A Miscellany of Fountains

A selection of some of the less well-known fountains in Rome. 

Fountain of Porta Furba

The Fontana di Porta Furba was originally built at the behest of Pope Sixtus V (r. 1585-90). The fountain was restored in 1733 by Pope Clement XII (r. 1730-40). 

The Fountain of the Monte di Pieta

The Fontana del Monte di Pietà, which stands outside the Palazzo del Monte di Pieta, was created during the reign of Pope Paul V (r. 1605-21). The fountain sports an eagle and two dragons, a reference to the coat of arms of the Borghese family, to which the pope belonged. 

The Fountain of Piazza del Viminale

The Fontana di Piazza del Viminale is the centrepiece of the large piazza in front of Palazzo del Viminale, home to the Ministry of the Interior. Both the palazzo and the fountain were designed by the Roman architect Publio Morbiducci (1889-1963) in the 1920s. 

The Fountain of the Bath of Venus

The Fontana del Bagno di Venere is one of the most extravagantly ornate Baroque fountains to be found anywhere in Rome. The work of Leonardo Reti, the Bath of Venus is one of the three wall-fountains that adorn the beautiful garden of the Palazzo Borghese. 

The Fountain of the Amphorae

The Fontana delle Anfore (Fountain of the Amphorae) was designed by the Roman architect Pietro Lombardi and erected in Piazza Testaccio in 1927. 

​Lombardi's use of amphorae (the terracotta vessels in which wine and olive oil were transported) as a motif was a direct reference to Monte Testaccio, the nearby artificial hill that gave the district its name. Monte Testaccio, also known as Monte dei Cocci, is composed almost entirely of testae (cocci in Italian), fragments of ancient Roman pottery. The vast majority of the fragments come from broken amphorae dating back to the time of the Roman Empire. 

The Fountain of the Caryatids

When the Fountain of the Caryatids, the work of the sculptor Attilio Selva (1888-1970), was unveiled in 1928 it created quite a stir! The nudity of the four female figures provoked such indignation that the inauguration had to be delayed several months.

The Fountain of Palazzo Antamoro

The fountain (1669) which graces the courtyard of the Palazzo Antamoro may have been designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680). The fountain was commissioned by Paolo Strada, who had received the right to have water piped into his home (a rare privilege at the time) from Pope Clement IX (r. 1667-69). Strada had worked for the pope as his cameriere segreto when he was Cardinal Giulio Rospigliosi. ​

The Fountain of Daphne & Apollo

​The courtyard of Palazzo Mediobanca, which stands in the shadow of the Spanish Steps, is home to the modern Fountain of Daphne and Apollo (1960) by Francesco Barbieri. 

The Fountain of the Eleven Jets 

The 18th century Fountain of the Eleven Jets (Fontana degli Undici Zampilli), in the Botanical Gardens, was designed by the Florentine architect Ferdinando Fuga (1699-1782). 

The Fountain of Pius IX

The grand fountain that graces the centre of Piazza Mastai, in Trastvere, was designed by the architect Andrea Busiri Vici (1818-1911) for Pope Pius IX (r. 1846-78).  

The Fountain of Palazzo Santacroce

A fine Baroque fountain stands in the courtyard of the Palazzo Santacroce. 

The Fountain of the Garden of Sant' Alessio

The Giardino di Sant' Alessio, a small public garden on the Aventine Hill, stands between the convents of Santa Sabina and Sant' Alessio. The small Baroque fountain on the left wall comes from Palazzo Accoramboni, which was demolished in 1937. 

The Fountain of the Fauns

The ​Fontana dei Fauni in Villa Sciarra was imported to Rome from Lombardy in the 1920s.  

The Fountain of the Collegio Germanico-Ungarico

A rather fine late-17th century fountain is to be found in the courtyard of the Collegio Germanico-Ungarico. 

The Fountain of the Hospital of the Holy Spirit

The fountain in the courtyard of the Ospedale Santo Spirito (Hospital of the Holy Spirit) was created during the reign of Pope Paul V (r. 1602-21). It is crowned with an eagle and a dragon, the heraldic charges of the coat of arms of Borghese family, to which the pope belonged.  

The Fountain of Joy

The delightful Fonte Gaia (Fountain of Joy), in the Villa Borghese, is the work of the Sicilian sculptor Giovanni Nicolini (1872-1956). The fountain (1929), which is also known as the Fontana dei dei Satiri (Fountain of the Satyrs) or the Fontana dei Conigli (Fountain of the Rabbits), sports a Latin inscription, which proclaims: FONS CANIT VITAE LAVDEM MVRMVRE SVO (The murmur of the fountain sings the praises of life).

The Fountain of the Dog

Situated on Via Veneto, the Fontana del Cane (Fountain of the Dog) dates back to 1940. It was the brainchild of the owner of a local bar, who had it built to provide drinking water for the dogs of one of his regular customers. 

The Fountain of Piazza San Simeone

The 16th century fountain, which graces the Piazza di San Simeone, originally stood in the Piazza Montanara, under the shadow of the Theatre of Marcellus. 

The Fountain of ​Palazzo Passarini Falletti

A rather fine fountain stands in the courtyard of the 18th century Palazzo Passarini Falletti.