RooMXMatez TM: THE CITY OF VISIBLE HISTORY

THE CITY OF VISIBLE HISTORY

By Unknown Wednesday, April 15, 2015 Travel

Capital of the Italian Republic as well as of the region of Lazio, with almost three million residents, Rome is Italy’s largest and most populated city and fourth-most populous city in the European Union. Situated along the shores of Tiber river, Rome contains within its boundaries the Vatican City. Although it is an independent country, Rome is defined as capital of two states. Founded in 753 BC, Rome’s settles its origins more than two and a half thousand years earlier.

Rome presents itself as the result of the continuous over-layering of architectural and urban witnesses coming from different ages in a very suggestive and unique interpenetration that shows the complex relationship that the city has established with its past, overcoming different chaotic developments, declines, rebirths and modernization.

Rome is a city famous for its numerous fountains, built in all different styles, from Classical and Medieval, to Baroque and Neoclassical. The city has had fountains for more than two thousand years, and they have provided drinking water and decorated the piazzas of Rome. They are crowded with allegorical figures, and filled with emotion and movement. In these fountains, sculpture became the principal element, and the water was used simply to animate and decorate the sculptures.

Public parks and nature reserves cover a large area in Rome, and the city has one of the largest areas of green space among European capitals. The most notable part of this green space is represented by the large number of villas and landscaped gardens created by the Italian aristocracy. The most notable of these are Villa Borghese, Villa Doria Pamphili and Villa Ada. Also on the Gianicolo hill there is Villa Sciarra and in the nearby area of Trastevere the Orto Botanico (Botanical Garden) is a cool and shady green space. The old Roman hippodrome (Circus Maximus) is another large green space: it has few trees, but is overlooked by the Palatine and the Rose Garden ('roseto comunale'). Nearby is the lush Villa Celimontana, close to the gardens surrounding the Baths of Caracalla. The Villa Borghese garden is the best known large green space in Rome, with famous art galleries among its shaded walks. Overlooking Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish Steps are the gardens of Pincio and Villa Medici. Noteworthy is also the Pine wood of Castelfusano, near Ostia. Rome also has a number of regional parks of much more recent origin including the Pineto Regional Park and the Appian Way Regional Park. There are also nature reserves at Marcigliana and at Tenuta di Castelporziano.

The city of Rome contains numerous famous bridges which cross the Tiber. The only bridge to remain unaltered until today from the classical age is Ponte dei Quattro Capi, which connects the Isola Tiberina with the left bank. The other surviving ancient Roman bridges crossing the Tiber are Ponte Cestio, Ponte Sant'Angelo and Ponte Milvio. Considering Ponte Nomentano, also built during ancient Rome, which crosses the Aniene, currently there are five ancient Roman bridges still remaining in the city. Most of the city's public bridges were built in Classical or Renaissance style, but also in Baroque, Neoclassical and Modern styles.

The city hosts eight ancient Egyptian and five ancient Roman obelisks, together with a number of more modern obelisks. The city contains some of obelisks in piazzas, such as in Piazza del Popolo, Piazza Navona, Piazza Montecitorio and St Peter's Square, and others in villas, thermae parks and gardens, such as in Villa Celimontana, Pincian Hill and the Baths of Diocletian. Moreover, the centre of Rome hosts also Trajan's and Antonine Column, two ancient Roman columns with spiral relief.

Rome is well known for its statues but, in particular, the talking statues of Rome. There are two main talking statues: the Pasquino and the Marforio, yet there are four other noted ones: il Babbuino, Madama Lucrezia, il Facchino and Abbot Luigi. Most of these statues are ancient Roman or classical, and most of them also depict mythical gods, ancient people or legendary figures. Other statues in the city, which are not related to the talking statues, include those of the Ponte Sant'Angelo, or several monuments scattered across the city, such as that to Giordano Bruno in the Campo de'Fiori.

Rome's architecture over the centuries has greatly developed, especially from the Classical and Imperial Roman styles to modern Fascist architecture.

One of the symbols of Rome is the Colosseum (70–80 AD), the largest amphitheatre ever built in the Roman Empire. Originally capable of seating sixty thousand spectators, it was used for gladiatorial combat. A list of important monuments and sites of ancient Rome includes the Roman Forum, the Domus Aurea, the Circus Maximus, the Catacombs, the Pantheon, Trajan's Column, Trajan's Market, the Pyramid of Cestius, the Baths of Caracalla, the Mausoleum of Augustus, the Ara Pacis, Castel Sant'Angelo, the Bocca della Verità and the Arch of Constantine.

Rome's medieval heritage is one of the largest in Italian cities. Basilicas dating from the Paleochristian age include Santa Maria Maggiore and San Paolo Fuori le Mura. Later notable medieval mosaic and fresco art can be also found in the churches of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Santi Quattro Coronati, and Santa Prassede. Lay buildings include a number of towers, the largest being the Torre delle Milizie and the Torre dei Conti, both next the Roman Forum, and the huge staircase leading to the basilica of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli.

Rome was a major world centre of the Renaissance, and was profoundly affected by the movement. Among others, a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture in Rome is the Piazza del Campidoglio by Michelangelo. During this period, the great aristocratic families of Rome used to build opulent dwellings as the Palazzo del Quirinale (now seat of the President of the Italian Republic), the Palazzo Venezia, the Palazzo Farnese, the Palazzo Barberini, thePalazzo Chigi (now seat of the Italian Prime Minister), the Palazzo Spada, the Palazzo della Cancelleria, and the Villa Farnesina. Many of the famous city's squares got their present shape during the Renaissance and Baroque. The principal ones are Piazza Navona, Piazza Farnese, Piazza di Spagna, Piazza Venezia, Piazza della Rotonda Campo de' Fiori, and Piazza della Minerva. One of the most emblematic examples of Baroque art is the Fontana di Trevi by Nicola Salvi. Other notable 17th-century baroque palaces are the Palazzo Madama, now the seat of the Italian Senate and the Palazzo Montecitorio, now the seat of the Chamber of Deputies of Italy.

During Neoclassicism, a building style influenced by the architecture of antiquity, became a predominant influence in Roman architecture. During this period, many great palaces in neoclassical styles were built to host ministries, embassies, and other governing agencies. One of the best-known symbols of Roman neoclassicism is the Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II or "Altar of the Fatherland", where the Grave of the Unknown Soldier, that represents the Italians that fell in World War I, is located.

Simone Bronzi

Creative Director of RooMXMatez TM