On a small square just south of Piazza Navona, in a corner stands the most famous among Rome's "talking statues": Pasquino. A heavily damaged statue, probably depicting a Greek hero (its conditions make the identification difficult, even if many hypothesis have been made) found in 1501 during the excavation works of the nearby Circus of Domitian (which is right beneath Piazza Navona).
Since 16th Century, the statue was the place where, during the night, hiding from the policemen's sight, the people posted their criticism against the power and the government, often in the form of short sarcastic poems or short sentences, in the typical Roman humor style, which, since the most ancient times, is known to express itself in short but effective sentences. Such sentences have grown to acquire the dignity of a literary form, the so-called "pasquinate".
Far from being a simple literary exercise, the "pasquinate" deeply irritated many Popes, who several times attempted to have the overly loquacious statue removed, but always wisely abandoned the project, in order to avoid irritating the people by depriving them of a way to vent their anger and dissatisfaction in a form which, after all, was absolutely harmless for the power itself.
Even today, Pasquino's statue is still "talking" and it can be an interesting and funny experience to stop by the statue and read the sheets of paper pasted to the statue (often written in Italian, more often in Roman slang) and enjoy some of the traditional Roman humor :)
Since 16th Century, the statue was the place where, during the night, hiding from the policemen's sight, the people posted their criticism against the power and the government, often in the form of short sarcastic poems or short sentences, in the typical Roman humor style, which, since the most ancient times, is known to express itself in short but effective sentences. Such sentences have grown to acquire the dignity of a literary form, the so-called "pasquinate".
Far from being a simple literary exercise, the "pasquinate" deeply irritated many Popes, who several times attempted to have the overly loquacious statue removed, but always wisely abandoned the project, in order to avoid irritating the people by depriving them of a way to vent their anger and dissatisfaction in a form which, after all, was absolutely harmless for the power itself.
Even today, Pasquino's statue is still "talking" and it can be an interesting and funny experience to stop by the statue and read the sheets of paper pasted to the statue (often written in Italian, more often in Roman slang) and enjoy some of the traditional Roman humor :)
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