Some of ancient Rome’s most famous statues and art are housed in the two palaces (Palazzo dei Conservatori and Palazzo Nuovo) that flank the equestrian statue in the Campidoglio. They’re connected by an underground passage that leads to the Tabularium, an ancient building with a panoramic overlook of the Forum.
We enterat the Palazzo dei Conservatori (on our right as we face the equestrian statue), cross underneath the square (beneath the Palazzo Senatorio, the mayoral palace, not open to public), and exit from the Palazzo Nuovo (on our left). This enjoyable museum complex claims to be the world’s oldest, founded in 1471 when a pope gave ancient statues to the citizens of Rome.
Many of the museum’s statues have gone on to become instantly recognizable cultural icons, including the 13th-century Capitoline She-Wolf (the little statues of Romulus and Remus were added in the Renaissance).
Don’t miss the Boy Extracting a Thorn and the enchanting Commodus as Hercules.
Behind Commodus is a statue of his dad, Marcus Aurelius, on a horse. The only surviving equestrian statue of a Roman emperor, this was the original centerpiece of the square (where a copy stands today). Christians in the Dark Ages thought that the statue’s hand was raised in blessing, which probably led to their misidentifying him as Constantine, the first Christian emperor. While most pagan statues were destroyed by Christians, “Constantine” was spared.
The Tabularium, built in the first century BC, once held the archives of ancient Rome. The word Tabularium comes from “tablet,” on which Romans wrote their laws. We won’t see any tablets, but we’ll get a stunning view of the Forum from the windows.
The Palazzo Nuovo houses mostly portrait busts of foreign emperors. But it also has two must-see statues: the Dying Gaul and the Capitoline Venus.
