  Ruine del Foro di Nerva (Book 8) (Day 3) (Rione Monti) In this page:
This view of the ruins in Nerva's Forum is based on previous documentation
because the Temple of Minerva was pulled down in 1612 by Paulus V to provide
marble for the Acqua Paola fountain on the Janiculum.
The plate shows also the columns of the Temple
of Pallas. The view is taken from the green dot in the 1748 map below.
In the description below the plate Vasi made reference to: 1) Ruins of Foro di Nerva; 2) Arco dei Pantani;
3) Bell tower of S. Maria Annunziata; 4) Torre dei Conti (delle Milizie); 5) Tempio di Pallade. The map shows
also 6) Torre dei Conti; 7) SS. Quirico e Giuditta; 8) House of the Knights of Rhodes. 5) is shown in another plate.
The view now encompasses also the adjoining Forum of Augustus including the House of the Order of the Knights of Rhodes. The Roman ruins were excavated in the 1930s and the nunnery of S. Maria Annunziata, built using the large Roman walls, was pulled down, although some signs of it are still visible (see below).
The building called by Vasi Torre de' Conti is now known as Torre delle Milizie, whilst the name of Torre de' Conti is now used for another medieval tower at the other end of the Forum of Nerva. Both towers belonged to the Conti family and they show how fierce was the rivalry among the families (Orsini, Conti, Colonna, Frangipane, etc. ) which shared the actual control over Rome until the XVth century. Temple of Mars and Arco de' Pantani
The Temple of Mars was the main building in the Forum of Augustus: three columns of the right flank are still standing (they were incorporated into medieval buildings). Next to the Temple was the entrance to the Forum, the arch was renamed in medieval times Arco dei Pantani (Arch of the slushes) because the street often got covered with mud. Behind the temple the balcony of the House of the Knights of Rhodes with Sixtus V's coat of arms.
Most of the modest baroque churches in this area were sacrificed
to the excavations of the Fora (see plate 142).
SS. Quirico e Giuditta is just outside the Forum of Nerva so it was not
touched by them and it gives an idea of the churches which were pulled
down. To the right of the church one of the most sought after roof garden
restaurants of Rome. The building is a former Dominican monastery designed in 1750-53 by Gabriele Valvassori. It retains
the elegant late baroque portal.
Next plate in Book 8: Monastero di S. Maria Annunziata Next step in Day 3 itinerary: Monastero di S. Maria Annunziata Next step in your tour of Rione Monti: Monastero di S. Maria Annunziata
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All images © 1999 - 2003 by Roberto Piperno. Write to romapip@quipo.it