Strawberries at Campo de' Fiori
by Eric Tressler
Title
Strawberries at Campo de' Fiori
Artist
Eric Tressler
Medium
Photograph
Description
These girls were caught unaware as they enjoy spring strawberries in the market at Campo de' Fiori.
From Wikipedia: Campo de' Fiori has never been architecturally formalized. The square has always remained a focus for commercial and street culture: the surrounding streets are named for trades. Via dei Balestrari (crossbow-makers), Via dei Baullari (coffer-makers), Via dei Cappellari (hat-makers), Via dei Chiavari (key-makers) and Via dei Giubbonari (tailors). With new access streets installed by Sixtus IV, Via Florea and Via Pellegrino, the square became a part of the Via papale ("Pope's road"), the street linking Basilica of St. John Lateran and the Vatican and run through by the Pope after his election during the so called "Cavalcata del possesso", when he reached the lateran from the Vatican to take possession of the city. This brought wealth to the area: A flourishing horse market took place twice a week (Monday and Saturday) and a lot of inns, hotels and shops came to be situated in Campo de' Fiori. The most famous of them, the "Taverna della Vacca" ("cow's Inn") still stands at the south west corner of the square, at the begin of Via de' Cappellari, and belonged to Vannozza dei Cattanei, the most famous lover of Alexander VI Borgia, whose family seal is still on display on the house facade.
Campo de' Fiori in the 1740s, etching by Giuseppe Vasi.
Executions used to be held publicly in Campo de' Fiori. Here, on 17 February 1600, the philosopher Giordano Bruno was burnt alive for heresy, and all of his works were placed on the Index of Forbidden Books by the Holy Office. In 1887 Ettore Ferrari dedicated a monument to him on the exact spot of his death: He stands defiantly facing the Vatican, reinterpreted in the first days of a reunited Italy as a martyr to freedom of thought. The inscription on the base recites:
A BRUNO - IL SECOLO DA LUI DIVINATO - QUI DOVE IL ROGO ARSE
(English: To Bruno - the century predicted by him - here where the fire burned)
The body of theologian and scientist Marco Antonio de Dominis was also burned in this square, in 1624.
The demolition of a block of housing in 1858 enlarged Campo de' Fiori, and since 1869 a daily vegetable and fish market has been held there, which before took place every morning in piazza Navona. The ancient fountain known as la Terrina (the "soupbowl") that once watered cattle, was resited in 1889, and replaced with a copy: This now keeps flowers fresh. Its inscription: FA DEL BEN E LASSA DIRE ("Do the good and let them talk") suits the gossipy nature of the marketplace. In the afternoons, local games of football give way to set-ups for outdoor cafes.
At night, Campo de' Fiori is a meeting place for tourists and young people coming from the whole city.
Uploaded
June 24th, 2013
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