Rome: Capitolium Square
Piazza del Campidoglio situated on the Capitoline Hill, which has always been the privileged seat of divinity and power.
Although it is the lowest and least extensive of the Seven Hills of Rome, in the early 6th century B.C. there stood the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus Capitolinus, by far the most important temple of ancient Rome. Near the present-day church of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli was, instead, the Temple of Juno Moneta.
It was precisely in the Temple of Juno Moneta, i.e. "exhorter, admonisher", that the first mint of Rome was established, and the goddess's epithet later gave rise to the Italian word "moneta", to mean "coin".
In 390 B.C. the Gauls, commanded by King Brennus, stormed into Rome, crossing the Capitoline Hill, but the sacred geese of Juno, kept here, started squawking. The Romans, awakened by the noise of the animals, were thus able to repel the assailants.
During the Middle Ages the summit of the hill, partially abandoned, leading it to be called Monte Caprino after the goats grazing there, was the site of a marketplace.
In the market the measure for wine was the inside of an ancient column drum, while that for wheat (the ruggitella) was the urn of the ashes of the Empress Agrippina.
The square, as an actual urbanistic element, was created only starting in 1538, when Pope Paul III entrusted its arrangement to Michelangelo. Michelangelo designed the lovely star-shaped pavement pattern, the façade of the Palazzo Senatorio, the seat of the City of Rome since 1143, and the two palaces embracing the square, today the renovated seat of the Capitoline Museums, the oldest museums in the world.
The equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, of which a faithful copy can be seen in the centre of the square and the original is in the museums, managed to pass unharmed through the Middle Ages, a period when metals were melted down and reused, only thanks to a misunderstanding: the popes, who were its owners until the 15th century, had identified the person depicted as Constantine, the first Christian emperor. Legend has it that when the screech-owl between the horse's ears will hoot, the end of the world will arrive. This event seems to be very far off, however, considering that the owl is, in reality, a tuft of the horse's mane!
A new passageway connects Piazza del Campidoglio to the Terraces of the Vittoriano which offer a breath taking view of the city. The monument, devoted to the first king of Italy Victor Emmanuel II, and, since 1921, to the Unknow Soldier, includes the Museum of the Risorgimento and the Sanctuary of the Flags. It is entirely accessible to the public.
Enjoy this square!
Amarcord bed and breakfast Rome
Although it is the lowest and least extensive of the Seven Hills of Rome, in the early 6th century B.C. there stood the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus Capitolinus, by far the most important temple of ancient Rome. Near the present-day church of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli was, instead, the Temple of Juno Moneta.
It was precisely in the Temple of Juno Moneta, i.e. "exhorter, admonisher", that the first mint of Rome was established, and the goddess's epithet later gave rise to the Italian word "moneta", to mean "coin".
In 390 B.C. the Gauls, commanded by King Brennus, stormed into Rome, crossing the Capitoline Hill, but the sacred geese of Juno, kept here, started squawking. The Romans, awakened by the noise of the animals, were thus able to repel the assailants.
During the Middle Ages the summit of the hill, partially abandoned, leading it to be called Monte Caprino after the goats grazing there, was the site of a marketplace.
In the market the measure for wine was the inside of an ancient column drum, while that for wheat (the ruggitella) was the urn of the ashes of the Empress Agrippina.
The square, as an actual urbanistic element, was created only starting in 1538, when Pope Paul III entrusted its arrangement to Michelangelo. Michelangelo designed the lovely star-shaped pavement pattern, the façade of the Palazzo Senatorio, the seat of the City of Rome since 1143, and the two palaces embracing the square, today the renovated seat of the Capitoline Museums, the oldest museums in the world.
The equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius, of which a faithful copy can be seen in the centre of the square and the original is in the museums, managed to pass unharmed through the Middle Ages, a period when metals were melted down and reused, only thanks to a misunderstanding: the popes, who were its owners until the 15th century, had identified the person depicted as Constantine, the first Christian emperor. Legend has it that when the screech-owl between the horse's ears will hoot, the end of the world will arrive. This event seems to be very far off, however, considering that the owl is, in reality, a tuft of the horse's mane!
A new passageway connects Piazza del Campidoglio to the Terraces of the Vittoriano which offer a breath taking view of the city. The monument, devoted to the first king of Italy Victor Emmanuel II, and, since 1921, to the Unknow Soldier, includes the Museum of the Risorgimento and the Sanctuary of the Flags. It is entirely accessible to the public.
Enjoy this square!
Amarcord bed and breakfast Rome
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