The Heart of Ancient Rome and Ghetto: Half Day Small Group Tour

The tour starts from “Piazza Trilussa”, one of the most loved meeting places for young Romans and tourists, thanks to the locals and the welcoming atmosphere that characterize it: located in the heart of Trastevere, in front of Ponte Sisto, between the Farnesina Lungotevere and Lungotevere Raffaello Sanzio, this enchanting little square is dedicated to the great Roman satirical poet Carlo Alberto Salustri, better known as Trilussa. Here is located the beautiful Acqua Paola fountain, designed by the architects Van Santen, known as Vasanzio, and Giovanni Fontana, commissioned by Pope Paul V Borghese (1605-1620) in 1613, to supply the districts of Trastevere, Borgo, Regola and Ponte . Conceived as a monumental arch with a central niche flanked by two Ionic columns, the fountain has a high attic on which the Borghese family coat of arms towers, with eagle and dragon, and a celebratory inscription dedicated to the pontiff, for having conducted the water also on the left bank of the Tiber.

The Basilica is probably the first official place of Christian worship in Rome. According to legend, it was built by Pope Callistus I in the 3rd century and was finished by San Julius I in 340. Rebuilt during the pontificate of Pope Innocent II, it subsequently underwent decorations and restorations, including notable ones promoted by Pope Clement XI (1702) and Pope Pius IX (1870), without however the church undergoing substantial alterations. Many parts of the church date back to the 12th century; the mosaics are important, especially those on the facade and those in the apse, created by Pietro Cavallini and depicting the "Life of the Virgin". Outside stands the bell tower, with a square base, built in the 12th century. The portico was remodeled in 1702 by Carlo Fontana and today houses fragments of friezes and ornaments from the ancient basilica, as well as Christian epigraphs, and is surmounted by a balustrade decorated with statues of four popes.

The Tiber Island, the only urban island on the Tiber, approximately 300 meters long and approximately 90 meters wide, is connected to the banks of the Tiber by two bridges: towards Trastevere by the Cestio bridge, dating back to 46 BC. C. and in the direction of the Ghetto with the Fabricio bridge, built in 62 BC. C., also called Quattro Capi bridge, for the Roman herms that decorate its parapets. According to legend, the island was born in 509 BC. when, having ousted Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the last king of Rome, the people, as a sign of hatred towards the tyrant, threw the king's enormous grain deposit into the Tiber, which turned out to be so abundant that it formed a small island. In reality, a compact bank of tuff, similar to that of the nearby Capitoline Hill, constitutes the basic geological element, on which the sands carried by the current have naturally settled.

The Turtle Fountain was built between 1581 and 1588 based on a design by Giacomo della Porta. The history of the fountain is linked to a romantic legend. It is said that Duke Mattei, a lover of gambling, one day lost the entire family fortune in one fell swoop. The future father-in-law therefore refused to give him his daughter in marriage. In response, the duke had this magnificent fountain built in a single night. The following day he invited his betrothed and her father to the palace to show them the work, and exclaimed: "Here's what a penniless Mattei is capable of creating in a few hours!". In memory of the episode, he had the window from which they looked out to admire the fountain walled up.

The church of Sant'Andrea della Valle is one of the minor basilicas of Rome. It was built at the end of the 16th century, on the site of the small San Sebastiano church and the Palazzo Piccolomini. It is the mother house of the order of Theatine regular clerics. Among the architects who participated in its construction, we mention Giacomo della Porta, Pier Paolo Olivieri and Carlo Maderno. Maderno widened the transept and designed the dome, which is the second highest in Rome, after that of St. Peter's Basilica.

The Portico d'Ottavia complex is the only one preserved of the large porticoes that limited, on the northern side, the square of the Circo Flaminio, an area that corresponds to the ancient Ghetto. It was rebuilt by Augustus, in place of the older Portico of Metello, between 27 and 23 BC. and dedicated to her sister Ottavia. It was subsequently restored and partially rebuilt in 203 by Septimius Severus, after a fire in 191, a period to which the majority of the currently visible remains belong. The complex, a quadriportico of 119 x 132 metres, included the most ancient Temple of Juno Regina, which was then joined by the Temple of Jupiter Stator, the first in Rome entirely made of marble, two libraries, Greek and Latin, and the Curia Octaviae , a large environment for public meetings.

Located within the Rione they have significantly inspired traditional Roman cuisine. Considered among the oldest in the world, it is second only to that of Venice (1516). the Rome Ghetto was founded in 1555 on the orders of Pope Paul IV, the people within it had the obligation to reside there and to always carry with them a distinctive sign of belonging to the Jewish community. Furthermore, they were prohibited from trading and owning real estate. In 1904, the Tempio Maggiore, the large Synagogue, was inaugurated, a cultural reference point for the entire Jewish community and, still today, together with the Jewish Museum housed inside, one of the main attractions of the area.