Rome

Piazza Navona with Underground, Pantheon and Trevi Fountain Walking Tour

from €69.00 EUR
Duration: 2.5 Hours
Organized by: Doooing
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You probably don’t know that the Domitian Stadium lies under Piazza Navona – by the Emperor Domitian, it was demolished so that the Colosseum gained importance in 80 AD. Your guide will meet you in Navona Square and to help you explore the Rome, its history and its iconic buildings like Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona and many more – catch a glimpse of Rome and learn the history of it.

Don’t forget to toss a coin into the Trevi Fountain at the end of your tour and to experience stunning view of Roman Forum.

Historical Background

Piazza Navona is a jewel of the Roman Baroque. Its name probably derives from “agone” (“nagone’/navone”) that is to say “gara, gioco” (“race, game”) referring to the naval battles that took place when the square had a concave bottom which was artificially flooded for naval games. The beautifully shaped square was built on the site of the Stadium of Domitian.of which it has kept the form. The two greatest Baroque geniuses meet in Piazza Navona: Gian Lorenzo Bernini, creator of the Fountain of the Four Rivers (the Ganges, Nile, Danube and Plate), and Francesco Borromini, architect of the Church of Sant’Agnese in Agone, unusual because of its splendid concave fagade (inside, a 17th century innovation: over the altars, instead of paintings, there are a series of marble bas-reliefs).

Besides the other two other fountains, that of Neptune and that of the Moro (Moor), splendid palaces adorn the square: the Palazzo Pamphili, planned by the Roman architect Girolamo Rainaldi for the Pamphili family, patron of tfie entire square, and in one corner the Palazzo Braschi, built at the end of the 18th century by Cosimo Morelli.

The oldest building in the square is the Church of Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore in front of the Palazzo Pamphili. It is a work of the 15th century that contains treasures such as: the Choir-Stall and the Chapel of St. James by Antonio da San Gallo the Younger. Nearby in the Church of Saint Luigi dei Francesi, some of the fundamental masterpieces of Italian art can be admired: the three large canvasses by Caravaggio, highest examples of painting after Michelangelo, dating from the end of the 16th century: the Calling of St. Matthew, the Martyrdom of Matthew and St. Mathew and the Angel.

Caravaggio’s paintings stand out for their innovative and disturbing realism, and for the unusual use of light, even in his own day so much so that the last of these three paintings was deemed unfit for a church because St. Matthew appears as a tired old man with dirty feet.

Highlights

Explore the ruins of Domitian Stadium as well as the remaining from ancient Rome beneath the streets on which you walk,
Listen to your guide and learn about the famous landmarks of Rome like Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona and Pantheon,

Cancellation Policy

Free cancellation up to 1 day before tour starts.

Useful Info

On this site was the Stadium built by Domitian, hence, the elliptical form of the piazza. In antiquity, it was used for horse-racing, and in the Middle Ages, the Popes would have the piazza flooded and float small boats on the lake for aquatic festivals. The style of Piazza Navona is richly Baroque, featuring the works of two great masters: Bernini and Borromini. The Fountain of Rivers, by Bernini (1647-51) in the center of the square, represents the four largest rivers of the world: the Nile, the Ganges, the Danube, and the Rio della Plata. The fountains at the extremes of the piazza are, to the south, the Fountain of the Moor, by Bernini, and the Fountain of Neptune, to the north. The latter dates from 1878.

Location

84 Punto Navona Piazza Navona, Rome, Metropolitan City of Rome, Italy, Roma, Lazio 00186