Piazza della Repubblica is a circular

piazza A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, at the summit of the

Viminal Hill The Viminal Hill ( ; la, Collis Vīminālis ; it, Viminale ) is the smallest of the famous Seven Hills of Rome. A finger-shape cusp pointing toward central Rome between the Quirinal Hill to the northwest and the Esquiline Hill to the southeast ...

, next to the Termini station. On it is to be found

Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and of the Martyrs ( la, Beatissimae Virginis et omnium Angelorum et Martyrum, it, Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri) is a basilica and titular church in Rome, Italy, built inside the ruined ''frigida ...

. It is served by the Repubblica – Teatro dell'Opera

Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urb ...

station. From the square starts one of the main streets of Rome, Via Nazionale. The former name of the piazza, ''Piazza dell'Esedra'', still very common today, originates in the large

exedra An exedra (plural: exedras or exedrae) is a semicircular architectural recess or platform, sometimes crowned by a semi-dome, and either set into a building's façade or free-standing. The original Greek sense (''ἐξέδρα'', a seat out of d ...

of the

baths of Diocletian , alternate_name = it, Terme di Diocleziano , image = Baths of Diocletian-Antmoose1.jpg , caption = Baths of Diocletian, with the basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri built in the remains of the baths. , map_dot_ ...

, which gives the piazza its shape. The exedra present in the baths of Diocletian was incorporated into the gardens built by Cardinal

Jean du Bellay Jean du Bellay (1492 – 16 February 1560) was a French diplomat and cardinal, a younger brother of Guillaume du Bellay, and cousin and patron of the poet Joachim du Bellay. He was bishop of Bayonne by 1526, member of the ''Conseil privé'' ( ...

; on his death in 1560, the land was purchased by Cardinal

Carlo Borromeo Charles Borromeo ( it, Carlo Borromeo; la, Carolus Borromeus; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation combat ...

, and eventually came into the possession of Cardinal Alessandro Sforza in 1579. Between 1598 and 1600 the exedra was converted into a church. Then, in 1885, the Via Nazionale cut through the centre of this structure. The porticos around the piazza, built in 1887–98 by Gaetano Koch, were in memory of the ancient buildings on the same sites, while the basilica of

on the piazza is based on a wing of the baths (with its architect Michelangelo, using the

tepidarium The tepidarium was the warm (''tepidus'') bathroom of the Roman baths heated by a hypocaust or underfloor heating system. The speciality of a tepidarium is the pleasant feeling of constant radiant heat which directly affects the human body from t ...

as one of the wings of its spacious

Greek cross The Christian cross, with or without a figure of Christ included, is the main religious symbol of Christianity. A cross with a figure of Christ affixed to it is termed a ''crucifix'' and the figure is often referred to as the ''corpus'' (La ...

plan).

Fountain of the Naiads

2017-05-08 Fontana delle Naiadi (Rome) 2

The fountain in this square was originally the fountain of the '' Acqua Pia'' (connected to the aqua Marcia aqueduct), commissioned this site by Pope Pius IX in 1870. Completed in 1888, it originally showed four plaster lions designed by

Alessandro Guerrieri Alessandro is both a given name and a surname, the Italian form of the name Alexander. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name Alessandro * Alessandro Allori (1535–1607), Italian portrait painter * Alessandro Baricco ...

. These were then replaced in 1901 with

sculptures Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

of Naiads by

Mario Rutelli Mario Rutelli (Palermo, Sicily, 4 April 1859 – 1941) was an Italian sculptor. Biography From a native British family which long ago moved from France to Italy (Rudelle at first), Mario's father Giovanni Rutelli was a prominent architect in ...

from Palermo, the great-grandfather of the politician and former mayor of Rome,

Francesco Rutelli Francesco Rutelli (born 14 June 1954) is an Italian journalist and former politician, who is the president of ''Anica'', National Association of Film and Audiovisual Industry, since October 2016. He also chairs the "Centro per un Futuro Sostenib ...

. The naiads represented are the Nymph of the Lakes (recognisable by the swan she holds), the Nymph of the Rivers (stretched out on a monster of the rivers), the Nymph of the Oceans (riding a horse symbolising of the sea), and the Nymph of the Underground Waters (leaning over a mysterious dragon). In the centre is Rutelli's '' Glauco'' group (1911/12), symbolizing the dominion of the man over natural force and replacing a previous sculpture.

References

* Touring Club Italiano, ''Roma'', collana ''L'Italia'' (red guide), Roma 2004 * Willy Pocino, ''Le curiosità di Roma'', Newton & Compton Editori, Roma 2004,
Activitaly Monuments

External links

* {{Authority control Repubblica Rome R. XVIII Castro Pretorio

Fountain of the Naiads

See also

References

External links