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| Piazza Navona |
Piazza Navona
Piazza Navona is a city square in Rome, Italy. It is built on the site of the Stadium of Domitian, built in 1st century AD, and follows the form of the open space of the stadium. The ancient Romans came there to watch games, and therefor it was known as 'Circus Agonalis'. Over time the name changed to 'in agone' to 'navone' and eventually to 'navona'.
The Piazza Navona has two additional fountains:
- Fontana del Moro with a basin and four Tritons sculpted by Giacomo della Porta (1575) to which, in 1673, Bernini added a statue of a African, wrestling with a dolphin,
- Fountain of Neptune (1574) created by Giacomo della Porta. The statue of Neptune in the northern fountain, the work of Antonio Della Bitta, was added in 1878 to make that fountain more symmetrical with La Fontana del Moro in the south.
This is the ancient 'speaking' statue of Pasquino. Erected in 1501, Romans could leave lampoons or derogatory social commentary attached to the statue.
The piazza has hosted theatrical events and other ephemeral activities. From 1652 until 1866, it was flooded every Saturday and Sunday in August in celebrations of the Pamphilj family.
Nowadays, a Christmas market is held on the Piazza.
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| Piazza Navona on map |
