A New Discovery in Rome - Janiculum Hill

A visit to this hill, on the outskirts of Rome, has been on our list for a long time. From the top we had great views of the whole Eternal City with its many domes and bell towers.

We chose the perfect, sunny day to visit Janiculum Hill, or Gianicolo Hill. 

It was very peaceful and a refreshing change from the noisy bustling city.  

There are several monuments to Garibaldi and to the many fallen soldiers in the war of Italian independence, including one to Garibaldi's pistol-packing-baby-toting wife, Anita. 

The other reason for our field trip was to see Donato Bramante's "Tempieto" which is housed inside a church courtyard near Janiculum Hill.  This small temple was a unique Renaissance design for architect Bramante in1502. Circular structures were inventive in that era. What he learned he later applied to the work and design of the much, much larger Saint Peter's Basilica.  

Bramante died before the Basilica was completed but the design of the little Tempieto resembles the tall and massive Saint Peter's dome.