Rome.us

10/08/2026

Every day in Rome, at exactly twelve o’clock noon, an army cannon fires a single blank round from the top of the Janiculum hill. The sound rolls across the whole historic center — you can hear it from the Vatican, from Trastevere, all the way to the Esquiline on a still day — and for a second the pigeons come off the roofs. Then the city keeps going. This has happened, with only one long interruption for the Second World War, since 1 December 1847. It is the oldest continuously performed public ritual in Rome, and the last living use of a real artillery piece in the city center.

This is a guide to what actually happens at Il Cannone del Gianicolo, why the tradition exists at all, and — from someone who once made the mistake of standing too close — where you should and should not stand when the gun goes off.

Il Cannone del Gianicolo has fired at exactly noon on the Janiculum hill since 1847. Free, five seconds, best watched from the parapet above. Full guide inside.

10/08/2026

The closer you get to the Vittoriano, the more there is to see. 🇮🇹

At first glance, it’s the enormous white monument dominating Piazza Venezia. But zoom in and it becomes a collection of sculptures, horses, winged figures, reliefs and architectural details.

Here, the equestrian statue of Vittorio Emanuele II rises in the foreground, with one of the great winged Victory quadrigas high above it.

I’ve always liked this view because so many different layers of the monument fit into a single frame. You can keep looking and still notice something new.

📍 Vittoriano / Altare della Patria, Rome

23/07/2026

Everyone looks up at the Pantheon. Almost nobody looks between its columns.

Early in the morning, before Piazza della Rotonda fills with crowds, the rising sun slips through the ancient portico and turns the marble into light and shadow.

It lasts only a few minutes — one of those quiet Roman moments you will never see if you arrive with the daytime crowds.

📷 Photo by

16/07/2026

The obelisk above the Spanish Steps.
Most visitors come for the staircase, but look higher: the Obelisco Sallustiano in front of Trinità dei Monti.
This Roman-era red granite obelisk once stood in the ancient Horti Sallustiani — the luxurious Gardens of Sallust. Its hieroglyphs are a copy of those on the Flaminian Obelisk in Piazza del Popolo, but with a very Roman twist: some signs were carved inaccurately, even backward.
Pope Pius VI had it raised here in 1787, turning the top of the Spanish Steps into one of Rome’s most theatrical viewpoints.
Read full story https://romeitaly.guide/fountains-and-squares/spanish-steps.html

09/07/2026

Triton Fountain, Piazza Barberini.

Bernini created this fountain in 1642-1643 for Pope Urban VIII Barberini, whose family palace dominated the square. But the detail to notice is below Triton: the papal tiara and the Barberini coat of arms with three bees, the family emblem.

For Romans of the 17th century, the message was clear: Triton announces power with his shell, while the Barberini bees mark who paid for the spectacle.

06/07/2026

Bernini’s Blessed Ludovica Albertoni.
Created between 1671 and 1674, this marble masterpiece is one of Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s late works, hidden inside San Francesco a Ripa in Trastevere.
Ludovica Albertoni was a Roman noblewoman, Franciscan tertiary, and widow known for helping the poor. She died in 1533 and was beatified by Pope Clement X in 1671 — the same period when Bernini was commissioned to transform her chapel into a dramatic Baroque vision of death, devotion, and ecstasy.

05/07/2026

Fountain of the Tritons, Piazza della Bocca della Verità.

Not to be confused with Bernini’s Triton Fountain in Piazza Barberini, this fountain was commissioned by Pope Clement XI Albani. Its foundation stone was laid on August 11, 1717; the design was by Carlo Francesco Bizzaccheri, with the two Tritons sculpted by Francesco Moratti.

The octagonal basin recalls the eight-pointed star of the Albani family. Around it is the ancient Forum Boarium, Rome’s old cattle market by the Tiber, beside Santa Maria in Cosmedin and the famous Mouth of Truth.

04/07/2026

A quiet descent from the Aventine Hill.
Rome in three colors: terracotta rooftops, deep green cypress trees, and the endless blue of the Roman sky — with the Altare della Patria rising in the distance.

04/07/2026

Visiting the Colosseum? Don’t leave the area too quickly.

We made a short practical guide to the best things to see near the Colosseum, with a walkable route through ancient, early Christian, and medieval Rome.

Perfect if you want to turn your Colosseum visit into a half-day plan instead of just one stop.

https://www.colosseum.how/attractions-near-colosseum-rome

A practical 4-hour walking route through places to visit near the Colosseum in Rome, viewpoints, ancient layers, and early Christian Rome.

02/07/2026

Golden light on Piazza Navona.

At the Fontana del Moro, water, marble, and sunlight meet inside a square that still follows the shape of the ancient Stadium of Domitian — one of those places where Rome quietly lets 2,000 years appear in a single moment.