Rome: Piazza Di Spagna

Piazza Di Spagna is one of the most central, most visited and possible most crowded squares in Rome. It is host to many interesting and historical sights.

The most famous of the sights is arguably the Spanish Steps. The monumental stairway of 138 steps was built in 1723–1725, linking the Bourbon Spanish Embassy to the Holy See, today still located in Palazzo Monaldeschi in the piazza, below, with the Trinità dei Monti the church that was under the patronage of the Bourbon kings of France, above.

In the Piazza at the base is the Early Baroque fountain called Fontana della Barcaccia (Fountain of the Old Boat), built in 1627-29 and often credited to Pietro Bernini, father of a more famous son, Gian Lorenzo Bernini.

Colonna dell’Immacolata is devoted to the dogma of Immaculate Conception established by the Catholic Church in 1854. The structure consists of a base of marble, upon which a column of cipolin , which in turn supports a bronze statue depicting the Madonna.

Sant'Andrea delle Fratte is a 17th-century basilica devoted to St. Andrew. The outside is mostly the work of Boromini, particularly the striking bell tower. The inside sculptures are most notably Bernini. I found it interesting that the two prominent and allegedly competitive artists jointly created many sights.


Piazza Di Spagna from Spanish Steps


Bernini's Fontana della Barcaccia



Colonna dell’Immacolata



Boromini & Bernini: Sant'Andrea delle Fratte