To understand how much the Italians, and in particular the people of Rome, love squares as places to gather for fun and to do business, you only have to walk through the city centre. You’ll see these squares framed by magnificent palaces, with the ever-present church, all embellished by the gush of an enchanting fountain. All the squares in Rome are splendid. Here’s our selection.
Nicknamed ‘the drawing room of Rome’ since the 19th century, it is framed by the Spanish Steps with the fountain of the Barcaccia, Bernini’s masterpiece, at its centre. Piazza di Spagna has been a favourite meeting and shopping place since the 15th century, as well as an authentically beautiful spot.
Built in the 17th century on the remains of the 1st century CE Domitian Stadium, it is a masterpiece of Baroque town planning and architecture. The greatest architects and sculptors of the time worked to give it its current appearance. In the centre is the grandiose Fiumi Fountain, Bernini‘s masterpiece.
Until the mid-19th century, it housed a bustling fruit, vegetable and fish market with stalls reaching as far as under the Pantheon‘s colonnade, called ‘Rotonna’ by locals. Today, Piazza della Rotonda evokes the locals’ affection for one of the city’s greatest monuments and, as in the past, is one of the most frequented squares. In the centre is the ever-present, picturesque fountain.
