All images © by Roberto Piperno, owner of the domain. Write to romapip@quipo.it.
Notes:
Page revised in May 2024.
Rome in the Footsteps of an XVIIIth Century Traveller
- XIII - Rione Trastevere(coat of arms of Rione Sant'Eustachio)
You may wish to see an introductory page first.
Trastevere is a corruption of trans Tiberim (beyond the Tiber). Ancient Rome was founded on seven hills located on the left bank of
the Tiber. The right bank (trans Tiberim) belonged to the Etruscans and most likely to the town of Veii (today Isola Farnese). A famous episode of early
Roman history makes reference to the defence of Rome which took place on the timber bridge which crossed the river (Ponte Sublicio). Only after the defeat of Veii and
the expansion of the Roman rule to most of Central Italy did the right bank of the river become an
area of stable Roman settlements. However only in 275 AD Trastevere was protected by walls built by Emperor Aurelian. In the XVIIth century Pope Urban VIII redesigned the borders of Trastevere by building
new walls which included in the rione most of the Janiculum hill.
Trastevere borders to the north on Rione Borgo, to the east on the Tiber, to the south and the west on the walls of Rome.
In the XVIIIth century the area near the river was highly populated while the Janiculum was split into several villas.
Coat of arms of Rione Trastevere
The symbol of Rione Trastevere is a lion's head.
Trastevere does not have imposing ruins of ancient Rome: at that time its inhabitants were mainly foreigners:
ruins of a Syrian temple have been found in Villa Sciarra; traces of a sanctuary dedicated to the
mysterious cult of Bona Dea have been found near Conservatorio di S. Pasquale Bailonne.
The Roman
walls are almost completely lost. In the XIXth century the excavation of Roman barracks near S. Grisogono showed that in the past the
level of the ground near the river was some 20 ft lower than it is today.
Medieval Trastevere can still be found in the streets near S. Benedetto in Piscinula. The main church
of Trastevere, S. Maria in Trastevere has fine medieval mosaics.
One of the jewels of the Renaissance can be found in Tempietto del Bramante in S. Pietro in Montorio.
In the early XVIIth century Trastevere got once again an ample supply of water. Pope Paul V reactivated an ancient Roman aqueduct. The
fountain built to celebrate this achievement (Mostra dell'Acqua Paola) is the most imposing monument of Trastevere.
Palazzo Corsini and its gardens are the most
interesting XVIIIth century addition to the rione.
Roman inscriptions of the lost sanctuary of Bona Dea now in the walls of Conservatorio di S. Pasquale Bailonne, XVIIIth century madonnella near S. Maria della Visitazione and a (modern) antiques shop sign showing the symbol of Trastevere
January 1825. The smells wh. assault you on the Travestere are really overpowering - it was the same in old Rome. All the Trades wh. were not admitted into the town itself were
here practiced freely. It is the foot of the Janiculum. It is moreover said that the
Character of the people is very high & revengeful, & that they hold the rest of
the World in contempt. Of the latter, I doubt not a few bayocchi wd. smooth
down the asperities, the former I can believe.
Sir Charles Fergusson - Travel Journal in Italy 1824-1825
In today's Rome the sense of belonging to a certain rione has since long disappeared: less than 5% of today's inhabitants of Rome live in the 14
historical rioni, but Trastevere is no doubt an exception. Its inhabitants believe to be "Romani de' Roma", true Romans and many associations
try to keep alive old traditions including a yearly fair (La Festa de' Noantri). That's why many shops show the symbol of the rione.
1777 Map of Rione Trastevere
Legend of the numbers in the map
1) S. Benedetto in Piscinula
2) S. Salvatore a Ponte Rotto
3) Casino di Donna Olimpia
4) S. Cecilia
5) Ospizio di S. Michele a Ripa
6) S. Francesco a Ripa
7) S. Maria dell'Orto
8) S. Salvatore della Corte
9) S. Grisogono
10) S. Gallicano
11) S. Maria in Trastevere
12) SS. Cosmo e Damiano (S. Cosimato)
13) Villa Spada
14) Porta S. Pancrazio
15) Acqua Paola
16) S. Pietro in Montorio
17) Bosco degli Arcadi
18) S. Maria della Scala
19) S. Giovanni della Malva
20) S. Giacomo alla Lungara
21) Regina Coeli
22) S. Maria della Visitazione
23) S. Onofrio
24) Porta S. Spirito
Main monuments of Rione Trastevere (clickable map)
The red lines in the map show the major changes which occurred after 1777:
a) the long line along the river shows the redesign of the bank in the 1880s: this led to the loss of some churches in Via della Lungara, of most
of Giardino Farnese and of S. Salvatore a Ponte Rotto;
b) line across the river and into Trastevere: in 1887 a new bridge (Ponte Garibaldi) and a large avenue (today Viale Trastevere)
created a new traffic axis which cut the rione into two parts.
The different colours group the monuments which are shown in the same page.
The image used as background for the table shows the coat of arms of Pope Sixtus IV in Ponte Sisto.
You can have a tour of Rione Trastevere by following the itinerary (Day 6) suggested by Giuseppe Vasi: first step S. Benedetto in Piscinula.
| 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:
