A Tourist in Rome - Fountain of the Jail
| Location: | 41.88804, 12.46737 At the intersection of Via Goffredo Mameli and Via Luciano Manara, west of Santa Maria in Trastevere |
| Metro: | None, perhaps Tram 3 from Piramide, or Tram 8 from Largo di Torre Argentina |
| Time: | 10 minutes |
| Cost: | Free |
| Hours: | Viewable at any time |
The Fountain of the Jail was completed in 1587 on the Esquiline Hill, dismantled in the late 1800s to make room for housing and the first Termini station, reconstructed as a backdrop for the new Via Genoa, dismantled again in 1923, and reassembled in the location it now occupies. It is a great niche bordered by two pilasters supporting a pediment decorated with garlands and lion heads. At the base of the two pilasters, two small basins collect water that flows from two taps, and a lion's head in the central fan throws water into a pool at street level. The name 'Fountain of the Jail' is derived from a marble figure of a prisoner with his hands tied, at the center, which has been lost in all the dismantlings, storages, and reconstructions of this fountain. The fountain was restored in 2005-2006.
