The 10 most famous statues in Rome

In previous instalments of this blog we learned more about the “talking statues” of Rome or the return of one of the city’s most important collection of sculptures.

However, we realized that we never wrote anything about Rome’s most important statues! You may be drawn to the city for its beautiful fountains, the Colosseum or the piazzas, but some of the sculptures you can see in the city are just as important and iconic. These are symbols of a glorious past and we thought long and hard about picking just 10 of them – there are so many wonderful works in our museums and we can’t possibly list them all… But we tried! Oh, did we try!

Laocoön and His Sons at the Vatican Museums

Famously, this statue was found on the Oppian Hill in 1506 and its unhearting was witnessed by none other than Michelangelo Buonarroti. A Greek work, considered the copy of a long-lost bronze original, it was possibly the property of emperor Titus – but with the Oppian Hill so crowded with imperial palaces, it is still hard to tell!

The Capitoline Wolf at the Capitoline Museums

The museums at the top of the Capitoline Hill are mostly ignored by the large majority of tourists. Include this statue as one of the reasons to go: we’re talking about the very symbol of Rome, reproduced on countless objects and souvenirs!

Historically considered to be the finest example of Etruscan sculpture, the she-wolf has been recently dated as manufactured in the early Middle Ages – but it’s a mystery, really, with new clues added every passing year. If you’re in a rush, you can see a smaller copy of the statue at the entrance of the city council offices, on one side of Piazza del Campidoglio.

The Marcus Aurelius at the Capitoline Museums

Another statue you can see for free right on the Capitoline Hill if you don’t have the time to visit the museums there. It is a stroke of luck that this equestrian sculpture got to us at all: it is known that starting with the late Roman empire, bronze works were melted to be recycled as weapons or coins. Part of the reason why this Marcus Aurelius survived is that he was mis-identified with Christian emperor Constantine, thus ending up being considered somewhat holy.

The Boxer at Rest at Palazzo Massimo alle Terme

It’s easy to leave behind the massive square at Termini without a second thought – it’s noisy, it’s chaotic, and there’s quite a few unsavoury types milling around. What most visitors ignore, though, is that the very same piazza is the home to some of Rome’s most beautiful museums: two branches of the National Roman Museum are here. The one called Palazzo Massimo alle Terme (because of its vicinity to the ancient Terme – baths – of Diocletian) is where you can see this amazing Greek bronze, that could very well be the portrait of famous boxer Theogenes.

Apollo and Daphne at the Borghese Gallery (Galleria Borghese)

Rome is not just Roman & Greek statues, and the Borghese Gallery is one of the places where you can appreciate more modern marble works. This one is Bernini’s most famous, sculpted when the Baroque era was in full swing, and brilliantly engineered like a “moving” story: walk slowly around this masterpiece to see Daphne turn into a tree literally in front of you!

Pauline Bonaparte as Venus Victrix at the Borghese Gallery

While you’re visiting the Galleria Borghese, don’t forget to spend a little time with the museum’s very own star: this white marble portrait of Pauline Bonaparte, Napoleon’s sister, who married into the Borghese family and posed as Venus (the Borgheses claimed to descend from the goddess herself!).

The Moses in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli

For many, the obvious choice when thinking of Michelangelo statues would be the Pietà in St. Peter’s Basilica, but when making this list we went with a work housed in a church rarely mobbed by masses of tourists, in the heart of the Monti district. It will feel like a lovely discovery for some of those who only come to Rome to check Vatican and Colosseum-shaped boxes!

The Angel of Grief at the Non catholic cemetery of Rome

We talked about the Non catholic cemetery here, describing how some of Rome’s masterpieces are really not in museums. Case in point: this social media-popular 1894 statue by William Wetmore Story!

The Giordano Bruno statue in Campo de’ Fiori

When art gets political: this statue representing the great philosopher Giordano Bruno was placed in the very same spot where he was burned alive for heresy in the year 1600. Ettore Ferrari, who created it, was actively promoting the unification of Italy against the wishes of the Vatican and so it shouldn’t be surprising that the statue turns his back to St. Peter’s dome – the symbol of the very people who executed Bruno.

Sarcophagus of the Spouses at the ETRU Museum

For our last recommendation we’re going back to the start – or, more precisely, to pre-Roman times. This statue is really the lid of a coffin and represents a husband and wife who lived around the year 500 BCE in the Banditaccia necropolis of Cerveteri, north of Rome. This painted terracotta is not only stunning, but reveals many interesting factoids about the mysterious civilization that was conquered by the Romans. Also, a visit to the museum where this masterpiece is at is one of our must-dos in the city!

A note: how to access museums in Rome during the Coronavirus emergency

Looking for a city break? Rome is certainly one of the safest destinations at this time, but sometimes details such as entrances to the local museums get overlooked. Don’t risk it, though!

Museums in Italy now ask to pre-book tickets in advance. It doesn’t have to be way ahead of time, but with some of the most popular museums a little caution is advised: they could go sold out. Some establishments have a mandatory booking policy in place anyway: think the Borghese Gallery, the Mausoleum of Augustus, the Domus Aurea. For all of them, regardless of their policies, there is only a limited amount of tickets available everyday. Avoid the disappointment and plan ahead!

Also worth noting: accessing museums is allowed with a FFP2 (N95 or KN95) mask, and you will be ask to exhibit your vaccine certificate, demonstrating a full vaccine cycle in the last 6 months. For more information, check the requirements at your local embassy’s official website – they are typically the online resources that update these kinds of rules in your local language.