Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
us) on a horse. The greatest surviving equestrian statue of antiquity, this was the original
centerpiece of the square (where a copy stands today).
Christians in the Dark Ages thought that the statue's hand was raised in blessing, which
probably led to their misidentifying him as Constantine, the first Christian emperor. While
most pagan statues were destroyed by Christians, “Constantine” was spared.
The second-floor café,
Caffè Capitolino,
has a splendid patio offering city views. It's
lovely at sunset (public entrance for non-museum-goers off Piazza Caffarelli and through
door #4).
Go downstairs to the
Tabularium.
Built in the first century
B.C.
, these sturdy vacant
rooms once held the archives of ancient Rome. The word Tabularium comes from “tablet,”
on which Romans wrote their laws. You won't see any tablets, but you will see a stunning
head-on view of the Forum from the windows.
Leave the Tabularium and enter the
Palazzo Nuovo,
which houses mostly portrait busts
of forgotten emperors. But it also has two must-see statues: the
Dying Gaul
and the
Capit-
oline Venus
(both on the first floor up).
The church atop Capitoline Hill is old and dear to the hearts of Romans. It stands on the site
where Emperor Augustus (supposedly) had a premonition of the coming of Mary and Christ
standing on an “altar in the sky”
(ara coeli).
The church is Rome in a nutshell, where you
can time-travel across 2,000 years by standing in one spot.
Cost and Hours:
Free, daily April-Oct 9:00-12:30 & 15:00-18:30, Nov-March
9:00-12:30 & 14:30-17:30. While dedicated pilgrims climb up the long, steep staircase from
street level (the right side of Victor Emmanuel Monument, as you face it), savvy sightseers
prefer to enter through the shortcut atop Capitoline Hill (see sidebar).
This vast square, dominated by the big, white Victor Emmanuel Monument, is a major
transportation hub and the focal point of modern Rome. (The square has been dug up for
years—Metro line C is under construction, and when anything of archaeological importance
isuncovered,progressisinterrupted,hencethecanopiedsiteonthesquaretoday.)Withyour
back to the monument (you'll get the best views from the terrace by the guards and etern-
al flame), look down Via del Corso, the city's axis, surrounded by Rome's classiest shop-
ping district. In the 1930s, Benito Mussolini whipped up Italy's nationalistic fervor from
a balcony above the square (it's the less-grand balcony on the left). Fascist masses filled
the square screaming, “Four more years!”—or something like that. Mussolini created the
boulevard Via dei Fori Imperiali (to your right) to open up views of the Colosseum in the
distance to impress his visiting friend Adolf Hitler. Mussolini lied to his people, mixing fear
