Do you want to visit some of the most famous and beautiful fountains in Rome, Italy?
Rome’s ancient history is what made this place so special. Its landmarks like the Vatican City, Colosseum, and the Pantheon are always on top of the list of tourists’ favorite spots. The city’s fountains, however, are often overlooked.
When in Rome, don’t miss the chance to have a glimpse of the city’s famous and beautiful fountains. You might have seen one or two being featured in the movies.
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Rome’s beautiful fountains are integral to the city’s iconic landscape. Water has been freely flowing through Rome’s aqueducts since ancient times, making the city’s fountains a priceless artistic and cultural treasure.
10 Most Famous and Beautiful Fountains in Rome, Italy
There are over 2,000 fountains in Rome. Yes, that much, and there’s no other city in the world with this many fountains in the area.
Without further ado, here are some of the most famous and beautiful fountains in Rome that you should see once you set foot in the Eternal City!
1. Fontana di Trevi – Piazza di Trevi
First on the list is the most famous of them all. The Trevi Fountain is a symbol of Rome and, more specifically, of romantic Rome. Imagine the heavenly cascades of an aquatic fantasy pouring into a basin at the intersection of three streets.
Bernini originally created the Baroque fountain in Piazza di Trevi for Pope Clemens XII. However, it wasn’t constructed until 50 years later, after architect Nicola Salvi redesigned it at a lower cost. It was built between 1732 and 1762.
This beautiful fountain was featured in Three Coins in a Fountain, and because of this film, tossing coins into the fountain became a cultural phenomenon. Approximately 3,000 euros are thrown in the fountain each day, which are then donated to charity.
Fontana di Trevi also appeared in other hit movies, such as Roman Holiday, Angels and Demons, and Italy’s very own La Dolce Vita.
2. Fontana del Pantheon – Piazza della Rotonda
Originally commissioned by Pope Gregory XIII, Fontana del Pantheon – or Fountain of the Pantheon – stands as the centerpiece of Piazza della Rotonda. Leonardo Sormani was responsible for the execution of Giacomo della Porta’s design.
The young Roman sculptor and architect Filippo Barigoni was commissioned by Pope Clement XI (r. 1700 – 21) to make significant changes to the fountain’s design in 1711. On the central plinth stands an obelisk from Egypt’s reign of Ramesses II. Four dolphins spray water and the papal crest adorns the plinth.
Barigoni also designed a new base, which features an adjustable number of steps to account for differences in piazza elevation.
3. Fontana della Barcaccia – Piazza di Spagna
As it is located at the base of the Spanish Steps, Fontana della Barcaccia (“Fountain of the Boat”) has one of the most picturesque settings of any fountains in Rome.
A central fountain and smaller jets on either end of the boat add to the boat’s own overflowing water supply. It is supplied by the ancient aqueduct Acqua Vergine, which supplies Rome with potable water.
In order for the fountain to function, Bernini made sure it was built slightly below street level.
It’s one of the finest examples of Baroque art and conceals a truly unique story behind its construction; Pope Urban VIII commissioned it to Pietro Bernini and his son Gian Lorenzo Bernini. According to urban legend, the fountain was built to reflect the area’s appearance when the Tiber River flooded it.
4. Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi – Piazza Navona
One of three beautiful fountains in Rome’s most famous square, Piazza Navona, is the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi or the Fountain of the Four Rivers.
Pope Innocenzo X commissioned Bernini to create this breathtaking fountain as part of their effort to make the piazza into an epic monument to themselves.
The base of the fountain was built to hold up the four river gods that were sculpted on top of the rocks. The gods symbolize the four continents where the papal authority was supposedly the most powerful: the Nile (representing Africa), the Danube (representing Europe), the Ganges (representing Asia), and the Rio de la Plata (representing Americas).
5. Fontana dell’Acqua Paola – Via Garibaldi
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Pope Paul V had the magnificent Fontana dell’Acqua Paola, also known as Il Fontanne or the Big Fountain, rebuilt by Giovanni Fontana and Flaminio Ponzio.
Up until that point, they had been using the contaminated river water for drinking, so to ensure the locals had access to potable water, the pope also ordered the expansion of the Acqua Traiana aqueduct.
Fontana dell’Acqua Paola is not just a stunning landmark in and of itself; from its sitting atop Gianicolo Hill, visitors can take in some of the city’s most breathtaking panoramas. It’s big enough to pass for a pool, and many locals bathed in the fountain until a law was passed in 1707 prohibiting it.
6. Fontana del Tritone – Piazza Barberini
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A fountain for the Barberini family in Piazza Barberini was Bernini’s final major commission for Pope Urban VIII.
In order to create a spectacle, Bernini ended up breaking away from the traditional architectural style of fountains with Fontana del Tritone or Triton Fountain.
Out of the water, four dolphins appear, their tails intertwined with the papal coats of arms and each holding a giant bivalve. The sea god Triton sits in the conch shell’s center and heaves a massive stream of water into the sky.
Bernini intended for this sculpture to be a tribute to Urban VIII by combining the organic, poetic elements of the base, basin, and figure.
7. La Fontana delle Naiadi – Piazza della Repubblica
One of the most famous landmarks in Rome is La Fontana delle Naiadi or Fountain of the Naiads.
The fountain is situated in the middle of Piazza della Repubblica, and its lower four basins each feature a water nymph (Naiadi). The Romans were taken aback by these young, bare sculptures.
Designed in 1888, La Fontana delle Naiadi wasn’t finished until 1901, with an additional section added by Alessandro Guerrieri and finished by Mario Rutelli in 1911. Nonetheless, the monument’s foundation was laid in the 1870s.
After the ancient Aqua Marcia was built in 144 BC, Pope Pius IX had the new aqueduct, Acqua Pia-Marcia, named in its honor. However, the new Italian government renovated the entire area a few years later, expanding the fountain and relocating it about 80 meters to its current location.
8. Fontana di Nettuno – Piazza Navona
The Fontana di Nettuno, or Neptune Fountain, is a famous fountain in Rome that can be found at the northern end of Piazza Navona.
It was first constructed in the 1570s as a plain white marble basin with no adornments. For the next three hundred years, it stood empty until the monumental sculpture of Neptune battling an octopus was installed.
Other figures and creatures from mythology are also represented in the sculptures that decorate this grand fountain. It is located across from the Four Rivers Fountain. Due to its proximity to a small alley where blacksmiths produced cooking utensils, the fountain was first known as Fontana dei Calderari.
9. Fontana del Moro – Piazza Navona
There are three beautiful statues in Piazza Navona, the largest of which is the imposing Fontana del Moro (“Fountain of the Moor”) at the southern end of the square.
In 1575, Giacomo della Porta built the first version of the fountain using “holy stone” (Pietrasanta marble) from the same quarry that supplied stone for St. Peter’s Basilica.
Della Porta let his students decorate the outside of the basin with four tritons blowing on shells and four masks, but there was no focal point because public fountains back then weren’t meant to be ornamental. Bernini was tasked with finishing and renovating the fountain for Donna Olimpia, sister-in-law of Pope Innocenzo X, and the end result was amazing!
10. Fontana della Pigna – Cortille della Pigna, Vatican City
Originally located near the Pantheon, the nearly 4-meter-tall Fontana della Pigna – or simply Pigna (“pinecone”) – was relocated to the former Saint Peter’s Basilica site in the Middle Ages.
In 1608, it was relocated once more to its current location. In the first or second century, the sculptor Publius Cincius Salvius created a bronze version of the pinecone. His name is carved on the large pinecone’s bottom.
The pinecone was first located on Campus Martius, where it served as a fountain. The cone’s scales had been punctured, allowing water to flow out.