| CHURCH OF SAINT MARY MAJOR |
 |
Pope Simplicius ordered the church to be built over the ruins of a Roman
villa. In the XII century it was enlarged and radically transformed when Barbarossa
decided to include the built-up area into the city walls. Later on, in the XV century, the
lateral arches were closed and replaced with round windows, whereas the central arch at
the entrance was enriched with a beautiful Gothic portal surmounted by a tabernacle,
attributed to the sculptor Angelo of Tivoli. On the right side of the church is the
bell-tower rebuilt in 1590. The high altar, built by the architect Galvani at the end of
1500, contains a valuable painting on wood of the Madonna delle Grazie, made by the
Franciscan painter Jacopo Torriti in 1200. |
| THE CHURCH OF SAINT SYLVESTER |
 |
This Romanesque construction, dating from the XII century, originally had
three naves with a double row of 12 cipolin marble columns. In the XVII century the two
aisles were walled up and the columns themselves sold at 265 scudos. Later on, the left
nave was pulled down in order to widen Via del Colle. Especially interesting are the
frescoes, dating from the second half of the XII century, which represent the legend of
the Emperor Costantine and of St.Sylvester and decorate the triumphal arch and the apse. |
| THE
ROMAN AMPHITEATRE |
 |
This construction, brought to light in 1948, has been completely
excavated and restored only at present. It was used for gladiatorial combats and for the
hunt with wild beasts (venatio). The elliptical building has a central arena (60x40m.)
surrounded by an ambulacrum (corridor) 2.20m. wide. Nowadays one can still see the
structure supporting the steps which reached a height of 12 metres and had an external
perimeter of 85x65m. |
| MENSA
PONDERARIA ( WEIGHTS AND MEASURES OFFICE ) |
 |
The Mensa Ponderaria preserves the samples of the weights and measures
used for the Roman commerce of the Forum. It is still possible to see the two tables with
the several samples. On one side stands the Augusteum, a chapel used for the imperial
worship. |
| VILLA
D’ESTE |
 |
In 1550 Cardinal Hippolyte d'Este, the son of Lucretia Borgia and Alfonso
I d'Este, built Villa d'Este following the project of Pirro Ligorio. The Villa is reputed
to stand on the site of an ancient medieval district called "Valle Gaudente".
The magnificent fountains are fed by the waters of the Aniene through a series of pipes
which pass under the historical centre. The courtyard, which corresponds to the present
entrance of the Villa, was the cloister of a Benedictine convent incorporated in the
monumental building of the Villa. The Italian-style garden with its beautiful fountains is
a splendid example of the Renaissance gardens' art and architecture. The most famous
fountains are: the Fountain of the Bicchierone (Large Glass), the One Hundred Fountains,
the Fountain of the Ovato, the Fountain of the Dragons and the Fountain of the Hydraulic
Organ (where a perfectly functioning organ was placed). |
| THE TOWN
HALL SQUARE |
 |
This building, seat of the Town Hall, has been built on the ancient
square town-walls dating from the IV-V century B.C. and it uses in part the original
medieval structures like the tower standing on the left side of the main facade. In 1587
the building came into possession of the municipality, partly thanks to the donation of
Pope Sixtus V and partly thanks to a thousand-scudo loan obtained by St.Filippo Neri. The
main facade was completely restored in 1883. Some valuable paintings and sculptures are
preserved in the building; especially noteworthy is the altar-piece, by Sano di Pietro
(1406-1481), representing St.Bernardine, the saint who eventually gave the name to the
construction. |
| GOTHIC HOUSE- VIA CAMPITELLI |
 |
It is one of the most characteristic street in Tivoli flanked with houses
dating from the late Middle Ages. The most beautiful is the so-called "Gothic
House". It offers a certain purity of style and is enriched with some stylistic
elements such as the "profferlo" (an outside staircase with an arcade
underneath) and crenellations supported by marble corbels. Other houses, even older, are
visible in Via del Colle near the Church of St.Sylvester. |
| THE CATHEDRAL OR
CHURCH OF ST. LAWRENCE |
 |
The church was erected in the V century on the site of the Roman Forum
and completely rebuilt in 1635 by Cardinal Julius Roma. The Baroque facade has a portico
with three barrel vaults. This construction has one nave with lateral chapels. Inside one
of these chapels is preserved the Wooden Deposition, dating from the XIII century, a work
of rare beauty, recently restored, which is a good example of medieval sculpture. The
artistic wealth of the church includes also the Triptych of the Saviour, a splendid
painting on wood dating from the XII century, attributed to the Benedictine monks of
Farfa. The Romanesque bell-tower stands on the left side of the church. |
| CHURCH OF ST. PETER TO THE CHARITY |
 |
The church was rebuilt in the XII century on the site of an ancient
construction, in Romanesque style and basilican design. It has three naves with a double
row of ancient cipolin marble columns. On the right side stands the square bell-tower with
some valuable cornices supported by marble corbels and bricks. Inside the main nave one
can admire the cosmatesque-style pavements made up of precious coloured marbles. During
the restorations carried out in 1950, after the bombing, the church was robbed of its
Baroque ornaments which hid the original structure. |
| VILLA
GREGORIANA AND GREAT WATERFALL |
 |
It is also known as the "Villa of Manlio Vopisco" who was the
owner of the destroyed villa during the Roman age. Its rare beauty is due to the
naturalistic aspects which exalt the presence of the waters of the Aniene river. One can
admire: the Great Waterfall (more than 100m. high) impetuously coming out from the
artificial tunnels dug in 1826 after the catastrophic flood of the river; the caves of
Neptune and of the Sirens where the river itself disappears under the rocks and reappears
downstream. The charm of these wild places and the characteristic ecosystem make of Villa
Gregoriana a unique place in the world. |
| VICOLO DEI FERRI, TURRET HOUSE AND
CHURCH OF ST. STHEPEN |
 |
In this typical medieval street which still preserves its ancient charm,
one can admire many turret-houses and the XI-XII century Church of St.Stephen
deconsecrated in 1872 and transformed into a theatre and a house. The facade still
features the two columns of the ancient portico with an architrave surmounted by a
valuable cornice in marble decorated with rosettes and diamond points. |
| MEDIEVAL MONUMENTAL SQUARE |
 |
This square was the centre of municipal Tivoli. The religious, civil and
commercial powers were situated in it and represented by the Church of St.Michael, the
Arengo Palace (the town-hall building where the popular assembly met), the Municipal Tower
and Piazza delle Erbe, a place of market. The whole monumental complex stood at the centre
of an ideal triangle with the three most important convents placed at its angles. These
are St.Francis, St.Blaise of the Dominicans and St.Michael archangel in the Castrovetere
district. |
| GUARD TOWER AND PONTE ST. MARTIN |
 |
The guard tower, standing at the crossroads between Via della Sibilla and
Via delle Mole was the sighting and defensive point of the medieval citadel near Ponte
St.Martin which represented the link with the rest of the town. From the bridge itself one
can enjoy a splendid view of the Sanctuary of Quintiliolo and of the medieval district
where the tower of the ancient convent of St.Catherine stands out. Nowadays the pressure
water pipes of Enel (the National Electricity Board) are placed at the bottom of the
valley. |
| ROCCA PIA |
 |
Pope Pius II (Enea Silvio Piccolomini) began to erect this building in
1461 in order to obtain the faithfullness of the inhabitants of Tivoli. The quadrangular
fortress is composed of four round towers and stands on the top of a hill in order to
exploit its favourable position for defensive purposes. The smallest towers were finished
by Sixtus IV or probably by Alexander VI. After 1870 the Rocca Pia was transformed into
prison adding a building inside the courtyard. At present the complex does not have a
precise destination. |
| VILLA ADRIANA (
HADRIAN’S VILLA ) |
 |
Leaving apart the places illustrated up to now, it is worth mentioning
Hadrian's Villa, located in the valley underneath Tivoli, especially for the magnificence
of its architecture. The Emperor Hadrian ordered the construction of the Villa and
supervised the work personally (118-138 D.C.). The construction was carried out in several
successive phases; the first one concerned the restoration of an ancient republican villa.
Hadrian's Villa consists of a group of monumental buildings, roads, sheets of water,
baths, libraries, theatres and temples which are considered as the reproduction of similar
buildings that the Emperor visited during his travels. |
| THE TEMPLES OF VESTA AND OF THE SYBIL |
 |
The round-based temple of Vesta, dating from the beginning of the I
century B.C., dominates the whole valley nowadays occupied by Villa Gregoriana. It is
formed by 18 fluted columns of Corinthian order (today there are only 10 of them left)
with a peristyle covered by a marble coffered ceiling. The temple of the Sybil,
rectangular, dating from the II century B.C., is in Ionic style. It consists of a
travertine base which supports the lateral walls with semi-columns. In the Middle Ages
this temple was transformed into the church of St.George, no longer visible today. From
the area of the temples (the ancient Roman acropolis) one can enjoy a beautiful view of
Villa Gregoriana and of the Cascades located just underneath Ponte Gregoriano. |
| PONTE
GREGORIANO |
 |
The bridge consists of a single arch with a span of 20 metres; it was
erected on the site of the ancient waterfall after the catastrophic flood of the Aniene
river (1826) and it was inaugurated by Pope Gregory XVI on 24th May 1835. In 1944 the
German troops, in retreat from Tivoli, destroyed the bridge which was immediately rebuilt.
Recently the flow of the waters under the bridge has been reopened thus recreating the
ancient image of the waterfalls which can be enjoyed both from Piazza Rivarola and from
the Castrovetere district (Piazza delle Mole). From the bridge itself one can enjoy the
splendid setting of the Roman acropolis with the two temples of Vesta and of the Sybil.
|