The Quirinal

After travelling down Via Venti Settembre and Via del Quirinale, we arrive at Piazza del Quirinale, and from the balcony standing at the crown of its hill we can enjoy a fine panorama through the gap, with the dome of S. Peter's in the background. The Quirinale is the highest of the seven hills of Rome, and in ancient times it was dedicated to the God Quirinus (the hill was occupied by Sabines who came from the city of Curi). The palace of the Quirinale, built by the Popes in the second half of the sixteenth century, was their summer residence until 1870. It then became the royal palace until 1947, and now it is the official residence of the President of the Republic.


At the centre of the piazza which stands before the palace is the Fountain of Castor and Pollux with four old Roman statues of the twin gods and the horses, possibly copies from Greek originals, found near the Baths of Constantine on the Quirinal hill. In 1787 was added the obelisk from the Mausoleum of Augustus, and in 1818 the basin in grey granite from the Forum where it once was in front of the Curia. Soon after the Quirinale we arrive at the Trevi Fountain.

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