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visit Rome in 2 days
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The theatrical Fountain of the Naiads, one of the most beautiful fountains of modern Rome, is the work of sculptor Mario Rutelli, who created it in 1901 to adorn Piazza della Repubblica, originally called Piazza Esedra.
The fence was removed by popular acclaim, but the criticism did not end, so the sculptor created the central group which, depicting three tritons, a dolphin and an octopus, was quickly christened "mixed fish fry". The group was transferred to Piazza Vittorio and replaced with the figure of Glaucus Fighting a Triton. For those with a sweet tooth a stop at the Dagnino bar-pastry shop, Via V. Emanuele Orlando 75, is a must. It offers the best Sicilian specialties, from cannoli to marzipan fruit. Those, on the other hand, in search of guidebooks or other books can go to Feltrinelli International, Via V. Emanuele Orlando 84, or Mel Book Store, Via Nazionale 255. Often the creation of aqueducts and fountains was dictated, more than by the desire to meet the population's needs, by the desire to satisfy private interests of the popes. This is the case of the Fountain of Moses in Piazza San Bernardo, which forms the "display", i.e. the terminal part of the Felice aqueduct, thus named after Pope Sixtus V, Felice Peretti, who restored the ancient Alessandrino aqueduct. This was done mainly to serve the huge villa, which no longer exists, that the pope had built starting in 1585 and which occupied the entire Termini Station area as far as the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. The figure of Moses as he makes water gush forth from the rock, an obvious reference to the pope who restored the aqueduct, was so strongly criticised for its lack of elegance and proportion that it became the subject of a humorous pasquinade: Guarda con l'occhio torvo (He looks with a surly eye Going down Via Barberini we reach the square of the same name, characterized by the lovely Triton's Fountain, a masterpiece by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who created it in around 1642. The whimsical composition, which decorated the square in front of the palace of the noble Barberini family (see Itinerary 11), depicts a triton held up by four dolphins as he is blowing into a shell, proclaiming the family's glory to the world. Up until the 18th century a macabre ritual would take place in front of the fountain: the corpses of the unknown would be shown there as a crier would call for them to be recognized. At no. 120 of Via del Tritone is Planet Hollywood, part of the chain of restaurants opened all over the world by a company formed by a group of famous American movie actors including Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Bees, the heraldic symbol of the Barberini, in addition to decorating the base of the Triton's Fountain, are the protagonists of a small but lovely composition placed at the corner between Piazza Barberini and Via Veneto, the Fountain of the Bees. The three insects, situated on the hinge of an open bivalve shell, were sculpted by Bernini in 1644, to celebrate the twenty-second anniversary of the papacy of Pope Urban VIII. The fact that he finished it before the actual date of the anniversary seems to have been a bad omen for the pontiff, who unfortunately died eight days before it. From here starts Via Veneto, "twinned" with Fifth Avenue in New York, the symbol of the Dolce Vita of the '50s and 60s. The elegant street, celebrated by Federico Fellini, is the hangout of politicians, intellectuals, entertainers and journalists, often immortalised by the ever-present "paparazzi". Renowned the world over are its luxurious hotels, the Excelsior, the Majestic, the Ambasciatori and the Regina Palace, and its famous cafés, such as Cafè de Paris, Doney and Harry's Bar. Across from the American Embassy, a Hard Rock Cafè has also been opened recently. The entire quarter was created between the late 1800s and the early 1900s, when the Boncompagni Ludovisi princes decided, with an unscrupulous action of real estate speculation, to divide the land belonging to their 17th-century splendid villa into lots. Of the villa, only the Casino dell'Aurora (on Via Boncompagni), decorated by Guercino and Caravaggio, remains, and unfortunately it is not easily accessible.
This is the aqueduct that supplies the water to the monumental fountains of the historic center, from Piazza Navona to Piazza di Spagna. The name "Trevi", on the other hand, allegedly derives from the word Trivium, a meeting point of three streets that form this little widened area. It is truly surprising to see such a large fountain in such a small square, but the artist Nicola Salvi, who created it between 1732 and 1762, carefully studied the way to increase the sensation of marvel. Indeed, he set it almost entirely against the face of Palazzo Poli, preceding it with a little balconied scene, almost as if it were a theatre! The artist was, however, disturbed during his work by the continuous criticism expressed by a barber who had his shop in the square. To shut him up, during one night Salvi created the large basin, familiarly called the "Ace of Cups", situated on the right-hand balustrade, which completely blocked the view of the fountain from the shop. Everyone knows that, if they want to return to Rome, they have to throw a coin into the basin, but be careful: for the dream to come true, you have to toss it over your shoulder with your back to the fountain! Across from the fountain it is possible to admire the lively façade of the Chiesa dei Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio. The building, which was a Papal Parish for centuries, preserves the hearts and lungs of 22 popes who died in the Quirinal Palace standing nearby (see Itinerary 9): from Sixtus V, who died in 1590, to Leo XIII, who died in 1903. Pope Pius X abolished this custom which had prompted Belli, the famous Roman dialect poet, to call the church "museo de' corate e de' ciorcelli" (pluck museum), from the popular term used to refer to the viscera of butchered animals.
Parallel to to Via del Babuino runs Via Margutta which, since the 1600s, Italian and foreign artists have chosen as the picturesque location for their studios. Although it is no longer as it once was, the street has preserved a considerable charm, also thanks to the presence of shops such as "Marmoraro", at no. 53, where marble is still worked using traditional artisan techniques and old tools. The pretty Fountain of the Artists, near n. 54, was created in 1927 by Pietro Lombardi precisely to recall this peculiarity, since it depicts easels, stands, paintbrushes, and palettes. This original composition is one of the "Fontanelle Rionali " series, created starting in 1927 by architect Pietro Lombardi. Each quarter of Rome is represented by one or more objects symbolising that neighbourhood - the pinecone for Rione Pigna (Piazza San Marco), the papal tiara for the Vatican (Largo del Colonnato), amphorae for the Testaccio (Piazza Testaccio), the helm for Rione Ripa (Lungotevere Ripa), and so on - all harmoniously inserted into their surrounding contexts.
For vegetarians who also love
contemporary art, there is Margutta Vegetariano RistorArte where, in
addition to the traditional menu, every day it is possible to enjoy a
"Green brunch" while admiring shows of young artists , Via Margutta
119, Piazza del Popolo side (06 32650557).
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