Rome - December 27, 2011 - Around Piazza della Repubblica

Interior showing area of calendar

Santa Maria degli Angeli e di Martiri

Day two: it was up and early, the first stop was the Piazza della Repubblica to have a gander at this controversial fountain and then over to the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli e di Martiri. The last was delightfully once the tepidarium of the baths of Diocletian. 

Just a quick walk down the Via Torino (heading north west) to the Via Nazionale then right (north east) until the street opens up into the Vittorio splendor of Piazza della Repubblica.

First Santa Maria degli Angeli e di Martiri (formerly the tepidarium of the Baths of Diocletian). There are some ruins of the baths around the side and even another church in one of the old round rooms (possibly a caldarium?) of the Baths. Sadly the little church is not open to the public and the ruins were locked up as well. The entrance is well marked with a big baroque door inserted right into the brickwork of the ancient baths. I would have taken a picture but there was a sign that warned of pick-pockets and I thought better of it.

Santa Maria degli Angeli e di Martiri looks like nothing special from the outside. In fact the ruinous nature makes it look like it is somewhere half way to demolition. Like many italian churches the really exciting part is the interior. Remodeled by Michelangelo from the 4th (or was it the 3rd? Diocletian spanned the turn of the century) century remains of the tepidarium of the baths of Diocletian. Michelangelo  raised the floor which actually truncated the original columns, it's barely noticeable but if you know you are looking for it...

Calendar - Brass line

Calendar - Astrological

The ancient roots of the columns leads one back to the shocker that in its bones under the layer of baroque and rococo candyfloss fluffy decoration (added in the 1740’s, no Michelangelo did not do that to this place) this is a Roman building of the Imperial Period. Freaking fantastic!


There is also a brass median line that was used to calculate Easter. The floor is inlaid with the signs of the zodiac and the planets etc. From the center of teh church you can see a tiny point of light that on a certain day of the year travels along the brass line in the floor. Very Dan Brown…

Fountain of the Naiads: A round fountain in a half round piazza. The figures round the fountain represent the Naiads, which are sort of water nymph things. There's one of the rivers, one of the lakes, one of the underground waters and one of the oceans. In a city full of nekkid statues these nekkid statues caused quite a stir when they were unveiled in 1901. I read (many years ago in a book on the Beaux Arts movement) that these particular nekkid ladies were too “contemporary”. For example: the hairstyles too modern and un-classical and the bodies we not stylized. So apparently it is fine to ogle statues of nekkid ladies on the street as long as they are classical ideals and don't look like your wife's sisters friend Gertrude with her corsets off. To tell the truth they do look a little more “corner pub” than mount Olympus, I’ll grant you that much.

The central bronze here was not placed until 1911; it’s a representation of mans triumph over some cr@p, I really don’t care.  Oh it's Glaucus, very nice, slightly obscure.

Fountain of the Naiads, Piazza della Repubblica

 

Piazza della Repubblica