art were first put on show. This
complex of museums also houses the Museums.

Sistine Chapel and the Raphael Rooms,

and should not be missed. Note that no The Belvedere Palace was
bare knees or shoulders are allowed. commissioned in the late 15th
century by Pope Innocent VIII.

. Cortile della Pigna Cortile della
This huge bronze pine Biblioteca
cone, part of an ancient
Roman fountain, once
stood in the courtyard of
old St Peter’s. Its niche was
designed by Pirro Ligorio.

Cortile del
Belvedere

Apartment
of Pius V

Sistine Chapel

Borgia Tower

STAR FEATURES Borgia
. Atrium of the Apartment

Four Gates Raphael Cortile di
Loggia San Damaso
. Cortile della Pigna

. Bramante Stairway

VAT I C A N 235

Spiral Ramp VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
The spectacular stair-
Città del Vaticano. Entrance in Viale
way leading down Vaticano. Map 3 B2. Tel 06-6988
from the museums to 3860. @ 49 to entrance, 23, 81,
492, 990 to Piazza del Risorgimento
the street was or 62 to St Peter’s. Q Cipro Musei
designed by Giuseppe Vaticani, Ottaviano S. Pietro. Open
8.45am–4.45pm (last adm: 3.20pm)
Momo in 1932. Mon–Sat (Nov–Feb: to 1.45pm,
last adm: 12.20pm); 8.45am–
Entrance 1.45pm (last adm: 12.20pm) last
Sun of each month. Closed public
& relig hols. Special permit needed
for Raphael Loggia, Vatican Library,
Lapidary Gallery & Vatican Archives.
Adm charge, free last Sun of
month. 7 special routes. 9
Temporary exhibitions, lectures.
0 - = 8 Gardens and tours:
06-6988 4019. www.vatican.va

Simonetti Stairway
Built in the 1780s with a
vaulted ceiling, the stairs
were part of the conversion of
the Belvedere Palace into the
Pio-Clementine Museum.

Cortile
Ottagonale
The inner court of the
Belvedere Palace was given
its octagonal shape in 1773.

Braccio . Bramante Stairway
Nuovo Pope Julius II built the spiral
staircase within a square
tower as an entrance to the
palace. The staircase could
be ridden up on horseback
in case of emergency.

TIMELINE 1503 Bramante 1756 Foundation
of Christian
1198 lays out Belvedere 1655 Bernini Museum 1800–23
Innocent Chiaramonti
III creates Courtyard designs Scala 1837 Etruscan
papal Museum Museum
palace 1509 Raphael begins Regia founded founded

1000 work on Rooms

1473 Pope 1500 1600 1700 1800
Sixtus IV 1822 Braccio
1758 Museum of Nuovo is opened
builds Sistine Pagan Antiquities
Chapel 1970 Pope Paul VI
founded opens Gregorian
Museum of Pagan
1503–13 Pope Bramante 1776–84 Antiquities
Julius II starts (1444–1514) Pius VI
Classical sculpture
collection enlarges
museum

236 ROME AREA BY AREA

Exploring the Vatican Museums Gallery of the

Four centuries of papal patronage Candelabra
and connoisseurship have resulted
in one of the world’s great collections Once an open
of Classical and Renaissance art. The
Vatican houses many of the great loggia, this gallery

archaeological finds of central of Greek and
Italy including the Laocoön
group, discovered in 1506 on Roman sculpture
the Esquiline, the Apollo del
Belvedere and the Etruscan has a fine view
bronze known as the Mars of
Todi. During the Renaissance, of the Vatican
parts of the museums were
decorated with wonderful Gardens. Room of
frescoes commissioned for the Sistine
Mars of Chapel, the Raphael Rooms and the the Biga
Todi Borgia Apartment.
Gallery of
Tapestries

Siege of Malta
The Gallery of Maps is
an important record of
16th-century history
and cartography.

Raphael Sistine
Rooms Chapel

GALLERY GUIDE Sala dei Misteri
Visitors have to follow a This is one of the rooms
one-way system. It is best of the Borgia Apartment,
to concentrate on a single richly decorated with
collection or to choose one Pinturicchio frescoes.
of the four suggested itiner-
aries. These are colour-coded
so that you can follow them throughout
the museums. They vary in length from
90 minutes to 5 hours. If you are planning
a long visit, make sure you allow plenty of
time for resting. Conserve your stamina
for the Sistine Chapel and the Raphael
Rooms; they are 20–30 minutes’ walk from
the entrance, without allowing for any
viewing time along the way.

VAT I C A N 237

Gregorian St Jerome
Profane Leonardo da Vinci’s
Museum unfinished work, lost then
rediscovered in the 19th
Pio-Christ century, shows the artist’s
Museum mastery of anatomy.

Entrance

Round
Room

Pio-Clementine

Museum Room of

the Busts

This contains

portraits of

emperors and

other notable

Romans.

Lower Chiaramonti
floor Museum

Laocoön
This 1st-century AD marble group
depicts the Trojan priest Laocoön
and his sons struggling with
two serpents.

Room of
the Animals
Roman mosaics,
like these delightful
ducks, decorate the walls
and floor of this room
of animal sculptures.

Apollo del Belvedere KEY TO FLOORPLAN
This Roman copy of a Greek Egyptian and Assyrian art
statue of the sun god Apollo Greek and Roman art
perfectly embodies the ideals Etruscan and Italic art
of Classical beauty. Early Christian and medieval art
15th- to 19th-century art
Modern Religious art
Non-exhibition space
Open by special permit only

238 ROME AREA BY AREA

Exploring the Vatican’s Collections

The Vatican’s greatest treasures are its Greek and Roman ETRUSCAN AND OTHER
antiquities. These have been on display since the 18th PRE-ROMAN ART
century. The 19th century saw the addition of exciting
discoveries from Etruscan tombs and excavations in This collection comprises
Egypt. In the Pinacoteca (art gallery) there is a small, artifacts from pre-Roman
choice collection of paintings, including works by civilizations in Etruria and
Raphael, Titian and Leonardo. Works by great painters Latium, from Neolithic times
and sculptors are also on view throughout the older to the 1st century BC, when
parts of the museums in the form of sumptuous deco- these ancient populations were
rations commissioned by the Renaissance popes. assimilated into the Roman
state. Pride of place in the
EGYPTIAN AND Sallustiani gardens (see p251) Gregorian Etruscan Museum
ASSYRIAN ART in 1714. The statue, which goes to the objects found in
dates from the 13th century the Regolini-Galassi tomb,
The Egyptian collection BC, may have been brought excavated in 1836 at the
contains finds from 19th- and to Rome by the Emperor necropolis of Cerveteri (see
20th-century excavations in Caligula (reigned AD 37–41), p271). The tomb was found
Egypt and statues which were who had an unhealthy intact and yielded numerous
brought to Rome in Imperial interest in pharaohs and in everyday household objects,
times. There are also Roman his own mother, Agrippina. plus a throne, a bed and a
imitations of Egyptian art funeral cart, all cast in bronze,
from Hadrian’s Villa (see Also noteworthy are the dating from the 7th century
p269) and from the Campus head of a statue of BC. Beautiful black vases,
Martius district of ancient Montuhotep IV (21st delightful terracotta figurines
Rome. Egyptian-style statuary century BC), the and bronze statues such as
from Hadrian’s Villa was used beautiful mummy the famous Mars of Todi,
to decorate the Greek Cross case of Queen displayed in the Room of the
Room, the entrance to the Hetep-heret-es, Bronzes, show the Etruscans
new wing built in 1780 by and the tomb of to have been a highly civilized,
Michelangelo Simonetti. Iri, the guardian sophisticated people.
of the Pyramid of
The genuine Egyptian works, Cheops (22nd A number of Greek vases
exhibited on the lower floor of century BC). that were found in Etruscan
the Belvedere Palace, include tombs are on display in the
statues, mummies, mummy The Assyrian Vase Collection. The Room of
cases and funerary artifacts. Stairway is the Italiot Vases contains only
There is also a large collection decorated with vases produced locally in the
of documents written on fragments of Greek cities of Southern Italy
papyrus, the paper the reliefs from and in Etruria itself. These
ancient Egyptians made from the palaces of date from the 3rd to the 1st
reeds. Among the main the kings of
treasures is a colossal granite Nineveh (8th century century BC.
statue of Queen Tuia, the BC). These depict the military
mother of Rameses II, found exploits of King Sennacherib truscan
on the site of the Horti and his son Sargon II, and d clasp
show scenes from Assyrian fibula)
and Chaldean mythology. the 7th
ntury BC

VAT I C A N 239

VII Chiaramonti, was laid out Original Greek works include

by Canova in the early 19th large marble fragments from

century. It includes a striking the Parthenon in Athens.

colossal head of the goddess There is also a

Athene. The Braccio Nuovo, an Roman copy of

extension of the Chiaramonti, Athene and

decorated with Roman floor Marsyas by

mosaics, contains a statue of Myron, which

Augustus from the villa of his was part of the

wife Livia at Prima Porta. Its decoration of

pose is based on the famous the Parthenon.

Doryphoros by the Greek Totally Roman

sculptor Polyclitus, of which in character

there is a Roman copy on are two reliefs Marble relief of

display opposite. known as the the Emperor

Exhibits in the Vase Rooms Rilievi della Vespasian

range from the Greek Cancelleria,

geometric style (8th century because they were discovered

Head of an athlete in mosaic from BC) to black-figure vases beneath the Palazzo della

the Baths of Caracalla from Corinth, such as the Cancelleria (see p149) in the

famous vase by Exekias, 1930s. They show military

with Achilles and Ajax parades of the Emperor

GREEK AND ROMAN ART playing a game similar to Vespasian and his son

draughts (530 BC), and Domitian. This section

The greater part of the Vatican the later red-figure also has fine Roman

Museums is dedicated to Greek type, such as the kylix floor mosaics. There

and Roman art. Exhibits line (a wide shallow cup) are two from the

connecting corridors and with Oedipus and the Baths of Caracalla

vestibules; walls and floors Sphinx from the 5th (see p197), depicting

display fine mosaics; and century BC. A stairway athletes and referees.

famous sculptures decorate links this section to the They date from the 3rd

the main courtyards. Gallery of the century AD. Most striking

The first serious organization Candelabra and the of all is a mosaic that

of the collection took place in Room of the Biga (a creates the impression of

the reign of Julius II (1503–13) two-horse chariot). an unswept floor, covered

around Bramante’s Belvedere The horses and with debris after a meal.

Courtyard. The prize pieces harness were added Away from the main

form the nucleus of the 18th- in the 18th century. Classical collections, in

century Pio-Clementine The Gregorian one of the rooms of the

Museum. In the pavilions of Profane Museum, Vatican Library, is

the Octagonal Courtyard and housed in a new the Aldobrandini

in the surrounding rooms are wing, charts the Wedding, a

sculptures considered among evolution of beautiful Roman

the greatest achievements of Roman art from fresco of a bride

Western art. The Apoxyomenos dependence upon The Doryphoros or spear- being prepared
(an athlete wiping his body Greek models to carrier, a Roman copy in for her marriage,
after a race) and the Apollo
a recognizably marble of an original Greek dating from the

del Belvedere are high-quality Roman style. bronze 1st century AD.

Roman copies of Greek

originals of about 320

BC. The magnificent

Laocoön, sculpted by

three artists from

Rhodes, had long been

known to exist from

a description by Pliny

the Elder. It was

rediscovered near the

ruins of the Domus

Aurea (see p175) in

1506. Classical works

such as these had a

profound influence on

Michelangelo and other

Renaissance artists.

The much smaller

Chiaramonti Museum,

named after Pope Pius Floor mosaic from the Baths of Otricoli in Umbria, in the Chiaramonti Museum

240 ROME AREA BY AREA

altarpieces. The Celestine V (reigned 1294),

outstanding work and of the donor, Cardinal

is Giotto’s Jacopo Stefaneschi, shown

altarpiece dating offering the triptych to St Peter.

from about 1300, The Vatican Library has a

known as the number of medieval treasures

Stefaneschi exhibited rather haphazardly

Triptych. It in showcases; these include

expresses much woven and embroidered

the same theme cloths, reliquaries, enamels

as the early and icons. One of the aims of

Christian works: the 18th-century reorganization

the continuity of the Vatican collections was

between the to glorify Christian works by

Classical world contrasting them with earlier

of the Roman pagan creations. In the long

Empire and the Lapidary Gallery over 3,000

new order of stone tablets with Christian

Christian Europe. and pagan inscriptions are

The crucifixion displayed on opposite walls.

of St Peter takes The world’s greatest collection

place between of its kind, it may be visited

two landmarks of only with special permission.

ancient Rome, the

Pyramid of Caius

Cestius (see p205), 15TH- TO 19TH-

and the pyramid CENTURY ART

Detail from Giotto’s Stefaneschi Triptych known in the

Middle Ages as The Renaissance popes,

the Tomb of Romulus, which many of whom were cultured

EARLY CHRISTIAN AND stood near the Vatican. The connoisseurs of the arts, con-

MEDIEVAL ART triptych, which decorated the sidered it their duty to sponsor

main altar of old St Peter’s, the leading painters, sculptors

The main collection of early includes portraits of Pope St and goldsmiths of the age.

Christian antiquities is in

the Pio-Christian Museum,

founded in the last century by

Pope Pius IX and formerly

housed in the Lateran Palace.

It contains inscriptions and

sculpture from catacombs and

early Christian basilicas. The

sculpture consists chiefly of

reliefs decorating sarcophagi,

though the most striking work

is a free-standing 4th-century

statue of the Good Shepherd.

The sculpture’s chief interest

lies in the way it blends

Biblical episodes with pagan

mythology. Christianity

adopted Classical images so

that its doctrines could be

understood in clear visual

terms. The idealized pastoral

figure of the shepherd, for

example, became Christ

himself, while bearded

philosophers turned into the

Apostles. At the same time,

Christianity laid claim to be

the spiritual and cultural heir

of the Roman Empire.

The first two rooms of the

Pinacoteca are dedicated to

late medieval art, mostly

tempera-painted wooden

panels which served as Pietà by the Venetian artist Giovanni Bellini (1430–1516)

VAT I C A N 241

RAPHAEL’S LAST PAINTING MODERN RELIGIOUS ART

When Raphael died in 1520, the

Transfiguration was found in his Modern artists exhibited in

studio, almost complete. The the Vatican Museums face

wonderful luminous work was daunting competition from the

placed at the head of the bier where great works of the past. Few

the great artist’s body lay. It depicts modern works are displayed

the episode in the Gospels in which conspicuously, the exceptions

Christ took three of the Apostles to being Momo’s spiral staircase

the top of a mountain, where He of 1932, which greets visitors

appeared to them in divine glory. In as they enter the museums,

the detail shown here Christ floats above and Giò Pomodoro’s abstract

the ground in a halo of ethereal light. sculpture in the centre of the

Cortile della Pigna.

In 1973 a contemporary art

The galleries around the great 16th-century works, do collection was inaugurated by

Cortile del Belvedere were not miss the fine altarpiece by Pope Paul VI. Housed in the

all decorated by great artists Titian, the Crucifixion of St Borgia Apartment, it includes

between the 16th and the Peter by Guido Reni, the over 800 exhibits by modern

19th centuries. The Gallery Deposition by Caravaggio and artists from all over the world,

of Tapestries is hung with the Communion of St Jerome donated by collectors or the

tapestries woven in Brussels by Domenichino. Raphael has artists themselves. Works in a

to designs by students of a whole room dedicated to his great variety of media show

Raphael; the Apartment of work. It contains the beautiful many contrasting approaches

Pope Pius V has beautiful Madonna of Foligno and the to religious subjects. There

15th-century Flemish Transfiguration as well as are paintings, drawings,

tapestries; and the Gallery of eight tapestries engravings and sculpture by

Maps is frescoed with 16th- made to his 19th- and 20th-century artists,

century maps of ancient and designs. as well as mosaics, stained

contemporary Italy. When glass, ceramics and tapestries.

you go to visit the Raphael Well-known modern painters

Rooms (see pp242–3), such as Georges Braque, Paul

you should not overlook Klee, Edvard Munch and

the nearby Room of Graham Sutherland are all

the Chiaroscuri and represented. There are also

Pope Nicholas V’s drawings by Henry Moore,

tiny private ceramics by Picasso and

chapel, frescoed stained glass by Fernand

by Fra Angelico Léger. Projects for modern

between 1447 church ornaments include

and 1451. Matisse’s decorations for

Similarly, before the church of St Paul de

reaching the Vence, Luigi Fontana’s

Sistine Chapel models for the bronze

(see pp244–7), doors of Milan cathedral,

visit the Borgia and Emilio Greco’s

Apartment, Lunette of the Adoration of the Magi by Pinturicchio in the panels for the doors

frescoed in a Room of the Mysteries in the Borgia Apartment of Orvieto cathedral.

decorative, flowery

style by Pinturicchio and his

students in the 1490s. The

contrast with Michelangelo’s

Sistine Chapel ceiling, begun in

1508, could hardly be greater.

Another set of fascinating

frescoes decorates the Loggia

of Raphael, but this requires

special permission to visit.

Many important works by

Renaissance masters are on

show in the Pinacoteca (art

gallery). Highlights among

the works by 15th-century

painters are a fine Pietà by

the Venetian Giovanni Bellini

and Leonardo da Vinci’s

unfinished St Jerome. Of the Town with Gothic Cathedral by Paul Klee (1879–1940)

242 ROME AREA BY AREA

Raphael Rooms

Pope Julius II’s private apartments were built above

those of his hated predecessor, Alexander VI, one of the

Borgias, who died in 1503. Julius was impressed with

Raphael’s work and chose him to redecorate the four

rooms (stanze). Raphael

and his pupils began the

task in 1508, replacing

existing works by several

better-known artists,

including Raphael’s own

teacher, Perugino. The

work took over 16 years

and Raphael himself died

before its completion. The

frescoes express the reli- KEY TO FLOORPLAN

gious and philosophical 1 Hall of Constantine
ideals of the Renaissance. 2 Room of Heliodorus
They quickly established

Raphael’s reputation as an 3 Room of the Segnatura

Detail from The Expulsion of artist in Rome, putting him 4 Room of The Fire in the Borgo
Heliodorus from the Temple, on a par with Michelangelo,
showing Pope Julius II watching the then working on the ceiling by a horseman as he tries to
scene from his litter of the Sistine Chapel. make off with the treasure

from the Temple of Jerusalem.

The scene is witnessed by the

HALL OF ROOM OF pope, borne on a litter by

CONSTANTINE 1 HELIODORUS 2 courtiers. The incident is also

a thinly veiled reference to

The frescoes in this room This private antechamber was Julius II’s success in driving

were started in 1517, decorated by Raphael foreign armies out of Italy. In

3 years before Raphael’s between 1512 and 1514. The The Meeting of Leo I and

death, but Raphael himself main frescoes show the Attila Raphael pays a similar

probably had little hand in miraculous protection granted compliment to the pope’s

their execution. As a result to all the Church’s political skill. Pope

they are not held in the same ministers, doctrines Leo was originally

high regard as those in the and property. The given the face of

other rooms. The work was room’s name refers Julius II, but after

completed in 1525 in the to the fresco on the his death, Raphael

reign of Pope Clement VII by right, The Expulsion substituted the fea-

Giulio Romano and two other of Heliodorus from tures of Julius’s suc-

former pupils of Raphael, the Temple. This cessor, Leo X.

Giovanni Francesco Penni shows a story from The Mass at

and Raffaellino del Colle. Jewish history, in Swiss guards waiting Bolsena depicts a

The theme of the decoration which a thief called with papal chair in miracle that occurred

is the triumph of Christianity Heliodorus is felled The Mass at Bolsena in 1263. A priest

over paganism. The

four major frescoes

show scenes from the

life of Constantine and

include his Vision of

the Cross and his

victory over his rival

Maxentius at The Battle

of the Milvian Bridge,

for which Raphael had

provided a preparatory

sketch. In both The

Baptism of Constantine

and The Donation of

Constantine, the figure

of Pope Sylvester (see

p170) was given the

features of Clement VII. The Battle of the Milvian Bridge, completed by one of Raphael’s assistants

VAT I C A N 243

following their master’s own

plans. The most famous, The

Fire in the Borgo, was painted

from Raphael’s designs and

reflects his maturity as an

artist. It celebrates the

miracle that took place

in 847, when Pope Leo

IV extinguished a fire

raging in the Borgo

(see p228) by making

The Liberation of St Peter, a the sign of the cross.

three-part composition, shows the The incident is likened

saint asleep in his cell in the middle to the flight of Aeneas

section, led out of prison by an angel from Troy described

on the right, while, on the left, the by Virgil. The figure of

prison guards cower in terror. Aeneas appears in the

foreground carrying

who doubted that the bread centred around the debate on his father on his back. This

and wine really were the the search for truth between borrowing of an event from

body and blood of Christ Greek philosophers Plato and Classical legend shows a new

suddenly saw the host bleed Aristotle. It also features willingness to experiment on

while he was celebrating mass. portraits of many of Raphael’s the part of Raphael. Sadly, his

Julius II appears in this fresco, contemporaries, including pupils did not always follow

accompanied by a colourful Leonardo da Vinci, Bramante his designs faithfully and this,

group of Swiss guards. and Michelangelo. The other combined with some poor

Julius appears yet again as works include a portrait of restoration, has spoilt the work.

St Peter in The Liberation of St the bearded Pope Julius II,

Peter. This fresco is remarkable who in 1511 vowed not to

for its dramatic lighting effects, shave until he managed to rid

achieved despite the painting’s Italy of all usurpers.

awkward shape and its

position above a window.

ROOM OF THE FIRE

IN THE BORGO 4

ROOM OF THE

SEGNATURA 3 This was originally the dining

room, but when the deco-

The name is derived from a ration was completed under

special council which met Pope Leo X, it became a

in this room to sign official music room. All the frescoes

documents. The frescoes here exalt the reigning pope by

were completed between depicting events in the lives

1508 and 1511. The scheme of his namesakes, the 9th-

Raphael followed was century popes Leo III and IV.

dictated by Pope Julius II. It The main frescoes were

reflects the Humanist belief finished by two of Raphael’s Detail from The Fire in the Borgo,

that there could be perfect assistants between showing Aeneas, the Trojan

harmony between Classical 1514 and hero, with his father

culture and Christianity in 1517, on his back,

their mutual search for truth. fleeing from

The Dispute over the Holy the fire

Sacrament, the first fresco

completed by Raphael for

Pope Julius, represents the

triumph of religion and

spiritual truth. The conse-

crated host is shown at

the centre of the painting.

This links the group of

learned scholars, who

discuss its significance,

to the Holy Trinity and

the saints floating on

clouds up above.

On the opposite wall,

The School of Athens (see

p32) is a bustling scene The Dispute over the Holy Sacrament, the first fresco completed in the Rooms

244 ROME AREA BY AREA

Sistine Chapel: The Walls

The massive walls of the KEY TO THE FRESCOES: ARTISTS AND SUBJECTS
Sistine Chapel, the main
chapel in the Vatican The Last Judgment
Palace, were frescoed by
some of the finest artists 1 Baptism of Christ in the Jordan 7 Moses’s Journey into Egypt
of the 15th and 16th 2 Temptations of Christ 8 Moses Receiving the Call
centuries. The 12 paintings 3 Calling of St Peter and St Andrew 9 Crossing of the Red Sea
on the side walls, by artists 4 Sermon on the Mount 10 Adoration of the Golden Calf
including Perugino, 5 Handing over the Keys to St Peter 11 Punishment of the Rebels
Ghirlandaio, Botticelli and 6 Last Supper 12 Last Days of Moses
Signorelli, show parallel
episodes from the life of
Moses and of Christ. The
decoration of the chapel
walls was completed
between 1534 and 1541 by
Michelangelo, who added
the great altar wall fresco,
The Last Judgment.

THE LAST JUDGMENT frescoes and two windows chose it as a warning to
BY MICHELANGELO over the altar. A new wall was Catholics to adhere to their
erected which slanted inwards faith in the turmoil of the
Revealed in 1993 after a to stop dust settling on it. Reformation. In fact the work
year’s restoration, The Last Michelangelo worked alone conveys the artist’s own
Judgment is considered to be on the fresco for seven years, tormented attitude to his faith.
the masterpiece of Michel- until its completion in 1541. It offers neither the certainties
angelo’s mature years. It was of Christian orthodoxy, nor
commissioned by Pope Paul The painting depicts the the ordered view of Classicism.
III Farnese, and required the souls of the dead rising up to
removal of some earlier face the wrath of God, a sub- In a dynamic, emotional
ject that is rarely used for an composition, the figures are
altar decoration. The pope caught in a vortex of motion.
The dead are torn from their
Souls meeting the wrath of Christ in Michelangelo’s Last Judgment graves and hauled up to face

Christ the Judge, whose
athletic, muscular figure
is the focus of all the
painting’s movement.
Christ shows little
sympathy for the
agitated saints around
him, clutching the
instruments of their
martyrdom. Neither is
any pity shown for the
damned, hurled down
to the demons in hell.
Here Charon, pushing
people off his boat
into the depths of
Hades, and the infer-
nal judge Minos, are
taken from Dante’s
Inferno. Minos has
ass’s ears, and is a por-
trait of courtier Biagio
da Cesena, who had
objected to the nude
figures in the fresco.
Michelangelo’s self-
portrait is on the skin
held by the martyr St
Bartholomew.

VAT I C A N 245

The final paintings of the two and temporal authority on St

WALL FRESCOES cycles are also lost. They Peter by giving him the keys

were on the entrance wall, to the Kingdoms of Heaven

which collapsed during the and Earth. The golden-domed

16th century. When the wall building in the centre of the

was restored, they were vast piazza represents both

replaced with poor substitutes. the Temple of Jerusalem and

As was customary at the the Church, as founded by

time, each fresco contains a Peter, the first pope. The fifth

series of scenes, linked figure on the right is thought to

thematically to the central be a self-portrait by Perugino.

episode. Hidden meanings Botticelli’s Temptations of

and symbols connect each Christ includes a view of the

painting with its counterpart

on the opposite wall, and

there are also many allusions

to contemporary events.

The elaborate architectural

Detail from Botticelli’s fresco details in the frescoes include

Temptations of Christ familiar Roman monuments.

The Arch of Constantine (see

When the Sistine Chapel was p91) provides the backdrop

built, the papacy was a strong for the Punishment of the

political power with vast Rebels by Botticelli, the fifth

accumulated wealth. In 1475 panel in the cycle of Moses,

Pope Sixtus IV was able to in which the artist himself

summon some of the greatest appears as the last figure but

painters of his day to deco- one on the right. Two similar

rate the chapel. Among the arches appear in the painting

artists employed were opposite, Perugino’s Handing

Perugino, who was Raphael’s over the Keys to St Peter.

master and is often credited Moses was both spiritual

with overseeing the project, and temporal leader of his

Sandro Botticelli, Domenico people. He called down the

Ghirlandaio, Cosimo Rosselli wrath of God on those who The central episode in Botticelli’s

and Luca Signorelli. Their challenged his decisions, thus Punishment of the Rebels

work on the chapel’s

frescoes took from Hospital of Santo Spirito,

1481 to 1483. rebuilt in 1475 by Sixtus IV

Although frequently (see p226). Here the devil is

overlooked by visitors disguised in the habit of a

who concentrate on Franciscan monk. Portraits of

Michelangelo’s work, both Botticelli and Filippino

the frescoes along the Lippi are visible in the left

side walls of the chapel hand corner. A portrait of the

include some of the The crowd of onlookers in the Calling of pope’s nephew, Girolamo

finest works of 15th- St Peter and St Andrew by Ghirlandaio Riario, appears in the painting

century Italian art. The of the Crossing of the Red Sea

two cycles of frescoes setting a precedent for the by Rosselli, in which the sea

represent scenes from the power exercised by the pope. is literally red. This painting

lives of Moses and Christ. In Handing over the Keys to also commemorates the papal

Above them in the spaces St Peter, Christ confers spiritual victory at Campomorto in 1482.

between the windows are

portraits of the earliest popes,

painted by various artists,

including Botticelli.

The fresco cycles start at the

altar end of the chapel, with

the story of Christ on the

right-hand wall and that of

Moses on the left. Originally

there were two paintings,

The Birth of Christ and The

Finding of Moses, on the wall

behind the altar, but these

were both destroyed to make

way for Michelangelo’s

Last Judgment. Perugino’s Handing over the Keys to St Peter

246 ROME AREA BY AREA

Sistine Chapel: The Ceiling Libyan Sibyl
The pagan prophetess
Michelangelo frescoed the ceiling
for Pope Julius II between 1508 and reaches for the Book
1512, working on specially designed of Knowledge. Like
scaffolding. The main panels, which most female
chart the Creation of the World and Fall figures Michel-
of Man, are surrounded by subjects from angelo painted,
the Old and New Testaments – except the beautiful
for the Classical Sibyls who are said to Libyan Sibyl was
have foreseen the birth of Christ. In the probably modelled
1980s the ceiling was restored revealing
colours of an unsuspected vibrancy. on a man.

llusionistic
architecture

KEY TO CEILING PANELS

GENESIS: 1 God Dividing Light from PROPHETS: 18 Jonah; Creation of the
Darkness; 2 Creation of the Sun and 19 Jeremiah; 20 Daniel; 21 Ezekiel; Sun and Moon
Moon; 3 Separating Waters from Land; 22 Isaiah; 23 Joel; 24 Zechariah. Michelangelo depicts
4 Creation of Adam; 5 Creation of Eve; God as a dynamic
6 Original Sin; 7 Sacrifice of Noah; SIBYLS: 25 Libyan Sibyl; 26 Persian but terrifying figure
8 The Deluge; 9 Drunkenness of Noah. Sibyl; 27 Cumaean Sibyl; 28 Erythrean commanding the
Sibyl; 29 Delphic Sibyl. sun to shed light on
ANCESTORS OF CHRIST: 10 Solomon the earth.
with his Mother; 11 Parents of Jesse; OLD TESTAMENT SCENES OF
12 Rehoboam with Mother; 13 Asa with SALVATION: 30 Punishment of Haman; 31
Parents; 14 Uzziah with Parents; Moses and the Brazen Serpent; 32 David
15 Hezekiah with Parents; 16 Zerubbabel and Goliath; 33 Judith and Holofernes.
with Parents; 17 Josiah with Parents.

VAT I C A N 247

Original Sin
This shows Adam and
Eve tasting the forbidden
fruit from the Tree of
Knowledge, and their
expulsion from Paradise.
Michelangelo represents
Satan as a snake with the
body of a woman.

The Ignudi are athletic
male nudes whose
significance is uncertain.

RESTORATION OF THE SISTINE CEILING

Restorers used computers, photo-

graphy and spectrum analysis to

inspect the fresco before cleaning

began. They were therefore

able to detect and remove the

changes previous restorers had

made to Michelangelo’s original

work. Analysis showed that the

ceiling had been cleaned with

materials ranging from bread to

retsina wine. The restoration then A restorer cleaning the Libyan Sibyl

revealed the familiarly dusky,

eggshell-cracked figures to have creamy skins, lustrous hair and to be

The lunettes dressed in brightly coloured, luscious robes: “a Benetton Michel-
are devoted to
frescoes of the angelo” mocked one critic, claiming that a layer of varnish which the
ancestors of
Christ, like artist had added to darken the colours had been removed. However,
Hezekiah.
after examining the work, most experts agreed that the new colours

probably matched those painted by Michelangelo.

248 ROME AREA BY AREA

Castel Sant’Angelo e

The massive fortress of Castel Sant’Angelo takes its Mausoleum of Hadrian
name from the vision that Pope Gregory the Great This artist’s impression shows
had of the Archangel Michael on
this site. It began life in AD 139 the tomb before Aurelian
as Emperor Hadrian’s mauso- fortified its walls in AD 270–75.
leum. Since then it has had
many roles: as part of Emperor
Aurelian’s city wall, as a medieval citadel and prison,
and as the residence of the popes in times of political
unrest. From the dank cells in the lower levels to the
fine apartments of the Renaissance popes above, a 58-
room museum covers all aspects of the castle’s history.

Courtyard of Honour The Treasury was probably
Heaps of stone cannonballs the original site of Hadrian’s
decorate the courtyard, once burial chamber.
the castle’s ammunition store.
Hall of the Columns

Loggia of Hall of
Paul III the Library

PROTECTING THE POPE The spi
was the entrance
The Vatican Corridor leads from to the mausoleum.
the Vatican Palace to Castel
Sant’Angelo. It was built in 1277
to provide an escape route
when the pope was in danger.
The pentagonal ramparts built
around the castle during the
17th century improved its
defences in times of siege.

Walls and fortifications . View from Terrace The Chamber of
Vatican Corridor The castle’s terrace, scene of the the Urns housed the
last act of Puccini’s Tosca, offers ashes of members of
splendid views in every direction. Hadrian’s family.