The 'Lago di Piazza Navona'

Map

The 'Lago di Piazza Navona' by Tommaso Cuccioni, 1858

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For more than two centuries, it was the custom to flood the Piazza Navona on Sunday evenings during the month of August, generally Rome's hottest month.

The custom started in 1652, the year after Bernini's Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Fountain of the Four Rivers) was completed, and lasted until 1867, when the level of the piazza was raised. 

The creation of what came to be known as the 'Lago di Piazza Navona' took place on Sunday evenings, when the outlets that carried away the fountain water were stopped and much of the piazza was transformed into a shallow lake (lago). 

The coaches of the nobility would enter the piazza in pairs, one line moving to the right, the other to the left. The windows and balconies surrounding the square would be crowded with spectators, eager to witness the spectacle. 

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