The fountain of the Pantheon

Situated exactly in front of what Stendhal called the most beautiful remains of Roman antiquity, the Fountain of the Pantheon was made by sculptor Leonardo Sormani, based on a 1575 design by architect Giacomo Della Porta (1533-1602), and was one of the first to be erected in Renaissance Rome. It was built following the restoration of the Vergine Aqueduct (1570), which also feeds, among others, the Fontana della Barcaccia, the Trevi Fountain and the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi.

It originally consisted of a mixtilinear basin in African grey marble, with the sides interrupted by four circular arches, and was surmounted by a baluster supporting a bowl. In the loops of the semi-circles were four masks, on the back of which were dragons, the heraldic symbols of Pope Gregory XIII Boncompagni (1572-1585). An outer balustrade and three steps surrounded the basin. Of Della Porta's complex, however, only the beautiful marble basin remains today, as the fountain was gradually transformed by a series of interventions over time.

In 1662, the level of the square was lowered, the balustrade and steps were removed, and the wide base was built, which takes up the mixtilinear motif of the basin.

In 1711, at the behest of Pope Clement XI Albani (1700-1721), the central obelisk of Ramses II was added in place of the upper basin. It came from the Iseo Campense and was transported here from the nearby Piazza San Macuto. Supported by a complex sculptural plinth, the work of Filippo Barigioni (c. 1690-1753), it stands on a mock travertine cliff, on which a podium with dolphins at the corners rises, while two monumental coats of arms of the Albani family are carved on two sides of it. On the other sides, an epigraph recalls the interventions of Pope Clement XI. At the base of this plinth, other inscriptions recall the various restorations the fountain underwent.

During the 1880 restoration, the original masks, now in the Museum of Rome, were replaced by 19th century copies by Luigi Amici (1817-1897). Finally, in 1928, the colonnettes and fences that surrounded the basin were removed.

The fountain underwent further restoration work in 1974, in 1991-1992 and in 2024.

Photo: Turismo Roma