Navona Square

Built on the ashes of the Stadium of Domitian, today Navona square with its bars and outdoor cafes is the meeting point for many Romans and tourists. In ancient times it was used for athletic competitions and competitions little appreciated by the Romans of the past, today instead it is a square to live, it hosts street artists, painters and musicians. The ancient remains of the stadium dating back to the 86th C. you can still admire it today from Tor Sanguigna square.

At the center of the square it is impossible not to admire the famous River's fountain, one of the greatest masterpieces by the artist Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Between the rock the four great rivers known at the time, the Nile, the Ganges, the Danube and the Rio de la Plata are depicted with human forms. The rock symbolizes chaos and the obelisk, expressly desired by the Pope is a divine ray that descends to the rock. Legend has it that the Nile hid his eyes so as not to see the Sant'Agnese in Agone's Church of behind him, the work of Borromini, a rival artist by Bernini, while Rio della Plata holds his arm in front of his face to protect himself from the eventual collapse of the bell tower or the dome of the church. But all this is just a legend.

Under the Pamphilj palace on the southern side of the square in 1574 the Moro's fountain was built, while on the other side of the square is the Nettuno's fountain, built the same year.

For centuries the game, the joy and the fun have accompanied Navona square, in fact from 1652 to 1866 every year on Saturdays and Sundays in August the square was flooded at the concave time closing the fountain drains, the " Navona square's lake" "it was a usual amusement for all Romans.

If you are in the Eternal City, stop in Navona square for a coffee!