It was another long walking day, from the Esquiline to the Quirinal and then to the Piazza Popoli, and then, with a bus ride, back to Trastavere and a great dinner. And then back home. The first leg was from our apartment to the Fountain of Moses, then down the Via XX Septembre to the Quirinal, viewing several historic Baroque churches. Thus, a Baroque walk, from Rick Steve's Rome guide. Of course, much of Rome is Baroque, but this is a concentration within a few blocks.
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The Fountain of Moses, late 16th century, to celebrate the opening
of an aqueduct; the architect's name was Fontana |
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| Moses bringing water forth in the wilderness |
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Literally across the street, another favorite old
church, SM della Vittoria |
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Alas, it was closed; something about the ceiling
falling down; I would have risked it to see Bernini's
Ecstasy of St. Theresa one more time... |
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And across the street again, St. Susanna's...also closed, no notice
given...one of the earliest of the new Baroque style, built on the
foundations of much earlier paleo-Christian churches |
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And now back across the street--it's an intersection with three
churches and a fountain--the church of St. Bernard; round so
as to fit the real estate left by the immense Baths of Diocletian |
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Modeled on the Pantheon, I suppose; niches and statues and
paintings everywhere (Baroque), though none of the biggies |
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| Dome and oculus |
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Moving right along (we skipped the Metodista
church and the St. Andrew's Church of Scotland):
a side street, whereby you can see that Rome really
is sort of hilly...especially if you're on foot |
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Now we're at the intersection of the Via delle Quattro
Fontana and the Via del Quirinale--the Four Fountains
adorning the intersection; late 16th, mostly by Fontana;
the river Tiber |
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| #2; the river Aniene |
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| #3; the goddess Diana |
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| #4; our set is complete; the goddess Juno |
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And right next door, the church of San Carlo alle
Quattro Fontana...Boromini's masterpiece...also
closed |
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Finally, the church of St. Andrew alle Quirinale;
another very old church site; the present 16th
century building was designed to be the pope's
chapel (he was living on the Quirinal in those
days), by Bernini, who spared no expense in the
church's lavish interior |
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More theater design than church, some would say: but that was
Bernini; and the Baroque; religio-aesthetic shock and awe |
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| Floor inlay under the dome |
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Dome, with St. Andrew about to pop up through the oculus to
heaven |
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| Closer up: designed by Bernini but executed by assistants |
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| Way over the top sort of place |
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| And now we are at the Quirinal Piazza |
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Many government buildings, including the president's
home, offices |
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And a view of St. Peter's that might have been quite nice in the
16th and 17th centuries |
