Quirinal fountain and obelisk with Roman statues of Castor and Pollux - the patrons of horsemanship - and their prancing horses stand in splendour in the Piazza del Quirinale. Over 5.5 m (18 ft) high, these statues are huge Roman copies of the 5th century BC, Greek originals. They once stood at the entrance to the nearby Baths of Constantine. Pope Sixtus V had restored and placed them here in 1588. Formerly known as the "horse tamers", they gave the square its familiar name of Monte Cavallo. The obelisk which stands between them was brought here in 1786 from the Mausoleum of Augustus. In 1818 the composition was completed by the addition of a massive granite basin, once a cattle trough in the Forum.
|
|
By the 1500s, the Vatican had a reputation as an unhealthy location because of the high incidence of malaria, so Pope Gregory XIII chose this superb site on the highest of Rome's seven hills as a summer residence for the popes. Work began in 1574. The Piazza del Quirinale has buildings on three sides while the fourth is open, giving a splendid view of the city to the great dome of St Peter's in the distance.
|
|
Many great architects worked on the palace, before it assumed its present form in the 1730s. Domenico Fontana designed the main facade, Carlo Maderno the huge chapel and Bernini the narrow wing that runs the length of V ia del Quirinale . After the unification of Italy in 1870, it became the official residence of the king , then in 1947 of the president of the republic.
| Below we can see the reproduction of the map made by Giovan Battista Falda published between 1678 and 1688. |
click on the image to zoom
New exhibition space at Quirinal Stables whose facade makes up one side of this majestic square. The Stables stand directly opposite the main entrance of the Quirinal Palace and were commissioned by Pope Innocent XIII Conti. He ordered the project to one of the greatest contemporary architect, Alessandro Specchi..... |
|
