Attractions in Vaticano - Borgo (Rome)

Castel Sant'Angelo

The splendid fortress of Castel Sant'Angelo was originally built as a mausoleum for the Emperor Hadrian in 139 CE. In the 10th Century CE it was transformed into a castle, then, 500 years later, into the elegant residence of Pope Alexander VI Borgia. Michelangelo designed the marvelous main court for Pope Leo X and many of the rooms inside are decorated with frescoes of great beauty. It is also been used to house prisoners, including the sculptor Benvenuto Cellini. The terrace offers a fine view of the river Tiber and opera lovers will know that this was where the final act of Giacomo Puccini's opera Tosca (1900) took place. The building is now a museum with a fine collection of suits of armor which is open to the public.

Piazza San Pietro

Enclosed by Bernini's magnificent colonnade, this square has the largest number of visitors in the world. Millions of tourists wait here either for the Pope's Sunday blessing or to enter the Basilica. More than a square, the colonnade gives it the atmosphere of a courtyard, inviting people to enter the church. During Christmas, a nativity scene and a Christmas tree are installed, and there is a remarkable atmosphere of celebration, with the majestic dome dominating the scene behind.

Fontanelle dei Lampioni

Four small fountains face the obelisk raised by Pope Sixtus V in the center of the Piazza San Pietro. They stand on bases that support the four large cast iron lamps in the center of the square that bear the date 1852, the year the fountains were constructed. The water jets from outlets in the form of large noses and falls into oval basins.

Fontana delle Tiare

The Tiare fountain stands in the corner of the Via di Porta Angelica in Colonnato Square. It was designed by Pietro Lombardi and built in 1927 together with a dozen or so other fountains aimed at improving the appearance of the city. It stands on a large base divided into three parts; there are also three small tanks in the form of shells that collect the water that falls from three spigots. The fountain is decorated with three keys of St Peter and four papal tiaras. The largest tiara bears the coat of arms of Rome and that of the district.

Statua di San Michele

A legend exists that tells of the apparition of Archangel Michael on the Mole Adrianea (today the Castel Sant'Angelo) when Rome was hit by the plague. It is said that the angel had a sword in his hand but then he placed it in his sheath as a sign of a good omen and the end of the plague. Consequently, the statue of the angel was commissioned and placed on the highest and most visible point of the castle by Pope Boniface IV. Rome is peppered with statues of angels, such as the series that adorn the Sant'Angelo Bridge in front of the castle, but the Archangel Michael is without doubt the most famous of these. Originally it was to be made completely from bronze but it was later decided to make the body from marble and leave the wings in bronze.

Legulei

There are ten statues representing illustrious men of law (lawyers and judges) on the façade of the Palazzo di Giustizia. It is known as the Palazzaccio (ugly building) that stands near the Piazza Cavour opposite the Umberto I Bridge. The statues carry books in their arms. The men are Lucius Licinius Crassus (a Roman consul and politician), Julianus Salvius (a Roman jurist) and the famous jurist Modestinus. The other six statues are of Marcus Tullius Cicero, the great Roman orator, Papinanus, another Roman jurist, Romagnosi, a jurist and philosopher, Giambattista Vico, the historian, jurist and critic, Bartolo da Sassoferrato, one of Italy's greatest jurists, and the law student Gianbattista De Luca.

Casa Graffita

The house known as the Casa Graffita (or more popularly as the House of the Executioner) is located at number 18, Vicolo del Campanile, one of the cross-streets of Borgo Sant'Angelo. The custom of decorating the exterior of houses in Rome became popular at the start of the Renaissance but probably originated in Venice. Some say it was Virgilio Romano who painted this place, but other hypotheses have also been made. Some experts even consider it to have been the work of the school of Raphael who may have also designed the house. It was decorated around 1520 and the last restoration took place in 1980. Note the false ashlars on the ground floor, the scenes of prisoners on the first floor, the female figures on floors two and three, and the lions' heads on the top floor.

Obelisco Vaticano

In the center of Piazza San Pietro, the Vatican obelisk stands between two enormous fountains and four cast-iron lamp posts. It stands on four bronze lions and was placed in the square by Domenico Fontana for Pope Sixtus V. It was brought to Rome from Alexandria in Egypt in 37 CE by Caligula who used it to decorate Nero's circus. Many legends arose around the enormous monolith. It is said that while it was being raised, in total silence, a certain Bresca (who realized the cords were breaking) prevented it falling by shouting the famous phrase, "Water on the cords". Even more famous is the story that the tip of the obelisk held the ashes of the cremated Julius Caesar in the bronze globe that is now to be seen in the Capitoline museums. Now the tip of the obelisk is crowned, 41 meters up, by a relic of the Holy Cross.

Piazza Cavour

Moving away from St Peter's along Via Crescenzio, you come to Piazza Cavour. It is surrounded by buildings, including the massive Palace of Justice, the theatre-auditorium Adriano, and the Valdese church. The square is decorated with flowers and palm trees and has become more popular over recent years as a result of the annual book fair which was moved here from Castel Sant'Angelo. The monument in the center, dedicated to the famous statesman, Camillo Benso, Count Cavour, was inaugurated in 1895 in the presence of the royal family.

Palazzo Serristori

Palazzo Serristori stands on Via della Conciliazione between Palazzo Cesi and Palazzo dei Penitenzieri. The famous Duke Valentino, i.e. Cesare Borgia lived there. Built in the mid-16th Century, the palace belonged to Bartolomeo della Rovere and then to the Serristori family until 1830 who made it the Tuscan embassy to the Holy See. It was later fitted out to be a barracks before passing to the Vatican. It is now a Papal school and has recently been restored.

Palazzo dei Convertendi

Via della Conciliazione is surrounded by large buildings that belonged to rich families or groups: for example, the building known as the Palazzo dei Convertendi was the one on which the Oriental Congregation rebuilt its palace. The building is from the 16th century and first belonged to the Spinola family in Genova. It passed to Cardinal Castaldi who fitted it out to house heretics who wished to convert to Catholicism (from which it gets its name). It is thought that it was the building in which Raphael died. Features of the elegant building, whose design is attributed to Bramante, are the balcony by Peruzzi which has a large tympanum supported by two pillars and two columns below which stands the triple ashlared entrance.

Via della Conciliazione

Via della Conciliazione is the main street leading to St Peter's from Adrian's Mausoleum or Castel Sant'Angelo. The project to create this monumental street began in 1936 and ended only in 1950 (it was finally inaugurated during the celebration of the Holy Year). The goal was to make a street that was perfectly straight, and in order to achieve this, some old Borghi buildings had to be demolished. But in the end, despite their best efforts, Via della Conciliazione is still crooked and so rows of columns were placed on both sides to try to hide this fact. Among the buildings worth seeing are the Palazzo Torlonia, the Palazzo dei Penitenzieri and the Palazzo dei Convertendi.