Rione di Trevi

Where is the heart of Rome? What is the heart of Rome? Is it a statue? A church? or can it not be contained within something so specific? What about a rione, one of Rome's demarcated neighborhoods or regions, for example, Trevi.  Even that large of a region perhaps cannot contain the heart of Rome, the city is simply too complicated, it does however present a rather compelling argument.  

Trevi is old, very old the area has been part of Rome since the time of the Republic although  it didn't become named Trevi till a few hundred years later.  The name supposedly is a corruption of the Latin word trivium roughly translating to three ways or paths.  This was a reference to three roads that converged on the piazza that is now Piazza del Crociferei, right next to the Trevi Fountain.  It is also reminiscent of the popular saying "All Roads Lead to Rome".  The rione's coat of arms consists of three swords in parallel either horizontally or diagonally across a red background, another allusion to the motif of the three paths.

 Borromini's Chiesa San Carlo

Speaking of trinities Trevi is home to several important edifices of the Catholic church.  The most notable, or at the very least the largest is Quirinal Palace.  Constructed during the sixteenth century to serve as a summer palace for the papacy several popes liked it so much that it became the official papal residence year round.
It served this purpose until 1870 when the Papal State's rule of Rome came to an end.  The palace has served other important purposes since, which we will touch on later.  Being home to the pope obviously set a certain overtone for the district and there are  several churches throughout the rione, including two within a block of each other that provide an excellent comparison between the architectural styles of Boromini and Bernini.  The rione also houses a school for Catholic priests.  One church, the Church of San Vicenzo and San Anastacio, contains the heart of the church in an eerily literal manner.  The hearts of more than thirty popes from the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are interred here.  Plaques on either side of the high altar list their names.  It was customary to remove certain of the pope's organs when he died, a surprisingly pagan seeming tradition.

 Quirinal Palace

Coming back to the Quirinal Palace, after 1870 the palace became the residence of the Kings of Italy as they assumed the place of power from the popes both literally and figuratively.  Even Napoleon chose to make Quirinal his headquarters in Rome during his brief sovereignty. In fact he liked it so much he had intended to make the area the political center of Rome, a concept that survived longer than his reign.  In 1946 the palace once again changed hands becoming the presidential residence as Italy celebrated its new republican form of government.  The gardens of the palace are open only one day a year on June 2 to celebrate this independence day.  Today the area has succeeded in becoming the political hub Napoleon wanted it to be, directly across the street from the Qurinal is the Italian Supreme Court, housed in Palazzo della Consulta.  The court consists of 15 judges appointed in equal parts by the president, the parliament, and by administrative courts.

Quirinal is not the only palace  in Trevi, quite the opposite in fact, the rione is home to a plethora of palaces of some of the oldest and wealthiest families from Rome's history.  Two notable examples are Palazzo Barberini and Palazzo Poli, whose facade is graced by the Trevi Fountain.  Palazzo Barberini is a beautiful example of baroque architecture one of many projects that was began by Boromini and finished by his rival Bernini.  Today the palace houses a national art gallery with famous pieces by artists like Rafael. 

 Bernini's Fontana de Tritone

Obviously the name Trevi brings to mind the Trevi fountain and we'll get to that but there are a few other notable fountains located in the area.  In Piazza Barberini, not to be confused with the Palazzo discussed above, there are the only two fountains in the rione that were designed by Bernini, despite the common misconception that he created the Trevi Fountain.  In the center of the square is the Fountain of the Triton, depicting a triton blowing a conch shell while being lifted up by dolphins.  In one of the corners of the square there is another Bernini fountain, this one significantly humbler.  It is simply a large clam shell bedecked with three bees, the symbol of the Barberini family who commisioned it.  A short walk from there are the four fountains, an intersection where each corner is graced with a fountain.  Two have male central figures and these represent the Tiber River and the Arno River, which are associated with Rome and Florence respectively.  The other two have female figures and these are commonly assumed the Goddess Diana and the Goddess Juno.

The most important fountain is of course the one that shares the name Trevi.  It is the terminal fountain for the Aqua Vergine, one of the oldest and purest aqueducts in Rome, dating back to the golden age of Augustus and Agrippa.  The fountain was finished in 1762 after being worked on for more than thirty years, a process that outlived the architect who designed it, Nicola Salvi.  The fountain is a beautiful example of both baroque style art and architecture combining them seamlessly in completely unique way. Today the fountain is constantly swarming with tourists throwing coins into the fountain hoping it will grant them a return trip to Rome, as per the local legend.  Over 3000 euros are tossed in every day a sum that is collected and used for charitable purposes. This is only a brief synopsis for the full history of the Trevi Fountain please read my blog post titled Aqua Through the Ages: A Retrospective of the Trevi Fountain.

Trevi is a rione that is central to Rome both physically and metaphorically.  It is located right in the heart of Rome atop the highest of the seven hills.  It has served as headquarters to Rome's aristocracy for centuries, including popes kings and presidents.  The Aqua Vergine flows out of it like the lifeblood of Rome, providing health and prosperity.  Trevi may not be THE heart of Rome but it is certainly a heart of Rome. There is a reason that it is to Trevi that travellers offer up  their wishes to return.