Gianicolo Hill

The Janiculum is not one of the seven hills but it is the best viewpoint, a terrace above Trastevere looking across the whole centre with the domes laid out. Since 1847 a cannon has been fired at midday, originally to synchronise the church bells of Rome, which had been ringing noon at different times; it is fired from the terrace below the Garibaldi monument and startles anyone who does not know. Busts of Garibaldi's followers line the walks, from the 1849 defence of the Roman Republic fought on this hill. Bramante's Tempietto, a small circular temple that is a landmark of Renaissance architecture, stands just below at San Pietro in Montorio.

History

The Janiculum, west of the Tiber and outside the ancient city, was a centre of the cult of Janus, and its view over Rome made it a place for augurs to read the auspices; Livy says it was taken into Rome under king Ancus Marcius, walled and joined to the city by a bridge. In the 3rd century AD water mills were built here astride the Aqua Traiana to grind flour for Rome, under today's American Academy, and the emperor Aurelian ran his walls up the hill to take them in; still working in 537, they were restored and may have run until the time of Pope Gregory IV (827-844), and excavations in the 1990s uncovered them. In 1849 the hill saw the fighting between Garibaldi's defenders of the Roman Republic and the French, and monuments to Garibaldi and to the fallen of the wars of Italian independence stand along it (Wikipedia, Janiculum).

Highlights

• The panorama - the whole historic centre with its domes from one terrace.
• The midday cannon - fired daily since 1847 to set the city's clocks.
• The Garibaldi busts - memorials to the 1849 republic's defenders.
• Bramante's Tempietto - a small circular temple below the terrace.

When to go

Year-round; be there just before noon for the cannon. Sunset gives the best light on the city. The Tempietto has its own limited opening hours.

Before you go

The cannon is loud and unannounced. The walk up from Trastevere is steep. The Tempietto is often closed outside its short hours.

Nearby

Trastevere lies below; the Vatican is north.

Key facts