Ahead of the Jubilee of 2025, Rome has undergone months of maintenance and contracts to polish its most historic and important buildings. Of course, these months brought shock and frustration for tourists who couldn’t enjoy much of the artistic treasures of the capital. But now, the restoration of the Fountain of the Four Rivers, among others, has been completed.
The restoration of the Fountain of the Four Rivers
The maintenance work was necessary to clean the surface of the sculptures and the basin area. This included mechanical cleaning with a bactericidal action, disinfection and pest control, as well as the application of protective materials to shield the fountain from wear and weather damage. Additionally, since the 1980s, the marble statue of the Danube River had been broken and missing a finger—an opportunity to reconstruct the missing portion and return the Fountain of the Four Rivers to its former glory.
The celebrations also include those for two other important fountains in the capital: the Fountain of the Moor and the Fountain of Neptune. Seven months of work were required for the fountain in Piazza Navona, with a total cost of 309,000 euros, but they were essential to restore the glory of the city’s second most famous fountain.
Historic, beautiful, and striking, the fountain was commissioned by Pope Innocent X to Gian Lorenzo Bernini. It depicts four colossal nude marble figures representing the rivers of the four continents known at the time: the Nile, the Danube, the Ganges, and the Rio de la Plata.
The fountain’s reopening to the public took place in the afternoon of December 19th. The mayor of Rome, Roberto Gualtieri, celebrated with these words:
“With this inauguration, we have completed the restoration of the fountains in the square. After the handover of the first two, today we concluded the restoration of the Fountain of the Four Rivers, an important restoration that brings back the splendor of this Baroque masterpiece created by Bernini and commissioned by Pope Innocent X Pamphilj, who wanted this fountain for the Jubilee of 1650, though it was, of course, inaugurated in 1651. This is, indeed, a commemorative moment for works created for the Jubilee.”
