View Article: Piazza Della Minerva

	Piazza Della Minerva
	written by Paul Lang / 07.12.2004

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Piazza

The Piazza Della Minerva is my choice...

Reason for Selection

The act of visiting some many of Rome's Piazzas should make anyone notice this particular. The most obvious feature of this piazza is it's obelisk, an elephant. It is not the only piazza with an obelisk but is the only one with an elephant supporting it.

Comparison

The elephant is cute, and carries name recognition, but in itself is not the reasons I like it so much. Bernini was commisioned to sculpt an elephant, that's what he did. This is the only Piazza in town where you will see something as distinctive as an elephant and be told "no, there is no symbolism associated with that". In fact, it may be the only feature in Rome with such a description.

Impression

Bernini's elephant

The site is often missed but extrememly close to the Pantheon

Unfortunately, the first time I saw the elephant was on MTv. MTv has comandeered Rome, hosting concerts at many famous sites. The elephant made this setting memorable, I had no idea that such a creation existed.
The elephant is even more unique because of its location. It is right next to the Pantheon, but because it not on the tourist end, it is easily missed.

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