Fontana di Trevi: Rome’s Iconic Marvel
By Tully Luxury Travel | 07-16-2024 |
While Tully Luxury Travel has a number of different itineraries across Italy to entice you to visit, some of the most special include the fabled city of Rome. As such, more than 21 million tourists visit the city each year. And of all the famous fountains in the world, none is more acclaimed than the celebrated Trevi Fountain. A trip to Rome wouldn’t be complete without a stop to see it.
And if current figures are correct, it is also the most profitable. Well-wishers who throw coins into the fountain help it bring in about $1.5 million per year, donated to Rome’s Catholic charity Caritas to help the city’s less fortunate. In fact, the coins make up 15% of the charity’s annual budget. Not bad for a few wishes!
The fountain was built of travertine stone – a calcium carbonate mineral – at the convergence of three avenues, hence the Trevi name, which means “three street fountain.” It is 85 feet tall and 160 feet wide, with almost three million cubic feet of water splashing out every day. The Trevi Fountain at night is a dazzling sight.
Experience a trifecta of winning wonders
The coin-tossing stems from the premise of the 1954 Hollywood movie “Three Coins in the Fountain.” It is said that if you throw one coin, you will return again to Rome one day. If you throw two coins, you will fall in love with an attractive Italian. And three coins will ensure wedding bells! The fountain is also famous for its parts in the movies “La Dolce Vita,” starring iconic Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni, and “Roman Holiday,” starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck.
The Trevi Fountain Rome history dates back to the times of ancient Rome, all the way to the building of the Aqua Virgo Aqueduct in 19 BC. It supplied water to the various Roman baths and fountains of Rome. Fast-forward to the time of Pope Clement XII, when Roman architect Nicola Salvi was commissioned to build the Baroque fountain in 1732. Upon his subsequent death, architect Giuseppe Pannini completed the work in 1762.
Those interested in archaeology will perhaps need to add a special tour to their agenda. Beneath the Trevi Fountain lies a secret underground archaeological site called Vicus Caprarius, known as the City of Water. This is an ancient apartment complex under the Trevi district where upper-class Romans once lived. The site was discovered in the 1990s, with excavations revealing pottery, tiles and figurines – but also more than 800 coins. Who knows that these coins weren’t a sign of things to come?
Let Tully Luxury Travel get you there
The luxury vacations to Italy that the Tully Travel Designers can curate will easily let you get inspired for La Dolce Vita. They can provide you with the definitive top tips when in Rome. Visits to Palazzo Poli, Piazza Navona, the Spanish Steps and more will make your luxury vacation to Rome unforgettable – that is, until you return another day.