Northern Word: Great Fountains - A Week in RomeNorthern Word

Rome is known for its fountains. They show up in films, either as romantic meeting places Northern Word Travelogue or convenient body dump sights. It seems everyone in Hollywood has wanted to do something in a Roman fountain over the years. The sculptors, primarily Bernini, probably knew they were creating art that would last, and hundreds of years later, most of the Renaissance fountains are still completely intact and functional.

We’ll start with a fountain that is one of the best sights in Rome, and which must be seen after dark to be truly appreciated. It’s not by Michelangelo or Bernini, and you won’t find it in most art history textbooks. But it is one of the most memorable sculptures in town.

It’s the Trevi Fountain, nestled in rabbit-warren streets in the heart of old Rome, surrounded by small cafes and gelato shops. Art critics scoff at it, but the light dancing in the fountain on a clear evening is magical.

The Trevi Fountain in Rome, Italy at night with lights aglow.

On a cool November night, the small square is uncrowded, the restaurants still have plenty of tables, and gelato can be had without a wait. And it’s easy to find a spot to throw your coin into the fountain, guaranteeing your return to Rome some day.

In summer, I’m told, this experience is significantly less romantic due to the crush of crowds and the suffocating heat and humidity. But we enjoyed our November Trevi fountain. If you look closely at the base of the fountain, it appears that the sculptures and the building behind them are growing out of rough rocks, like a tree with roots.

More celebrated in the art world is Bernini’s masterful Four Rivers Fountain, in the Piazza Navona. This piazza is one of the largest pedestrian-only piazzas in the city and the fountain is its mighty centerpiece.

The Four Rivers Fountain by Bernini in Piazza Navona, Rome. Four figures site on four corners of the fountain, each representing a river. Dramatic clouds in the background contrast with sunlight on the fountain's turquoise water.

Each of the men carved into the fountain represents one of the four greatest rivers known at the time of the Renaissance. Intriguingly, one of the figures, the Nile, has his head covered, as nobody knew where its headwaters were at the time the sculpture was carved.

The center of the chunk of marble reveals the buildings behind like a keyhole.

The Four Rivers Fountain by Bernini in Piazza Navona, Rome.

From another perspective, a confused horse surges through the middle of the sculpture while one of the rivers raises his hand in horror while being run over by a BMW.