Square, Plaza sights in Rome
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A
Piazza del Popolo
For centuries the sight of public executions, this elegant neoclassical piazza is a superb people-watching spot. It was originally laid out in 1538 to provide a grandiose entrance to the city – at the time, and for centuries before, it was the main northern gateway into the city. Since then it has been extensively altered, most recently by Giuseppe Valadier in 1823. Guarding its southern entrance are Carlo Rainaldi’s twin 17th-century baroque churches, Chiesa di Santa Maria dei Miracoli and Chiesa di Santa Maria in Montesanto, while over on the northern flank is the Porta del Popolo, created by Bernini in 1655. In the centre, the 36m-high Egyptian obelisk was moved…
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B
Trastevere
Although its traditionally proletarian nature is changing as the crumbling palazzi become gentrified, a stroll among the labyrinthine alleys of Trastevere still reaps small gems of a bygone past. Washing strung out from the apartments in best Mama-leone tradition has everyone sighing and reaching for the Kodaks.
The lovely Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere is the area's heart. It's a true Roman square - by day peopled by mothers with strollers, chatting locals and guidebook-toting tourists, by night with artisans selling their craft work, young Romans looking for a good time, and the odd homeless person looking for a bed. The streets east of the piazza is where you'll find…
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C
St Peter's Square
From above, Piazza San Pietro looks like a giant keyhole. The square's creator, Bernini, described the double colonnade as 'the motherly arms of the church'. He'd planned for the square to gob-smack pilgrims as they emerged from the tangle of medieval streets, an effect spoilt when Mussolini bulldozed Via della Conciliazione through the area. Caligula shipped in the central obelisk from Heliopolis, and it was later used by Christian-culling Nero as a turning post at his chariot-racing circus.
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D
Portico d’Ottavia
To the east of the Ghetto is the archaeological area of the Portico d’Ottavia, the oldest quadriporto (four-sided porch) in Rome. The columns and fragmented pediment once formed part of a vast rectangular portico, supported by 300 columns, that measured 132m by 119m. Erected by a builder called Octavius in 146 BC, it was rebuilt in 23 BC by Augustus, who kept the name in honour of his sister Octavia. From the Middle Ages until the late 19th century, the portico housed the city’s fish market.
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E
Piazza dei Santissimi Apostoli
A popular place for political demonstrations, this long thin piazza is home to L'Ulivo, Italy's main centre-left political party, and is flanked by impressive baroque palazzi. At the end of the square stands Palazzo Balestra, given to James Stuart, the Old Pretender, in 1719 by Pope Clement XI. Opposite the Basilica dei Santi Apostoli is Palazzo Odelscalchi, with its impressive 1664 façade by Bernini. Only the church is open to the public.
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F
Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere
Trastevere’s focal square is a prime people-watching spot. By day it’s full of mums with strollers, chatting locals and guidebook-toting tourists; by night it’s the domain of foreign students, young Romans and out-of-towners, all out for a good time. The fountain in the centre of the square is of Roman origin and was restored by Carlo Fontana in 1692.
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G
Piazza Sant'Ignazio
When we say that Filippo Raguzzini's 18th-century square steals the stage, we're serious. Resembling a theatrical set, complete with exits into 'the wings' at either end of its northern side, it's also home to 17th-century Chiesa di Sant'Ignazio di Loyola (h07:30-12:30 & 15:00-19:15) and its deceptive trompe l'oeil ceiling perspective by Andrea Pozzo in the 'dome'.
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H
Galleria Doria Pamphilj
Just north of Piazza Venezia is the Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, home to the Galleria Doria Pamphilj. You wouldn’t know it from the grimy exterior but this palazzo houses one of Rome’s richest private art collections, with works by Raphael, Tintoretto, Brueghel, Titian, Caravaggio, Bernini and Velázquez.
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