Rome is full of mysteries, but actually seeing with your own eyes the exact spot where it was born is certainly an incredible experience.
Our tour of Velabro is a journey back in time from around 3000 years ago to the last century, through the places and stories that marked the birth of Italy’s capital city.
The valley from the Roman Forum to the Tiber is said to have often been submerged by the waters of the river and to have become a marshy area over time. The word ‘velus’, meaning ‘marsh’ in Latin and then changed to ‘velabrum’, was used to describe the peculiarity of this area.
The main feature of the valley is that it is considered the area where brothers Romulus and Remus, founders of ancient Rome, were found in a basket along the river. Legend has it that they were found by a she-wolf who took them in and looked after them.
A metaphorical reading of the tradition holds that it was not an animal, but a poor courtesan named ‘Acca Larentia’ who apparently frequented the place to make a living.
Rome is full of wonderful monuments that guard its millenary history: it is an inexhaustible source of legends that remain unknown to most even today.
Velabro is a small area of the city that represents a concentration of beauty, history and myths, located in the shadow of the famous Mouth of Truth.
During the tour we will not only discover the architectural and monumental beauty of this corner of the capital, but also understand the origins of certain customs and idioms of the past.
Starting from Piazza Bocca della Verità, our tour passes first by the Church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, a rare and magnificent example of medieval architecture, built in the 7th century on the remains of ancient buildings on the edge of the Forum Boarium, the ancient food market near the Tiber.
We will start our tour by admiring the Mouth of Truth, the legendary marble mask that was once the cover of a well: we will discover why it is still so feared today! Since 1632 it has stood on the wall of the pronaos (the space between the cell and the columns in front) of the Church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin and is considered a must-see for anyone visiting Rome.
Despite its ‘past life’, the Mouth of Truth was also a major player in the world of cinema during the last century! Perhaps not everyone knows that during the filming of the 1953 movie ‘Roman Holiday’ this place was the stage for one of the most successful improvised scare scenes in the world of cinema, contributing in no small part to its great success!
We will continue our visit towards the four-sided arch known as the ‘Arch of Janus’, which will take us inside the thousand-year-old Church of San Giorgio in Velabro. The figure after whom the church is named, St George of Cappadocia, was a martyr of the East and one of the most revered saints in the world. Among the many legends about him, the most popular is that he killed a dragon and saved a princess.
Next to the church is the beautifully decorated Arcus Argentariorum. A magic formula is linked to this arch and, if pronounced in its presence, it could make you rich!
Walking along Via di San Giovanni Decollato, past the church of the same name, you will reach Piazza della Consolazione. There we will see the Tarpeian Rock, a rock wall on the south side of the Capitol, from which people who were considered traitors and therefore sentenced to death were thrown.
We continue on to the Sacred Area of San Omobono, and then to the Church of San Nicola in Carcere, whose structure is enclosed within the ruins of three different Roman temples.
Finally, the ‘magic circle’ ends where it all began: in Piazza Bocca della Verità!
You will have the chance to admire the Forum Holitorium and Forum Boarium and learn why the two temples have been preserved in pristine condition until now.
Want to learn more about magical and mysterious rituals? All you have to do is make your reservation and join us for the next tour to the Velabro Valley!
Highlights:
– Piazza Bocca della Verità
– Arch of Janus
– Church of San Giorgio in Velabro
– Arcus Argentariorum
– Tarpeian Rock
– Area of S. Omobono
– Church of San Nicola in Carcere
– Forum Holitorium
– Forum Boarium
