Piazza Farnese

Piazza Farnese in rione Regola is dominated by one of Rome's greatest Renaissance palaces: Palazzo Farnese, begun in 1517 for Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (later Pope Paul III) by Antonio da Sangallo the Younger and completed after 1546 by Michelangelo. The square was laid out together with the palace, and in the 17th century received two fountains whose enormous basins are Egyptian granite tubs lifted from the ancient Baths of Caracalla - Farnese gifts to the building. Since 1874 the palace has housed the French embassy to Italy; France pays a symbolic one euro every nine years in rent. The square is the calm counterpart to nearby Campo de Fiori: you can walk around the antique basins, study Michelangelo's severe cornice, and sit at one of the few terrace cafes along the edge.