4

CONTENTS
The meridian line – Basilica of St Mary of the Angels 6

The Roman Aquarium – House of Architecture 10

The Basilica of the Four Crowned Saints – The fortress-church 14

Villa Celimontana Park – Italian Geographic Society 18

St Sebastian Gate – Museum of the Walls 21

The Non-Catholic Cemetery 24

Municipal Rose Garden – Ancient Jewish Cemetery 28

The Great Synagogue and Jewish Museum of Rome 32

The ancient Jewish ghetto 36

Villa Sciarra Park 40

Bramante’s Tempietto – Church of St Peter in Montorio 43

The cannon on Janiculum Hill – The midday cannon firing ceremony 47

Villa Lante – Istitutum Romanum Finlandiae 50

 5

St Peter’s Basilica – View from the dome 54

Borromini’s perspective gallery – Spada Palace 58

The Orologio Art Studio – Guelfo Museum Foundation 62

Pasquino – The ‘talking statues’ 65

The false dome by Andrea del Pozzo – Church of St Ignatius of Loyola 69

The Sciarra-Colonna Gallery – The triumph of Art Nouveau 73

The Keats-Shelley House 76

The Museum and Crypt of the Capuchin Friars in Via Veneto 80

The Casino dell’Aurora –The Pallavicini-Rospigliosi Palace 83

The House of the Knights of Rhodes 86

The Monument to Victor Emmanuel II – View from the terrace 90

Other places of interest 94

Icon legend

admission free admission admission free underground

information on charge (donations
opening times/days welcome) station nearby
 4 Rome: off the beaten path - The city within the walls

The meridian line

Basilica of St Mary of the Angels

A spare facade styled like ancient

Roman buildings can barely be
distinguished amid the remains
of the Baths of Diocletian (3rd-4th
centuries AD), in Piazza della Re-
pubblica square. It belongs to the
sumptuous Basilica of St Mary of
the Angels (Basilica di Santa Maria
degli Angeli) and few can imagine
the grandiose interior it conceals.
The basilica is richly decorated
with polychrome marbles and has
a rather unusual floor plan, with
a round vestibule opening onto
a long, broad transept. Owing to
its considerable dimensions, the

Diagram of the meridian line sun

Summer solstice
ellipse dimensions size of the ellipses formed by the sun gnomic
0.196 x 0.207 m pinhole

Equinoxes
ellipse dimensions ys perpendicular
’s ra point
0.254 x 0.342 m sun

Winter solstice
zenith distances
ellipse dimensions 65° in degrees 40° 20° 0°
0.462 x 1.106 m

Top:
entrance to the Basilica of St Mary of the Angels
 The meridian line 5

venue is often used for State cer-

emonies and other important func-
tions. Designed by Michelangelo
(1475-1564) in the Renaissance
style inspired by ancient Roman
baths, the basilica was largely com-
pleted by Vanvitelli (1700-1773)
in the 18th century. The interior,
however, conceals another surpris-
ing treasure: the meridian line – a
sophisticated system for measuring
time created three hundred years
ago and embedded in the splendid
marble floor of the transept, to the
right. At noon every day, a dim ray
of light penetrates through a pin-
hole in the coat of arms of Clement
XI, twenty-two metres above the
ground, and strikes a point along
the diagonal bronze line over forty-
five metres long, near one of the
Zodiac signs marked on it. The signs
representing the constellations are
made of refined polychrome mar- on either side of the line – the sum-
ble inlays and were designed by mer and autumn signs to the right,
Carlo Maratta, an important Ba- the winter and spring signs to the
roque painter. They are arranged left. In this way, the monumental

Bird’s eye view of the meridian line

6,72 m
18,24 m
44,31 m

Top:
meridian line
 6 The meridian line
meridian line can accurately in-
dicate the vernal (March) equi-
nox and thus predict the date of
Easter, which must fall on the first
Sunday following the full moon
From top to bottom:
detail of the meridian line
occurring after the equinox, as es-
tablished by the Council of Nicaea.
This rigorous work, willed by Pope
Clement XI in 1702 and hence also
termed the ‘Clementine sundial’,
was completed by the canonical
scholar Francesco Bianchini. Be-
fore the introduction of the ritual
of the cannonball fired from Castel
Sant’Angelo, in 1847 (see page 47),
the meridian line provided a single
time for the entire city by estab-
lishing the definite true noon for
all church bells, which otherwise
rang at different times.
 The meridian line 7

INFO
www.santamariadegliangeliroma.it
Open every day Porta
Salaria

Directions
from the Basilica of St Mary of the Angels to the Roman Aquarium
Porta
Pia
The Basilica of St Mary of the Angels is easy to reach from Termini railway station. The
meridian line is located in the transept, towards the right. After exiting the church on
Piazza della Repubblica, walk down Viale Einaudi to reach Piazza dei Cinquecento.
Along the route you will pass the National Roman Museum (Museo Nazionale Romano

Viale
di Palazzo Massimo alle Terme). Continue along Via Giolitti then turn right into Via Catta- Vi
a
Vi

e
br lo
a

neo; when you reach PiazzatemFanti, turn left and walk through
el one of the two entrances
eb

Cas
e t t
to the park, which houses S the Umbertine Aquarium on (Acquario Umbertino) – currently
Vi

tr
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XX

o
the House of Architecture (Casa dell’Architettura). Pa
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Duration: roughlyV15/20 minutes ern

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 8 Rome: off the beaten path - The city within the walls

The Roman Aquarium

House of Architecture

T he Roman Aquarium (Acquario

Romano) lies on the north-
eastern side of the Esquiline Hill.
A rather unusual building, it rep-
resents a fine example of the late
19th-century style that flourished
in the new capital of the recently
formed Kingdom of Italy. When the
authorities implemented their ur-
ban renewal plan, which affected
this area of the city in particular,
they decided to erect a building

0 20m

Plan of the first floor

Entrance

Stairs

Central hall

Corridor

Roman Aquarium

Top:
Roman Aquarium

reserved for the study of marine
life and its diffusion. The project,
brainchild of the ichthyologist Pi-
etro Carganico, materialised in
1887 with the construction of the
aquarium. Designed by architect
Ettore Bernich (1848-1914), the
aquarium reflects the lavish and
monumental Umbertine style
prevalent in the late 19th century.
The cylindrically-shaped main
body is preceded by a projecting
facade with a niched arch, creating
a sumptuous entrance adjacent to
the small park littered with Roman
Above:
interior
the Roman Aquarium 9
ruins. The interior makes a striking
impression with its large elliptical
hall in the centre, lined by a dou-
ble order of cast iron Corinthian
columns supporting the upper gal-
lery and ceiling. The side walls, di-
vided by Corinthian semi-columns,
once housed the aquarium tanks
which are now walled in. The up-
per floors open scenically onto
the hall and were once reserved
for exhibitions, club meetings and
events. The breathtaking overall
effect is largely due to the lavish
polychrome sculptural and painted
 10 the Roman Aquarium

decorations focusing on water – a

rather unusual theme. Regretful-
ly, the aquarium only fulfilled its
original function for a few years,
in the 19th century, then was re-
portedly used as a theatre and cin-
ema from the early 20th century.
Its fate grew darker as the years
went by: initially converted into
the warehouse of the Rome Opera
House (Teatro dell’Opera) from the
1930s, the venue plunged further
into decay up to 1984, when the
Municipality of Rome began refur-
bishments which ended in 1993. of the House of Architecture (Casa
It is now managed successfully by dell’Architettura), has regained the
the Professional Association of Ar- lively cultural life it enjoyed during
chitects of Rome and, as the seat the golden age of its beginnings.

From top to bottom:

facade

interior
 Porta
Salaria the Roman Aquarium 11

Porta
Pia INFO
www.casadellarchitettura.it

Viale
Viale
Directions

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from the Roman Aquarium to the Basilica of the Four Crowned Saints

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the point

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S.Susanna
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