All images © by Roberto Piperno, owner of the domain. Write to romapip@quipo.it.
Notes:
Page revised in October 2020.
Rome in the Footsteps of an XVIIIth Century Traveller
- IX - Rione Pigna(coat of arms of Rione Sant'Eustachio)
You may wish to see an introductory page first.
Rione Pigna was named after the colossal bronze Pigna (fir-cone) which decorated a Roman fountain next to a Temple to Isis which occupied a vast area from today's S. Stefano del Cacco to Convento Domenicano della Minerva). The Pigna was moved first to S. Pietro, where it was seen by Dante and later on to its current location in Palazzo del Belvedere. Rione Pigna borders on Sant'Eustachio to the west, on Colonna to the north, on Trevi to the east and on Sant'Angelo and Campitelli to the south.
Coat of arms of Rione Pigna
Of its ancient past Rione Pigna retains first of all the Pantheon: of the five obelisks found in the area
only one is still in Rione Pigna in Piazza di S. Maria sopra Minerva. Pič di Marmo, Madama Lucrezia and
La Gatta di Palazzo Grazioli are the remaining evidence in Rione Pigna of the decoration of the ancient Temple to Isis.
Elements of Terme di Agrippa (Agrippa's Baths) can be seen in Arco della Ciambella and behind the Pantheon.
Rione Pigna acquired in the 1930s a new archaeological area including four Roman temples and
a part of a Roman Portico.
Rione Pigna is mainly characterized by large churches and palaces which can be roughly grouped as follows:
XVth century: S. Maria sopra Minerva; Palazzo Venezia; Basilica di S. Marco.
XVIth century: Il Gesų; Collegio Romano.
XVIIth century: S. Ignazio; Palazzo Pamphilj a Piazza del Collegio Romano; Palazzo Altieri.
XVIIIth century: Palazzo Pamphilj al Corso.
Fountain showing a personification of Venice in the courtyard of Palazzo Venezia, inscription above the entrance of Biblioteca Casanatense in Convento Dominicano, a window of Palazzo Gabrielli next to Palazzo Marescotti
The image shows some key features of Rione Pigna: the Venetian block at its southern end, the presence of several cultural institutions and of many fine palaces.
1777 Map of Rione Pigna
Legend of the numbers in the map
1) Casa di S. Caterina
2) Palazzo Bussi Pizzirani
3) Palazzo Origo
4) Palazzo Cesarini
5) Palazzo Sonnino Colonna
6) S. Lucia alle Botteghe Oscure
7) XVIIth century building where a Roman Portico was found
8) Palazzo Grazioli
9) Palazzo Pamphili (south side)
10) Palazzo De Carolis
11) Oratorio del Caravita
12) S. Marta
13) Palazzo Fonseca
14) Accademia Ecclesiastica
15) Palazzo Nunez
16) S. Giovanni della Pigna
17) Arco della Ciambella
18) Palazzo Marescotti
19) Palazzo Muti Berardi
20) Palazzo Strozzi
21) Collegio Calasanzio
22) Palazzo Cenci Bolognetti
23) S. Stefano del Cacco
The main monuments of Rione Pigna (clickable map)
The red X mark the main changes which occurred after 1777:
a) top left corner: the buildings around the Pantheon were pulled down in the 1880s;
b) centre of the map: in the second half of the XIXth century the street between Collegio Romano and Piazza della Minerva
was enlarged by pulling down
the buildings on its north side and by modifying the monastery next to S. Marta;
c) lower part of the map (left to right): i) excavation of the Roman temples below Palazzo Cesarini in the 1920s; ii)
enlargement in the 1880s of the street between il Gesų and SS. Stimmate di S. Francesco by pulling down
the buildings on its north side; iii)
enlargement in the 1930s of Via delle Botteghe Oscure by pulling down
the buildings on its north side; iv) isolation of Palazzo Venezia in the 1880s by
relocating the adjoining Palazzetto Venezia.
The different colours group the monuments which are shown in the same page.
The image used as background for the table shows a detail of the elephant supporting Obelisco della Minerva.
You can start your tour of Rione Pigna from S. Maria della Rotonda (Pantheon).
| I - Monti | II - Trevi |
| III - Colonna | IV - Campo Marzio |
| V - Ponte | VI - Parione |
| VII - Regola | VIII - Sant'Eustachio |
| IX - Pigna | X - Campitelli |
| XI - Sant'Angelo | XII - Ripa |
| XIII - Trastevere | XIV - Borgo |
Other pages/sections which might be of interest to you:
