Rome. Italy

In Italy we visited Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major, Giuseppe Garibaldi Monument, Church Holy Spirit in Sassia, S. Maria in Vallicella, Largo Di Torre Argentina, Trajans Forum, Forum of Augustus, Statue of Julius Cesar, Monument to Victor Emmanuel II, Colosseum, Church of Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, Church of Saint Bernard alleTerme, Fountain of Moses, Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels and Martyrs, Vatican City, and some other places.

Fountain of Moses
In 1585, only one of the ancient Roman aqueducts that supplied the city with water, the Aqua Vergine, remained operational. Anyone in Rome who desired clean drinking water had to go to a single fountain near the current Trevi Fountain. Pope Sixtus took on the obligation of rebuilding the remaining aqueducts, including the Acqua Alessandrina. Giovanni Fontana took on the construction of the aqueduct, which was completed in June 1587. Domenico Fontana, an architect-engineer, created the fountain in the shape of an antique Roman triumphal arch. Like ancient Roman fountains, it included an inscription praising its creator, Pope Sixtus, beneath angels carrying the papal coat of arms. The sculptures beneath the arches blend religious and political ideas. Leonardo Sormani and Prospero da Brescia built a colossal Moses statue for the central arch in 1588. Water pours from the statues into basins, where four lions, originally ancient Egyptian sculptures but now copy, spout water from a colossal fountain dedicated to Marcus Agrippa in front of Rome's Pantheon. The statue of Moses was criticized at the time for being too huge and out of proportion with the other statues, but the fountain met its political purpose: it was a statement about how the Catholic Church, unlike the Protestant Reformation, addressed the needs of the people of Rome. It also accomplished its social mission, revitalizing.The arrival of clean drinking water turned the Quirinal neighborhood from a rural area of villas to a vibrant urban center, fulfilling its social mission.