Exactly in front of the entrance of the Basilica of Maria in Domnica we see a curious fountain that gives the name to the whole street: Navicella! Even today this small and charming monument is shrouded in mystery, so much that it is a plesure for me to give you some information about one of the strangest fountains of Rome. First of all let me remind you that we are at the Caelian Hill, one of the most historical areas of the Eternal City having unknown origins. But trust, for a local tour guide like me it is always a great pleasure to come here, in the city centre of Rome but, at the same time, out of the daily chaos. To walk here, and to stop in front of the Navicella, will make you quiet and calm!

First of all it is certain that a stone and travertine fountain, having those unusual shape, existed in roman times. Probably, in the course of the centuries and during the Middle Ages, the fountain was abandoned, no longer connected to the aqueducts, vandalized or who knows what else. What we know is that, in order to preserve the memory, the Pope Leo X ordered the complete reconstruction, taking advantage of what little was left. The projects were realized by Sansovino, a very active artist of the beginning of the XVI century, when the Medici Pope reigned over Rome. Just to have an idea Sansovino was the architect who restored, under the same pontiff, the Basilica of Santa Maria in Domnica. But there is also something more about the nice Navicella.

It seems that initially this stone structure was not a fountain, and the first doubts came out since its finding. Imagine how it was found basically at the Colosseum. At this point begins the first discussions about who, actually, had wanted to make a small jail roman. A warning? A gift? A simple decoration? Probably, this fountain is an ex-voto, that is an object offered to a deity as thanksgiving. Right there, where today stands the Basilica of Santa Maria in Domnica, there were the lodgings of the sailors of the fleet of Capo Miseno, which took up the time spent in Rome (especially in the winter, when navigation by sea was very risky), to tinker with the velarium, the roof of the old Coliseum, which was a huge sail pulled and pushed during the sunny days to give shade to the spectators.

So maybe the sailors paid homage especially a deity: Isis, goddess of egyptian origins, much loved by the Romans, who was regarded as the protectress of navigation. In short, this is the theory that goes for more. According to others, the Navicella was always an ex-voto, but it was desired by some sailors who passed through Rome. We will never know perhaps, but what we do know is that this small ship was powered with the water, thus becoming a true fountain, only in 1931. It was in that year that the Navicella was connected to an aqueduct. Not only that because during the same year there was another restoration. During it the course of the bow of the ship was turn to the other side comparing the original one, and it is the reason why the Navicella today is pointing the Colosseum. It is interesting to note, therefore, that still today we do not know well because this ship makes a fine show of himself on the slopes of the Caelian hill. One thing is certain: at times, the beauty and the culture should not have monumental forms!