After exploring the four iconic squares of Rome described in the article on the Great Squares of Rome, we invite you to discover those that stand out for their richness and appeal. Among them, we have selected the six that seem to us the most beautiful, before presenting our Top 16 squares to see in Rome.
1. Piazza del Popolo in Rome
Piazza del Popolo
The Piazza del Popolo, Piazza del Popolo in Italian, is a vast pedestrian space, airy and pleasant. It is also a popular square where Romans and tourists mingle, and which often hosts gatherings and festivities. It is located at one end of the Via del Corso, the long shopping street with Piazza Venezia at the other end. It is also dominated by the Pincio hill with its lovely park and terrace. The square is home to the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo, one of the city’s most beautiful churches with paintings by Caravaggio.
This square was first laid out in the 16th century when it was square-shaped, to provide a majestic entrance for those arriving in Rome from the north. It was redesigned by Valadier in the 19th century, with a statue in the center and a large Egyptian obelisk.
2. Piazza della Bocca della Verità
Piazza della Bocca della Verità
The Piazza della Bocca della Verità is located at the site of the ancient Forum Boarium. It is one of the most evocative squares in the city, occupied by remarkably well-preserved Roman temples and the beautiful Church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin with its fine Romanesque bell tower and medieval interior. Under its portico is preserved the famous manhole cover, from which the square takes its name, “the Mouth of Truth.” Other Roman structures are found on the Velabrum side, including the Arch of Janus with its four open faces.
3. Piazza Venezia in Rome
Piazza Venezia
Hard to miss in Rome, Piazza Venezia is located near the Capitoline Hill, between the Roman Forums and the long Via del Corso, marking the edge of the Campus Martius plain. It is one of the main traffic hubs in the city center, dominated by the imposing white mass of the Victor Emmanuel II Monument, the Vittoriano, a neoclassical monument built at the end of the 19th century, inspired by the Altar of Pergamon.
4. Campo de’ Fiori
Campo de’ Fiori
Campo de’ Fiori, literally the Field of Flowers in English, is a lively square in the heart of Rome, hosting a food and flower market in the morning. In the center, a statue of Giordano Bruno, a metaphysician monk burned at the stake for heresy in 1600, was erected at the end of the 19th century.
This square is bustling at all hours, with numerous bars, a few restaurants, and even historic bakeries.
5. Piazza Farnese in Rome
Piazza Farnese
Just behind the previous square, Piazza Farnese is of a completely different style, austere yet elegant, prestigious but quiet. It is located in front of one of Rome’s most beautiful palaces, the Palazzo Farnese, which houses the French Embassy in Italy. Originally, this square was designed to create a grand entrance to the palace of Cardinal Farnese. Two beautiful ancient bathtubs from the Baths of Caracalla were relocated here to be converted into fountains.
6. Piazza della Rotonda in Rome
Piazza della Rotonda
The charming Piazza della Rotonda, also known as the Pantheon Square, is dominated by the presence of the Pantheon, popularly called Rotonna by Romans. You can enjoy the magical atmosphere of the place, for example, by sitting on the steps around the fountain. The latter is a beautiful Renaissance work from the 16th century by Giacomo della Porta, featuring a small Egyptian obelisk from the time of Ramses II.
Map of Rome with the Squares
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The 15 Most Beautiful Squares
Let’s also mention other very beautiful squares, often located in front of famous monuments:
7. Piazza di Santa Maria in Trastevere
Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere
The beautiful Piazza di Santa Maria in Trastevere is the heart of the picturesque Trastevere neighborhood. It owes much to the lovely church of the same name, Santa Maria in Trastevere, as well as the beautiful historic fountain and the charming palaces surrounding it.
8. Piazza Colonna in Rome
Piazza Colonna
Between Piazza di Montecitorio and Via del Corso, Piazza Colonna was laid out at the end of the 16th century. It is marked by the presence of the Column of Marcus Aurelius, whose sculpted frieze celebrates the victories of the Roman emperor in the 2nd century CE, inspired by the older Trajan’s Column.
9. Piazza del Quirinale
Piazza del Quirinale
Piazza del Quirinale is located high up on the hill of the same name, in front of the Italian Presidential Palace and not far from the Trevi Fountain. The vast pedestrian area Hawkins are accompanied by their horses and an ancient obelisk.
10. Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano
Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano
Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano is primarily a thoroughfare. Yet, in front of the Apostolic Palaces, the Lateran Mausoleum, and a lateral facade of the Basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano, stands the tallest Egyptian obelisk in Rome, which has preserved its beautiful hieroglyphs.
11. Piazza Mattei in Rome
Piazza Mattei
Piazza Mattei is in the heart of the Roman Ghetto, with its small shops and bars, and at its center, one of Rome’s most charming fountains, the Fountain of the Turtles, created, like many others, by Giacomo della Porta toward the end of the 16th century.
12. Piazza della Minerva in Rome
Piazza della Minerva
Piazza della Minerva, located in front of the right side of the Pantheon, takes its name from the Temple of Minerva that once stood there. It faces the Gothic-interior church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva and is distinguished by the beautiful elephant sculpted by Bernini, supporting a small Egyptian obelisk.
13. Piazza di Pietra in Rome
Piazza di Pietra
A small, rectangular, and picturesque pedestrian square in the heart of the Campus Martius, Piazza di Pietra has one of its sides bordered by a colonnade of the ancient Temple of Hadrian, integrated into the Stock Exchange building.
14. Piazza della Madonna dei Monti
Piazza della Madonna dei Monti
Piazza della Madonna dei Monti is a charming, lively small square in the heart of the Monti neighborhood, an area with many bars and small restaurants. Many people gather there, sometimes sitting on the steps surrounding the lovely fountain.
15. Piazza di Montecitorio
Piazza di Montecitorio
In the heart of the Campus Martius, Piazza di Montecitorio, just behind Piazza Colonna, is a beautiful space in front of the facade of the palace of the same name, which houses the Italian Chamber of Deputies. In front, an obelisk was erected, which in the time of Augustus served as the gnomon for a giant sundial.
16. Piazza della Repubblica in Rome
Piazza della Repubblica
Piazza della Repubblica is not the most picturesque with its large roundabout. It is a modern square with its lovely jet fountain and palaces following an elliptical line that recalls the ancient exedra of the Baths of Diocletian, whose halls and remains are located on the other side of the square, notably the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli.
