Piazza del Quirinale

Save
  • Show map Close map
  • Transport
    bus: Via Nazionale

Let us know if these details are incorrect

Lonely Planet review

A wonderful spot to enjoy a glowing Roman sunset, this bare and uneven piazza sits on the summit of the Quirinale hill. The obelisk in the centre was moved here from the Mausoleo di Augusto in 1786 and is flanked by 5.5m statues of Castor and Pollux reining in a couple of huge rearing horses. Roman copies of 5th-century-BC Greek originals, they were moved from the Baths of Constantine in the 16th century by Pope Sixtus V.

It's not much of a show, but every day, at some point between and , the two sentries outside Palazzo del Quirinale are replaced by the next pair, accompanied by minor pomp and military shouting. More dramatic by far is the classical music concert staged here on New Year's Eve.