by C. P.
Current Coronavirus regulations in Italy and Rome prevent visitors from staying out late dining and drinking, but that doesn’t mean that there is nothing to do if you’re visiting: shops are open, museums are working as usual and the milder climate allows everyone to enjoy some of the city’s attractions, from parks to landmarks, in spite of the shorter autumn days.
This post, specifically, wants to draw attention to Rome’s water fountains: from the humble nasone (the dispensers of free drinkable water seen everywhere in the city center) to the majestic Trevi fountain, there are over 2000 of them around town.
We at From Home to Rome want to send you on an adventure, looking for the most peculiar fountains – we chose ten of them, from very old to (sort of) new.
Our small list doesn’t aim to be comprehensive, but it helps seeing Rome from a different point of view. And if you’re traveling with your kids (whether now or at a later time!) it’s certainly one activity you can share with them: and photographing or drawing these fountains can make for an excellent memory from your trip.
The word “fountain” (and the Italian fontana) comes from “Fons/Fontus”, the ancient Roman god for water. Because of the soil composition in the area, there’s always been an abundance of springs, some big enough to become creeks or rivers. Most of these have dried up or disappeared beneath the city, and none is more famous than the mysterious well in what is today Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere.
What you can see today in the famous square is a fountain that doesn’t look that old: none other than Donato Bramante designed it in the 15th century. What is beneath his work has been working continuously since year 2 BC – built under orders from Augustus himself, who had naval battles set up in the area. You can reach Santa Maria in Trastevere on foot if you’re staying at one of our accommodations nearby like Casa di Fenizio.
This is no way a unique happening in Rome: because most of the early fountains in the city were really just troughs (the idea that they could also be beautiful came much later!), after the fall of the Empire many sarcophaguses were literally taken from where they had been laid – typically along the most important streets – and transformed into something else entirely. Specifically, and because of their unique shape, in… even more troughs.
This one on an alley tucked behind Palazzo Doria Pamphilj, minutes from Piazza Venezia, was once standing in the courtyard of Palazzo Altieri – now it is outside it. More examples like this one can be seen on Piazza del Popolo, by the two sides of the ancient Porta del Popolo gate – with a little effort, you can see one of them from the windows at Paradiso Penthouse!
Can you imagine Campo de’ Fiori without the Giordano Bruno statue? Impossible, right? And yet, this legendary square was much more “traditional” until 1899, when the statue was put in place. The fountain that used to be there, designed by Giacomo Della Porta (the very same artist who signed dozens of celebrated fountains all over central Rome) was then moved to Piazza della Chiesa Nuova. People also call it the Zuppiera, because with its lid, it does look like a bowl.
Because of its location, this fountain is seconds from the entrance of Loft Farnese and minutes from many other of our rental apartments!
The Facchino, the porter, is one of the talking statues of Rome, but it’s famous for something else entirely. Because of the hat the porter is wearing, people in the 16th century mistook him for none other than Martin Luther, and many took turns at hitting the statue with anything they had – that’s why this fountain, dating back to 1580, actually looks much older. You can see the Facchino on Via del Corso on the corner of the Via Lata alley.
You will need to move from the city center to see this particular drinking fountain on viale Giovanni Battista Valente 139, in the Prenestino area. Residents have simply decided to restore a very run-down fountain, and the result is this colorful, upgraded version that has already become a social network star (it also has its own Facebook page, and more like the first one are coming!).
In 1927, architect Pietro Lombardi was tasked with designing modern fountains, each of which had to include a recognizable symbol of the district they were to be placed in. So Testaccio had amphorae after the Monte dei Cocci hill; the Fountain of the arts on Via Margutta included brushes as a nod to the artist community that has always been a fixture there; Ripa had a helm because the ancient port of Rome was there… and so on.
There are dozens of them, and the creativity and expertise of Lombardi, who thoroughly researched every district of Rome, should be recognized worldwide.
We reccomend starting with the the first one ever built by Pietro Lombardi, indeed the one on Piazza delle Anfore in the Testaccio area. You can get to easily by subway (get off at Piramide, then it’s a 10 minutes walk towards the river), or by bus/tram (lines no. 23, 280 or 3, among others).
Recently restored, Fontana delle Rane (“Fountain of the Frogs”) welcomes visitors at the entrance of art nouveau district Quartiere Coppedè, designed by architect Gino Coppedè in the early 20th century.
The story goes that the Beatles themselves took a bath in there on either June 27 or 28, 1965, after their only shows in Rome. The surviving members of the band do not deny nor confirm the dip ever happened, but it seems to us that a spontaneous swim is completely in the Fab Four’s style. You can reach the Quartiere Coppedé by tram (lines 3 or 19) or bus (no. 63/83/92).
In the roundabout on Piazza della Repubblica, until the late 19th century, the fountain was much simpler than it is today: it was just basins, and a number of plaster lions, hurriedly put in as a tribute to Kaiser Wilhelm II, who came to visit Rome in 1888.
The plaster lions were considered cheap and removed shortly after to be replaced by statues of the Naiads, the female spirits of fountains and springs. The artist tasked to carve them was a Mario Rutelli who sculpted such believable figures the youth of Rome stopped by in the piazza to marvel at their curves. Some even waded in the fountain to touch them. The outrage was such that the government had put in place a gate to protect the… sexy statues!
The Fontana dell’Acqua Felice (“Fountain of the Aqua Felix”) is one of the most photographed ones in Rome, but those who shoot find something off about it – it’s the statue of the Moses, who appears to be completely out of scale and unbalanced if compared to the rest of the majestic building it is part of (like Trevi fountain, this one too occupies the back of a palazzo).
The Moses is so out of place because the fountain itself was built by using ancient Roman columns and marbles coming from the very near Terme di Diocleziano (Baths of Diocletian) while very Egyptian looking lions are indeed from Egypt… But they were adorning an ancient temple near the Pantheon. So artist Leonardo Sormani had to make do with what little space he had. The statue is so ridiculous looking Romans have taken to call the whole fountain “the Ugly Moses”!
We’ve already talked about this one at this address. Very few people know that on the right side outside Trevi fountain lies a very simple basin that is said helps with true love. It’s enough to drink the water coming out of there at the same time to stay together forever!
Join The Discussion