Piazza Barberini is located in the eastern part of Rome on the Quirinal Hill. The Barberini metro station of the A line is located nearby.
In ancient times, the Circo di Flora (Circus of the Goddess Flora) was located here, where every year in May, noisy festivities were held to celebrate the arrival of spring.
This event was so important to the Romans that even the censor Cato, known for his severity, once passed by the walking crowd, noticed that he had caused the fun to stop and preferred to quietly leave so as not to disturb the people celebrating.
The square on the site of the circus was originally named after Cardinal Griman, who owned a house and vineyard on the land. The plaque on the house at the corner of Via degli Avignonesi commemorates this.
In 1625 the square was named Sforza a Capo le Case. The Sforza family, one of the most influential in Rome at the time, owned a villa next to the square.
Later Cardinal Maffeo Barberini, the future Pope Urban VIII, bought the villa and built a beautiful palace in its place. In addition to the palace, there were gardens, cottages and dairy shops around the square.
There was also a palace theater Barberini, built by Bernini in 1634. It staged operas and comedies, held festivals and wedding ceremonies. The theater had a seating capacity of 2,000 spectators. In 1873 it was destroyed during the construction of Via Barberini.
In addition to building the theater and decorating the palace, Bernini also gave the square two famous fountains, the Fountain of Triton and the Fountain of Bees.
The Triton Fountain was built in 1642, almost immediately after the palace. It is located in the very center of the square. The statue of Triton is located on a shell, which is held on its tails by four dolphins. Between the inhabitants of the sea you can see the papal tiara and the coat of arms of the Barberini family.
The Fountain of Bees was built in 1644. It is more difficult to find. It is located on the corner of Via Vittorio Veneto and Via di San Basilio. The fountain is in the shape of a not very large shell, with three bees at the bottom.
There is a bowl under the sculpture and water flows from under the insects. It is known that until 1800 the Fountain of Bees was located at the end of the square, at the beginning of Sistina Street, and then it was moved to a new place, where it is today.
And a little more history. Until the 18th century, disfigured unidentified corpses found in the streets of the city were brought to the square, directly to the Fountain of Triton. They would lie on wagons and a herald would address the crowd asking them to identify the bodies. But there were also joyous events.
Until the beginning of the 19th century, the square was the site of the Trionfo delle Fragole (Strawberry Festival). Every year on June 13th, farmers came here, bringing baskets of strawberries on flower-decorated carts. On June 13th, the farmers would come to this place and bring baskets of strawberries in flower-decorated wagons.
