TREVI FOUNTAIN
On our first full day in Rome, we started off with an amazing walking tour of the city! Our guide was great and we learned about the Pantheon, ancient Roman history and one very interesting fountain. It is called Trevi Fountain. Trevi means “three streets” in Italian. Tres is three and via is street, so if you combine them, Trevi! This fountain is beautiful, but it also has an interesting background.
Basically, the whole Roman army left to try and conquer some other place. It was scorching hot out, and after only fifteen miles of walking, they ran out of water and they were all dying of dehydration.They started to retreat when a little girl came up to them and led them to a fresh water spring. They were so busy lapping up water that the girl left before they could thank her. They walked all the way back home before they realized this! So, the head of the army, Marcus Agrippa, walked back with his army to the spring to see if they could find the little girl, but they never did. So instead of thanking her in person, they made a modest little fountain for her.
Trevi Fountain is more than just a token of gratitude for the little girl; it holds a lot of symbolism for other gods, goddesses, and Titans. The four statues near the top of the fountain represent the abundance that water brings. This woman represents the abundance of fruit, and is holding a cornucopia. Next to her is the fertility of crops holding some wheat. The woman next to her resembles the products of autumn so she is holding a cup of grapes. And finally the woman on the end represents the joy of prairies and gardens, so she is covered in flowers. Right below these women are two reliefs telling the stories of the fountain: the little girl who brought them to the spring, and the construction of this fountain by Marcus Agrippa. At the bottom of the fountain is Oceanus, a Titan and god of the sea. He is being pulled in a seashell carriage by two mermen. The titan to his right to him represents the calmness and tranquility of the sea, and the one on his left is the harshness and roughness of the sea.
We all loved our walking tour and the fountain was beautiful. I love hearing stories like these, because it gives more meaning to things. And, because of an old legend involving Ancient Roman soldiers, we all threw one coin in, which means I will come back to Rome. Two coins mean you will fall in love here, three means you will get married here and four means you will get divorced here.
I am already in love with Italy!
El Fin!