028.

Campo di Fiori

One of Renaissance Rome's major urban spaces, this piazza has continued to serve as a market place up to the present time, though what is sold here is no longer "animals, wheat and fodder" (...animali...grano e biada) as Vasi informs us. The fountain (2), known as the "la terrina" because of its top element which makes it look like soup tureen, was moved to Piazza della Chiesa Nuova, Plate 137, in the late 19th century. At that time Campo de' Fiori was enlarged by the demolition of the end building (center left) as well as the removal of the low market sheds in front of it. Nolli records all these features as well as the gibbet (1) which Vasi tells us is for the "execution of evildoers and lawbreakers." The tall building in the center background is the Palazzo della Cancelleria, Plate 74, exhibiting some irregular superstructures which have since been demolished. The buildings lining the right side of the piazza, with their picturesque roofline, have hardly changed since Vasi's day except for most of the shops being replaced by bars and cafès. The corner of Palazzo Pio (3), Plate 75, at the extreme right has been rebuilt, but the street which flanks it, Via dei Giubbonari (clothiers), is still lined with clothes shops like the one we see in the print. The continuation of this street at the opposite end of the piazza, Via dei Cappellari with an arch spanning it, is seen in long perspective view at the left edge of the print.