Rome's Capitol hill

Before visiting the Roman forum, you have to climb the famous capitol steps designed by Michelangelo to have an idea of the extension of the Roman forum and what it has been used for.

The ancient Rome tour is a comprehensive description of the remains of the eternal city and of its glorious past, in an effort to make it to you as much as alive as possible, narrating the main events that made Rome the head of the mediterranean civilization.

The Capitol Hill, in Latin Capitolium, derives from caput (head) and it is the most famous among the hills of Rome. Today also called Capitoline Hill or Tarpeo mount, the temple of Jupiter Capitolinus was on it, this last maximum divinity of the city.
It is formed by two high ground and a depression and it was called mountain of Saturn. Upon one of these heights the temple of the Triade Capitolina rose (Jupiter, Giunone and Minerva) and objects precious and great wealths were guarded . On the other summit where rises now the church of the Aracoeli stood the fortress with the temple of Juno Moneta , where the mint was.

Among the two tops was the Intermontium that corresponded to the actual Piazza del Campidoglio . Toward the Forum the Tabularium raised , center of the archives in ancient Rome still existing, and here according to the legend Romolo would have fixed his center.

Guiding you through the highest of the seven hills of Rome deserves more than several minutes of your attention because the Capitol hill is also the seat of the local government of Rome, and it has the offices of its Major.
Numerous temples of every age and nature accompanied the temple of the Triade Capitolina (Fortune, Faith, Mars Ultor, Venus Capitolina, the altars of the "gens Julia"), but of them today nothing doesn't remain almost.

The first great work of intervention and reorganization of the irregular agglomeration Capitoline was of Michelangelo. The move of the statue of Mark Aurelio riding a horse (coming from the Laterano in 1547) and the creation of a pedestal, the two statues of the Nile and the Tiber from the building of the Conservatories to the Senatorial building at the base of the staircase of this last (1544-1554), and finally the staircase of access to the Piazza (Cordonata) conceived by Michelangelo in 1536 but built only after his death in 1568.

tours of ancient rome-capitol hill On top of the Capitol hill you will really see how the history came and left its marks, century after century and if you have planned to stay few days in Rome the Capitoline must be visited during the daylight for its history, but also during your night tour because its romanticism is unparalleled.