The Streets of Rome: Via dei Giubbonari

For those of you that have been following this blog, you know by now that one of my personal obsessions is toponomastica (toponymy), the study of place names (one of the first words I ever learned in Italian before English!)

On Wendesdays I like to post about particular streets and squares in Rome and how they got their names. So far I have discussed Via del Mascherone, Via del Piè di Marmo, Via del Babuino, Vicolo dell'Atleta, Piazza della Pigna, Via dell'Arco della Ciambella, and Vicolo della Spada d'Orlando. All of these street names have one thing in common: they were named after an ancient artifact that was either found there, or still exists there today. I'm sure there are many more streets in Rome named in this way, (I haven't even scratched the surface), but it is certainly not the only way.

One of the most common ways to name a street in Rome in centuries past was after the artisans or workers who had shops in that area. This is particularly true of the originally working-class area near the Tiber. The first one that comes to mind is Via dei Giubbonari. This narrow but bustling street leads from the ever-popular Campo de' Fiori to Piazza Benedetto Cairoli and Via Arenula.

Via dei Guibbonari means, quite literally, Jacket Makers' Street. (On a side note I love that in Italy there exist such specific mestieri: not a tailor or a seamstress, no, a jacket maker. Not to be confused with a shirt maker or a dress maker.) I also love that this street, while no longer the location of any workshops devoted to the lost art of jacket-making, still retains, at least partially, its original purpose as it is now a relatively important shopping street. Boasting shops like Ethic, Vic Matie, Empresa, Dada, Lei lei lei, Angelo di Nepi and Pink, it is probably the most visited shopping street in the Campo de' Fiori area.

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The Streets of Rome - Vicolo della Spada d'Orlando

When I first found this tiny street, it got me so excited that I had to admit once and for all what a huge dork I am. Vicolo della Spada d’Orlando: Orlando’s Sword Alley. Now, if there isn’t a good story behind this street, then I don’t know my Rome!

Orlando, or Roland in English, is both an historical figure and later legendary character. A Frankish military leader and trusted side-kick of Charlemagne, he was later immortalized in medieval and Renaissance literature, perhaps most famously in the 11^th century French epic poem, Chanson de Roland and later in Orlando Innamorato and Orlando Furioso by Matteo Maria Boiardo and Ludovico Ariosto respectively. He even makes an appearance in Dante’s Divine Comedy.

Detail of train station in Metz, France.

According to these poetic sources, Orlando possessed a mystical sword called Darundel, a horn called Oliphaunt and a horse called Veillantif. The tiny alleyway that bears his name can be found between Piazza Capranica and Via dei Pastini in Rione Colonna, just around the corner from Piazza della Pietra. The unusual name comes from the base of an ancient column that sits along the tiny street, pierced by a deep gash. But what does this have to do with Orlando? We’ve got two possible explanations:

First, during Orlando’s many travels, he found himself at Rome at some point, and upon being set upon by Roman soldiers (not very likely in the 8^th century, but let’s suspend our disbelief for the moment), he defended himself with his trusty sword which fell upon this truncated column, leaving the mark that can still be seen. Even less believable is the more commonly accepted story that tells us how, moments before his defeat, to avoid allowing the sword to fall into the hands of the Moors, brave Orlando attempted to destroy it by smashing it into a column. Never mind that this last event took place during the Battle of Roncesvalles in the Pyrenees Mountains. The column, it can be explained, was transported to Rome at a later date. Never mind that the base of said column is a fragment of the Temple of Matidia, built on this spot in 119 AD by Emperor Hadrian in honor of his deified mother-in-law. Let’s not let history and archeology get in the way of a good story!

Which street names have we discussed so far?

Via del Mascherone

Via del Piè di Marmo

Via del Babuino

Vicolo dell'Atleta

Piazza della Pigna

Via dell'Arco della Ciambella

Photo sources: 1, 2

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The Streets of Rome: Via dell'Arco della Ciambella

Doughnut Arch Street

Right. This one requires a bit of explanation. But first, I discovered yesterday the precise terminology of something that gets me rather excited: toponymy, the study of place names. My particular strain of toponymyphilia (ok, that word I completely made up) is focused on, but not limited to, street names (as you may have already noticed). But back to the subject at hand:

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The Streets of Rome - Piazza della Pigna

Turns out not only did Rome's streets get their names for very particular reasons, but their piazzas do too. Today something made me think of the tiny piazza hidden somewhere between the Pantheon and Largo Argentina:

Piazza della Pigna, or Pinecone Square, named for a very famous pinecone found there. The pinecone in question is a massive first century orginal Roman bronze (created by one Publius Cinsius Salvius), dating back to the 1st century AD. It was a fountain at the baths of Agrippa, which were, not surprisingly, located in the exact same area. Imagine the odds!

 

Once water gushed out of the top of the pinecone, as well as from little spouts all around the base. A few of these spouts still exist. Since the Pigna was discovered in the 8th century, the darkest of the dark ages, it would have been at risk of being melted down and used for weaponry, a fate that most ancient Roman bronzes suffered. But the pinecone, being a very spiritual symbol in Christianity, was revered, and so the sculpture was preserved.

In fact, the pinecone is a revered symbol in many religions. For Christians it represents eternal life, but it can also be seen in Egyptian, Mithraic, and other pagan art. Some scholars have suggested that because of this shared significance, the pinecone also represented the temporary peace reached between pagans and Christians in Rome when the latter changed their holy day from Saturday (Sabbath) to Sunday, to coincide with the Pagans' holy day in 321 AD. But now I'm getting way off topic...

Shortly after its discovery in the 8th century, the Pigna was given a place of honor in the center of the courtyard of Constantine's Basilica of St. Peter. There it stayed until the basilica was demolished to make way for the new St. Peter's, 500 years ago, and since then it has resided in an enormous niche in the monumental Belvedere Courtyard at the Vatican, now called the Pinecone Courtyard.

This sculpture has indeed had many things named for it. The courtyard, the piazza, the piazza's modest church San Giovanni della Pigna, the nearby Via della Pigna, and in fact, the whole neighborhood. Pigna is one of the Rome's 22 Rioni (neighborhoods). Rione Pigna is medium-sized, and streches from the Pantheon to Via del Corso, from Piazza Venezia to Largo Argentina, and its symbol is, you guessed it, a pinecone.

Photo sources: 1, 2

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The Streets of Rome - Vicolo dell'Atleta

One of the many things that delights me about this city is its street names. Every street, road and alleyway in this town was christened for a very specific reason.

The one on my mind today is Vicolo dell'Atleta. Athlete's Alley.

Tucked away amongst the narrow backstreets on the quiet side of Trastevere, this picturesque vine-covered alley slightly inclines, adding to its charm. But why the name?

At the beginning of the tiny street, just around the corner from Via Genovese, the façade of an extraordinary building can be found. This was the site of a tenth century synagogue in what was once the heart of Rome’s Jewish Quarter, (before it moved across the river to its current location).

Sadly, only a shell of the synagogue survives today, but the thousand-year-old facade, with its columned archways, that probably once sheltered a loggia, along with its pointed arch detailing gives us a glimmer of the medieval soul of this city. An even more significant detail is the faint but unmistakable sight of Hebrew letters etched onto the columns.


But where does the Athlete come in? The doorway on the lower left is the backdoor of Spirito diVino, a fantastic restaurant whose main entrance is on Via Genovese. We've eaten here a few times, and the food and wine are superb, but the true wonder is underground. Although the restaurant itself lives on the second floor of what remains of the medieval Synagogue--you would never guess with the stark modern interior--downstairs, if you ask, you will be led into their wine cellar, an ancient room which, the owners boast, "predates the Colosseum!" The wine cellar in fact dates back to the 1st century AD, and what is even more astounding is what was found there. Why yes, an athlete.

Apoxyomenos, to be precise. But more on him another day.

Photo sources: 1, 2

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Le Vie di Roma - Via del Babuino

Baboon Street? Can it possibly be?

One of the most prestigious streets in Rome, stretching from Piazza di Spagna to Piazza del Popolo, home to Tiffany & Co., named after a large monkey?

Well, not exactly.

About halfway down Via del Babuino, on the left as you walk to Piazza del Popolo, you will find a simple fountain boasting an odd mossy statue, Il Babuino.

The body of Il Babuino is an ancient sculpture of a Silenus, a Roman mythological creature half man, half goat. The head has clearly been replaced, but from where I have yet to discover. The statue was moved here by Patrizio Grandi to be incorporated into the fountain outside his home on what was formerly Via Paolina. The statue became referred to as "the baboon" because of its unpleasant appearance, and the name stuck. So much so that eventually the street was officially renamed for it.

Eventually, Il Babuino became one of the six Talking Statues of Rome, called as such because, beginning in the 16th century, they were used by the people to post complaints and commentary, generally about the church or the state. Often written in Roman dialect or rhyme, or both, the "Pasquinades" as they were called (named after the most famous talking statue, Pasquino) were (and still are) clever and entertaining ways for people to voice their opinions anonymously.

Il Babuino's most famous Pasquinade was posted as Napoleon's troops plundered Rome, carrying off countless artistic treasures, many of which have yet to be returned. It read: "I francesi sono tutti ladri? No, non tutti... ma BuonaParte!"

("Are all Frenchmen thieves? No, not all... but most of them!")

More on the Talking Statues tomorrow...

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Le Vie di Roma - Via del Piè di Marmo

As promised, Wednesdays will be devoted to Roman streets with interesting names, and this week's street is a foot fetishist's dream.

Via del Piè di Marmo, or Marble Foot Street, is little more than a alley, an tiny back street that is often not even marked on maps. But there is a rather large and ancient artifact that lives there.

The marble foot in question, about the size of a Fiat 500, once belonged to to a colossal statue of the Egyptian goddess Isis. On the site of the nearby Collegio Romano, an ancient temple built by Emperor Domition and dedicated to the gods Isis and Serapis, once stood. The only known remnant of this temple is the goddess' foot, which was moved to its present location because it was holding up funeral processions that passed through Piazza del Collegio Romano.

Photo sources: 1, 2

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Le Vie di Roma: What's in a name?

One of my favorite curiosities about Rome is its street names. While many seem silly and random, on the contrary, almost all have very specific reasons behind them. It delights me to no end learning just how a particular street got its name. (Yes, I am very easily amused.) Every Wednesday I will endeavor to discover and share with you a new one.

OK, let's start with a kind of obvious one: Via del Mascherone. Street of the Big Mask. I love how literal Italian can be. There's no dressing this up, or trying to make it sound mysterious. One glance at the fountain at the end of the short street, and the reason for its name becomes blatantly clear.

The fountain was built in 1626 and is attributed to Girolamo Rainaldi. It incorporates a couple of different ancient artifacts: a granite tub, a small shell-shaped basin, and, most noticeably, the "big mask," which, in ancient times, had led a humbler existence as a drain cover. It is one of the many showcase fountains built by the Farnese family shortly after the canalization of the Pope's newly repaired aqueduct, the Acqua Paola. According to legend (and you know how I feel about legends), during Farnese family festivities, this fountain ran not with water, but with wine. The popes really knew how to party back in those days.

 

This lucky street connects one of Rome's loveliest squares, Piazza Farnese, to one of its most elegant streets, Via Giulia. (It is on my preferred route home to Trastevere after a rowdy evening out in Campo de' Fiori.)

Photo sources: 1, 2

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