Piazza di Spagna, a photo from Rome, Lazio

Photographer's Note

The Spanish Steps are a set of steps in Rome, Italy, climbing a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base and Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church at the top. The Scalinata is the widest staircase in Europe. The monumental stairway of 138 steps was built with French diplomat Étienne Gueffier’s bequeathed funds of 20,000 scudi, in 1723–1725, linking the Bourbon Spanish Embassy, and the Trinità dei Monti church that was under the patronage of the Bourbon kings of France, both located above — to the Holy See in Palazzo Monaldeschi located below. The stairway was designed by architects Francesco de Sanctis and Alessandro Specchi. Following a competition in 1717 the steps were designed by the little-known Francesco de Sanctis, though Alessandro Specchi was long thought to have produced the winning entry. Generations of heated discussion over how the steep slope to the church on a shoulder of the Pincio should be urbanised preceded the final execution. Archival drawings from the 1580s show that Pope Gregory XIII was interested in constructing a stair to the recently completed façade of the French church. Gaspar van Wittel's view of the wooded slope in 1683, before the Scalinata was built, is conserved in the Galleria Nazionale, Rome. The Roman-educated Cardinal Mazarin took a personal interest in the project that had been stipulated in Gueffier's will and entrusted it to his agent in Rome, whose plan included an equestrian monument of Louis XIV, an ambitious intrusion that created a furore in papal Rome. Mazarin died in 1661, the pope in 1667, and Gueffier's will was successfully contested by a nephew who claimed half; so the project lay dormant until Pope Clement XI Albani renewed interest in it. The Bourbon fleur-de-lys and Innocent XIII's eagle and crown are carefully balanced in the sculptural details. The solution is a gigantic inflation of some conventions of terraced garden stairs. The Spanish Steps, which Joseph de Lalande and Charles de Brosses noted were already in poor condition, have been restored several times, most recently in 1995. In the Piazza di Spagna at the base is the Early Baroque fountain called Fontana della Barcaccia ("Fountain of the Old Boat"), built in 1627-29 and often credited to Pietro Bernini, father of a more famous son, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who is recently said to have collaborated on the decoration. The elder Bernini had been the pope's architect for the Acqua Vergine, since 1623. According to an unlikely legend, Pope Urban VIII had the fountain installed after he had been impressed by a boat brought here by a flood of the Tiber river.
In the piazza, at the corner on the right as one begins to climb the steps, is the house where English poet John Keats lived and died in 1821; it is now a museum dedicated to his memory, full of memorabilia of the English Romantic generation. On the same right side stands the 15th century former cardinal Lorenzo Cybo de Mari's palace, now Ferrari di Valbona, a building altered in 1936 to designs by Marcello Piacentini, the main city planner during Fascism, with modern terraces perfectly in harmony with the surrounding baroque context.

ikeharel, Silvio1953, JFS, carlo62, agulberk, PaulVDV, baddori, angel66, jjcordier, lakshmip1949, bona has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

npecanhuk (53861) 2012-03-20 4:23

Ciao Valter!
One of the most beautiful spots in Rome!
A classical but always welcome picture of it!
Sharpness, exposure, colors, chosen pov, contrasts and composition are all excellent!
TFS - congrats,
Cheers,
Neyvan

berek (31903) 2012-03-20 4:37

a very beautiful historic architecture. really liked the vibrant atmosphere. successful to as framing. greetings. burak

lousat (57542) 2012-03-20 4:43

Ciao Valter,nella gallery sei circondato da una serie di foto,una peggio dell'altra..ehheeh...meno male che ci hai piazzato la tua per risollevare la qualita' del sito,davvero magnifica e perfetta sotto ogni termine di valutazione.Complimenti e buona serata,Luciano

dale54 (4918) 2012-03-20 5:21

valter hi,your capture of this scene is super!very good job all around!wonderfull POV too! have a great day! dr

Sergiom (39122) 2012-03-20 5:37

Bonjour Valter,

La place d'Espagne est magnifique et quand elle profite d'un ciel aussi beau et d'une aussi belle lumière , cela ajoute au moment. Je sais pas au niveau de la signature dans la photo.

Amicalement

Serge

ikeharel (37222) 2012-03-20 5:49

Ciao Valter,
Always crowded this famouse place, major attraction for tourists. Good photojob collected, sharpness on archi. details is super, and vivid contrast of colors.
Mi piacce questa imagina, Ciao.
Ike

Silvio1953 (98001) 2012-03-20 6:29

Ciao Valter, affollata come al solito, classica e sempre bella, splendida luce e fantastico cielo, bravo, ciao Silvio

aliabazari (10105) 2012-03-20 6:50

Ciao Walter
Per dimostrare la grande chiesa di Dio nel più alto dei luoghi hanno. Ben fatto.
Buon anno

Yiannis84 (2824) 2012-03-20 7:01

Ciao Valter..

Very impressive capture with a lot of colorful details..superb light and excellent shadow play..i love the sky color and the fantastic clarity..well composed!

Best regards..Yiannis

JFS (32053) 2012-03-20 7:07

Hello Valter,
Crystal clear image of Piazza di Spagna, lots of details and a great light and colors. A top class post card! Very interesting your note.

Cheers,
Juan

Afsanehbagheri (3206) 2012-03-20 7:43

سلام دوست من

تبریک خوب در محیط

بهترین ها

dta (51294) 2012-03-20 7:53

Ciao Valter ,
Excellent view of the crowdy stair , surrounded by splendid buildings , especially the church . like the light and the perfect exposure management .
Regards

mohammad_H (6574) 2012-03-20 8:27

سلام
Beautiful and magnificent eye. Blue sky and cloud spots have special effects to images. With clarity and appropriate staff have recorded it.
Have a nice evening

holmertz (26876) 2012-03-20 8:30

Helo Valter,
This is a well known view, but you have captured it with such fine colours and light and such lively crowds that it immediatelly attracted my eyes. A perfect postcard.
Kind regards,
Gert

sacimar (25957) 2012-03-20 8:57

Hello Valter,

good image of this famous place of Rome, I like the light , the day was beautiful, you captured perfectly a diary scene here, well done,

Best regards,

Sergio

sacavem (18566) 2012-03-20 10:07

Olá Valter,

Ottima la gestione della luce.
La presenza dei turisti anima bene la scena. Bella inquadratura frontale di Piazza Spagna.

Cumprimentos,
Filipe

Alfoja (672) 2012-03-20 10:54

Molto bella, quante sono le fotografie di questo luogo? Forse miliardi!
Ma un bravo fotografo riesce sempre a cogliere gli spunti giunti, catturando anche una luce fantastica.

Bravo Valter

Jeppo (17623) 2012-03-20 11:50

vacanze romane....baciate dal sole. un gelato gustato standosene seduto sui graditi.
questa é piazza di spagna

ciao
jeppo

PS: mi sa che a breve posto qualcosa di "imparentato" con uno dei tuoi ultimi scatti

Gigidusud (7956) 2012-03-20 15:32

Ciao Valter,
Bellissima Piazza di Spagna!Ottima luce e inquadratura.
Buona serata.
Ghislaine

carlo62 (12492) 2012-03-20 16:51

Ciao Valter
se uno cerca di immaginarsi Piazza di Spagna, questa è l'immagine che ha, assolata, bellissima e piena di gente.
Complimenti
Carlo

chrisvek (5431) 2012-03-20 17:24

Ciao Valter,

Very nice capture of daily life.Excellent POV.Perfect colours.TFS

Regards,
Chris

agulberk (3790) 2012-03-20 19:55

Hello Valter
Wonderful composition consist of beautiful sky with light spread of a thin white cloud,
historical and authentic buildings and crowded curious people.Excellent presentation with good perspective and light management to get sharpness,clarity, saturated colors.
Thanks for sharing and best regards.
Have a good week
Adann

PaulVDV (15017) 2012-03-20 23:11

Ciao Valter,
Very beautiful, colourful and atmospheric shot of the famous stairs and the church on top.
A well balanced picture with a good light and beautiful colours.
Best regards, Paul

baddori (18984) 2012-03-21 0:14

Valter
Una delle migliori foto di Trinità dei Monti.
Nitidezza e alta luce che disegna l'ambiente.
Il taglio alto fa risaltare i volumi (senza appiattirli)
Ottimo
GF

angel66 (1006) 2012-03-21 0:17

Hey Valter!
L'India sarà sicuramente bella da fotografare ma Roma non la batte nessuno! :) Che spettacolo! Bravo
Ciao
Giuliana

jjcordier (62280) 2012-03-21 2:36

Valter
Très bonne photo de cette Piazza di Spagna et de ses escaliers très fréquentés!Belle lumière et superbes couleurs.
Amicalement
JJ

lakshmip1949 (19110) 2012-03-21 3:09

Hello Valter,

What an amazing place. I see why so many people are flocking to this one. Lovely colors, architecture and sharpness. I like the white and yellow combination. The blue sky makes a good color contrast and background.

Lakshmi

Nicou (97543) 2012-03-21 3:19

Hlelo

fantastique cpatage et compo quel monde quelle fouleue sur ces escalier, quelle compo colorée avec cette église dans ce ciel ce deux clochers, superbe.

bravo et amitié

Nicou

lpi (4424) 2012-03-21 4:26

Ciao Valter!
La prise de vue sur la place d'Espagne est très bien réalisée!
La lumière, l'architecture, les couleurs sont superbes!
Malheureusement quand j'y suis allé il pleuvait !
Amicalement,
Lpi

bona (10132) 2012-03-21 7:07

Hi Valter,

what a beautiful place. I like a lot the architecture here and the many people in this stair. The note about the place is great, thanks.
I think you have to go there very early in the morning for a photo without people.
Good colors e sharpness.

Regards
Andre

siolaw (37568) 2012-03-22 0:54

Ciao Valter
Luce e colori eccellenti, ed un buon taglio della famosa piazza.
Le verticale sono ben controllate, senza distorsioni.
Un saluto
Laurent

rabdelnoor (3421) 2012-03-22 18:33

Hi Valter,
This is one of my favorite spots in Rome and you captured it very well, with beautiful colours and a great atmospehere. I can the light was not easy at this time of day, but you still got a pretty good result. Very nice.
Regards
Ricardo

siudzi (23837) 2012-03-24 7:32

Hi Valter,

Great shot of this well-known place in Rome. Like the way you captured this beautiful white church on the blue sky in the bg. People bring life into the place perfectly. Bravo!

Have a lovely weekend!
Malgorzata