Capitoline Museums

This cluster of art and archaeological museums in palace buildings atop Capitoline Hill is guarded by a statue of Marcus Aurelius on horseback – the one in the middle of the square is a copy – the original is kept inside, a rare survivor of the cull of Roman statues it was saved because it was suggested it could be Emperor Constantine. The line of popes who ordered the destruction of so many Roman statues also began the Capitoline’s collection with some bronzes in the 15th Century, but these were artifacts were quickly added to with jewels, coins and statues then medieval and Renaissance art.

Some of the most famous pieces in the collection are the bronze she-wolf nursing Romulus and Remus, a statue of Cupid and Psyche, a colossal statue of Oceanus – or parts thereof, Bernini’s Medusa and a remarkable collection of Greek and Etruscan vases.

The three palaces, worth visiting in their own right, are connected underground were began in the 12th Century but the last one wasn’t finished until the 17th.

Address: The Piazza del Campidoglio, Capitoline Hill