The luxurious Navona Square is considered one of the most beautiful in the Italian capital. Her appearance in many respects evolved in the Baroque era. It was then that the area was decorated with elegant palazzos and fountains. From this article you will learn about the history and features of Piazza Navona, its world-famous fountains, as well as what role they played in the famous conflict of the geniuses Bernini and Borromini.
Helpful advice: if you are preparing for a trip to Rome in these very minutes, we recommend downloading our audio guide around the city for the iPhone link, which will help you find out all the most important things, significantly saving on guides and excursions.
After installation, the audio guide works even without the Internet, and all objects of the audio excursion are already plotted on a convenient map of Rome. An audio tour of the center of Rome costs only 5 Euros, which is much cheaper than even the most budget tours. You can install the application on this page.
History and modernity of Piazza Navona
It is known that on the site of Piazza Navona in the era of ancient Rome was located the stadium of Domitian. There is an opinion that the name of the square itself came from the word “agon”, which meant “games”.
One of the earliest buildings on the square is considered the church of St. Agnes. It was here that the young saint suffered martyrdom. The church was first mentioned in the 12th century. A century later, the church of Santa Maria del Sacro Cuore and a couple of fountains appeared, providing adjacent quarters with drinking water.
St. Agnes Church became one of the earliest buildings in the square
The modern appearance of Piazza Navona is strongly associated with representatives of the ancient family of Pamphili. It was they who, in the 15th century, acquired three houses on the square. Two centuries later, Jambatista Pamphili became the next Pope under the name Inocentius X.
With his support, the Pamphili family palace was rebuilt, which he subsequently presented to his brother’s wife Donna Olympia. The choice of the new owner was not accidental. Rumor had it that the pontiff was in love with her.
The modern look of the square is closely connected with the surname Pamphili
It was at the bottom of Olympia that the appearance of a luxurious square was largely formed. Famous architects took part in its decoration: from Girolamo Rainaldi to the ever-implacable Bernini and Borromini.
Over the centuries, the square has become the center for celebrations and public events. Here and now you can find many street artists and actors entertaining the audience.
Piazza Navona is also famous for its Christmas market with bright carnivals.
Fountains on Piazza Navona
Navona Square is decorated with three graceful fountains: Four Rivers in the center, Moor in the south and Neptune in the north.
The first fountains along the edges of the square appeared at the insistence of Pope Gregory XIII in the XVI century. Their bowls are the merit of the architect Giacomo della Porta. Later, in front of the church of St. Agnes, another drinker for horses was erected.
It is noteworthy that for almost 200 years, during the hot summer months, the fountains flowed off on weekends, the water filled the area, and aristocrats had fun, traveling around the artificial lake on their carriages.
Moor Fountain in Piazza Navona
However, Donna Olympia did not like the existing fountains. The medieval relic did not reflect the luxury of the modern square.
The first alteration was a fountain with newts, located opposite the Palazzo Pamphili. Its appearance is the merit of Lorenzo Bernini. It was he who decorated the fountain with dolphins and an impressive figure of the Moor in the center.
The central composition - the fountain of the Four Rivers - was also created by Bernini, but not without cunning and ingenuity.
The Neptune Fountain adorns the northern part of the square
The thing is that Bernini was a favorite of Pope Urban VIII, with whom Innocent X had a long-standing conflict. When the competition for the new fountain was announced, the Pope simply “forgot” to send Bernini's invitation. As a result, his favorite Francesco Borromini was in the lead.
In order to somehow rectify the situation, Bernini created a silver model of the future fountain and presented it as a gift to Donna Olympia. Olympia was a greedy woman, and she accepted the gift without a doubt. The issue with the architect was resolved.
Borromini, an already unloving Bernini, was beside himself with rage.
The Fountain of Four Rivers is located in the center of the square
Rumors circulated around the city that Bernini deliberately unfolded one of the river figures as if she was terrified of the facade of the church that Borromini was working on, and Neil completely covered his face so as not to see this "nightmare".
Borromini avenged by depicting Saint Agnes on the top of the facade of the temple, looking reproachfully at the hated fountain.
As for the fountain of Neptune, then in its final form it took shape only in the 19th century. It was originally planned in the center of the composition to place the female figure in a pair to the Moor, but such a decision did not pass the competitive selection. Therefore, from the top, people walking in the square are watched by the god of rivers and seas.
