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Visit Rome following 8 XVIIIth century itineraries XVIIIth century Rome in the 10 Books of Giuseppe Vasi - Le Magnificenze di Roma Antica e Moderna The Grand View of Rome by G. Vasi The Environs of Rome: Frascati, Tivoli, Albano and other small towns near Rome A 1781 map of Rome by G. Vasi An 1852 map of Rome by P. Letarouilly Rome seen by a 1905 armchair traveller in the paintings by Alberto Pisa The 14 historical districts of Rome An abridged history of Rome How to spend a peaceful day in Rome Baroque sculptors and their works The coats of arms of the popes in the monuments of Rome Pages on a specific pope Pages complementing the itineraries and the views by Giuseppe Vasi Walks in the Roman countryside and in other towns of Latium following Ferdinand Gregorovius A Directory of links to the Churches of Rome A Directory of links to the Palaces and Villas of Rome A Directory of links to the Other Monuments of Rome A Directory of Baroque Architects with links to their works A Directory of links to Monuments of Ancient Rome A Directory of links to Monuments of Medieval Rome A Directory of links to Monuments of Renaissance A Directory of links to Monuments of the Late Renaissance A list of the most noteworthy Roman Families Directories of fountains, obelisks, museums, etc. Books and guides used for developing this web site An illustrated Glossary of Art Terms Venice and the Levant Roman recollections in Florence A list of Italian towns shown in this web site Venetian Fortresses in Greece Vienna seen by an Italian XVIIIth century traveller A list of foreign towns shown in this web site
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All images © by Roberto Piperno, owner of the domain. Write to romapip@quipo.it. Text edited by Rosamie Moore.
Porta S. Giovanni (Book 1) (Map A4) (Day 1) (Rione Monti)

In this page:
The plate by Giuseppe Vasi
Today's view
The gate
Porta Asinaria
Porta Metronia (the walls between Porta S. Giovanni and Porta Latina)

The Plate (No. 8)

Porta S. Giovanni

The plate shows the external gate built for pope Gregorius XIII by Giacomo del Duca in 1574 near old Porta Asinaria. The road shown in the plate was called in the past Via Campana (because it was used to reach Campania the region around Naples), while today it is called Via Appia Nuova. The view is taken from the green dot in the small 1748 map here below. In the description below the plate Vasi made reference to: 1) Mola sulla marana (mill on a small stream of water); 2) Road leading to Via Latina. The small map shows also: 3) Porta S. Giovanni; 4) Porta Asinaria.

Small ViewSmall View

Today

The Gate today

Outside Porta S. Giovanni lies one of the most populated area of Rome, thus there is always a lot of traffic flowing into and out of Rome. In this case for a fraction of a second I succeeded in getting rid of it.

The Gate

The Gate

The gate has been preserved, but the coat of arms of Gregorius XIII has lost the dragon and the papal symbols.

Porta Asinaria

Porta Asinaria

Beyond the traffic three moments of the history of Rome: Porta S. Giovanni, the XVIIIth century façade of S. Giovanni in Laterano after which the gate is named and the ancient Porta Asinaria. The Roman gate between two fine medieval towers replaced Porta CoeliMontana of the old Servian walls. Recent excavations have brought to light the court.

Porta Metronia

Porta Metronia

Roman car drivers who live in the highly populated modern quarters built along Via Appia and Via Latina know very well Porta Metronia. But the arches in the walls which are usually called Porta Metronia were opened in the 1930s. The historical gate, a posterula a minor opening in the walls, is mainly under the current ground level and only its upper part (a walled arch) is visible in a tower at the center of the modern gate.
One of the inscriptions above the gate has a special importance in shedding some light on a very obscure period of the history of Rome: "Anno MCLVII incarn(a)t(ionis) D(omi)ni n(ost)ri IHV (Iesu) XPI (Christi) S. P. Q. R. hec menia vetustate dilapsa restauravit senatores ..." followed by a list of names of Roman senators. In the middle of the XIIth century the authority of the pope was challenged by the attempts of the Romans to establish the independence of the city from both the Pope and the Emperor.
In 1143 the ancient Roman Senate was revived and in 1145 the pope (Lucius II) was killed by a stone thrown during a riot.
The Senators decided to celebrate the restoration of Porta Metronia by putting an inscription, something which had not been done for centuries. The inscription shows a total lack of skill, although the monuments of Ancient Rome provided plenty of examples of perfectly designed inscriptions. Another interesting aspect is the absence of a reference to the reigning pope (for more Roman inscriptions click here).

Excerpts from Giuseppe Vasi 1761 Itinerary related to this page:


Porta S. Giovanni
Si vedono a destra le antiche mura di Roma, e la Porta della Città, che dalla vicina basilica si dice di s. Giovanni, dalla quale esce la via Campania, che ora conduce a Napoli. Si vedono di lontano antichissime rovine di acquedotti, parte rimessi in uso, e parte rimasti in abbandono.

Next plate in Book 1: Porta Latina
Next step in Day 1 itinerary: S. Croce in Gerusalemme
Next step in your tour of Rione Monti: S. Giovanni in Laterano