Piazza Bocca della Verità (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

: ''Square of the Mouth of Truth'') is a square between Via Luigi Petroselli and Via della Greca in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

(

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

), in the

rione A (; plural: ) is a neighbourhood in several Italian cities. A is a territorial subdivision. The larger administrative subdivisions in Rome are the , with the being used only in the historic centre. The word derives from the Latin , the 14 su ...

Ripa. The square lies in the ancient area of the

Forum Boarium The Forum Boarium (, it, Foro Boario) was the cattle ''forum venalium'' of ancient Rome. It was located on a level piece of land near the Tiber between the Capitoline, the Palatine and Aventine hills. As the site of the original docks of Rome ...

, just in front of the

Tiber Island The Tiber Island ( it, Isola Tiberina, Latin: ''Insula Tiberina'') is the only river island in the part of the Tiber which runs through Rome. Tiber Island is located in the southern bend of the Tiber. The island is boat-shaped, approximately ...

; it takes its name from the

Bocca della Verità The Mouth of Truth ( it, Bocca della Verità ) is a marble mask in Rome, Italy, which stands against the left wall of the portico of the Santa Maria in Cosmedin church, at the Piazza della Bocca della Verità, the site of the ancient Forum Boar ...

(

: ''Mouth of Truth''), placed under the portico of the church of

Santa Maria in Cosmedin The Basilica of Saint Mary in Cosmedin ( it, Basilica di Santa Maria in Cosmedin or ''de Schola Graeca'') is a minor basilica church in Rome, Italy. It is located in the rione of Ripa. History According to Byzantine historian Andrew Ekonomo ...

. Besides the church, dating back to the

late Middle Ages The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the Periodization, period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Eur ...

, the square houses the

Arcus Argentariorum The Arcus Argentariorum (Latin: ''Arch of the Money-Changers''; in Italian: ''Arco degli Argentari''), is an ancient Roman arch that was partly incorporated in the seventh century into the western wall of the nearby church of San Giorgio al Velab ...

, the

Arch of Janus The Arch of Janus is the only quadrifrons triumphal arch preserved in Rome. It was set up at a crossroads at the northeastern limit of the Forum Boarium, close to the Velabrum, over the Cloaca Maxima drain that went from the Forum to the River ...

, the

Temple of Hercules Victor The Temple of Hercules Victor ('Hercules the Winner') ( it, Tempio di Ercole Vincitore) or Hercules Olivarius ((Hercules the Olive Branch Bearear) is a Roman temple in Piazza Bocca della Verità in the area of the Forum Boarium near the Tiber in ...

and the

Temple of Portunus The Temple of Portunus ( it, Tempio di Portuno) or Temple of Fortuna Virilis ("manly fortune") is a Roman temple in Rome, Italy, one of the best preserved of all Roman temples. Its dedication remains unclear, as ancient sources mention several te ...

, a deity related to the ancient river harbour. The fountain in front of the two temples, called

Fountain of the Tritons The Fountain of the Tritons (Italian: ''Fontana dei Tritoni'') is a fountain in Rome (Italy), Piazza Bocca della Verità, in front of the basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin. This fountain should be distinguished from the similarly named nearby ...

, realised by Carlo Bizzaccheri under commission of

Pope Clement XI Pope Clement XI ( la, Clemens XI; it, Clemente XI; 23 July 1649 – 19 March 1721), born Giovanni Francesco Albani, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 November 1700 to his death in March 1721. Clement XI w ...

, was erected in the square in 1715; it has an octagonal basis and portrays two tritons supporting a shell from which the water springs. The square was the place where, until 1868, the sentences of death were executed.

Bibliography

* Rossella Motta, ''Conservazione, demolizione, ricostruzione di strutture medioevali lungo la via del Mare tra la piazza Montanara e piazza Bocca della Verità'' in ''Gli anni del Governatorato (1926-1944)'', Collection ''Quaderni dei monumenti'', Rome, Edizioni Kappa, 1995. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Piazza Bocca della Verita Bocca della Verita Rome R. XII Ripa