La Barcaccia - Stranded at the Foot of the Spanish Steps

In Piazza di Spagna, right at the foot of the Spanish Steps, lazily lying in the middle of the beautiful square and somewhat separating the flow of people coming from the shopping street Via (dei) Condotti and the ones coming down from the steps, there is an unusual sculpture of a boat: not a special nor especially beautiful boat, just one of those boats used to cruise on the river.


The credit for this artwork, completed in 1610, goes once again to the great sculptor G. L. Bernini, who was hired by the reigning Pope Urbano VIII Barberini (in the picture in the front part of the boat it's visible the Shield of the Barberini family, with the 3 Bees, with the Triregnum (Papal crown) and the crossed keys, symbol of Papal dignity). The Pope wanted to provide the area with a new fountain, after the expansion of the Vergine Aqueduct, and no location could be better than that one, since it was right on the water pipelines. In fact, the nearby street "Via dei Condotti" translates exactly as "Pipeline street".


Bernini once again starts his work wanting to provide the city with another demonstration of his genius and creativity, and, remembering that in the previous disastrous flood of 1598, one of the many that scourged Rome until the construction of the walls along the Tiber in 19th century, a river boat was carried all the way there by the flood, and when the water retreated, the boat remained there. Roman people immediately called the sculpture "La Barcaccia" ("The Bad Boat") and started loving this fountain remembering the times when Rome was often victim of floods.
Bernini (Penguin Art and Architecture)