The Pigna (pinecone) fountain
Some of the most wonderful things about Rome are the many fountains with fresh splashing water. Just to walk by one on a warm (or hot) day gives you a cooler sensation. Opposite the large white Vittoriano (the large monument to Vittorio Emanuele II) that dominates Piazza Venezia, is the small Pigna fountain. The water of La Pigna (the pinecone fountain) is drinkable and, like all the other fountains and fontanelle (small black street fountains) is constantly flowing and of good quality. The Romans and hundreds of millions of tourists have been drinking this water for more than 2000 years and it is perfectly safe. It is still possible to discern different tastes of water from the various aqueducts that feed Rome.
When two Romans want to meet in the center of the city, a convenient place for an encounter is here at the Pigna fountain. Its central location near Piazza Venezia makes it easy to find.
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| The Vatican Pigna |
Another, larger example of a pinecone is in the Vatican. Almost four meters high, this bronze sculpture once spouted water from the top, and originally stood near the Pantheon next to the ancient Temple of Isis. It was moved to the courtyard of the Old St. Peter's Basilica during the Middle Ages. Numerous references to it were made by writers visiting Rome, among whom even Dante. After the new St. Peter’s was built in the sixteenth century, the Pigna was located in an enormous semicircular niche in the courtyard of the Vatican Museums, which is usually called the Cortile della Pigna.
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| The Vatican Pigna |
There is another, smaller, bronze pinecone in the narthex of the cathedral at Aachen in Germany. This bronze sculpture may have been brought to Aachen from Italy at the time of Charlemagne, or it may have been cast in Germany as late as ca. 1000. Nevertheless, it was undoubtedly inspired by the pinecone that once stood in the courtyard of Old St. Peter's Basilica.
