This is an aeriel shot of one of the most famous  urban spaces in the world , and arguably one of the most beautiful in the city of beauty…..Roma.  When we stayed in the Allbego Sole, we were just blocks from here.https://talesalongtheway.com/2013/08/12/albergo-sole-roma/  And spent lots of time at Navona.  It was built by Emperor Domitian in 86 AD  as an oval shaped stadium with a larger area than the Colosseum and used for festivals and sporting events.

In the very center of the space is the Fountain of the Four Rivers which was  designed and built by the genius of art, sculpture and architecture, Gian Lorenzo Bernini. (https://talesalongtheway.com/2013/09/01/two-italian-davids/).  The theme of the fountain is represented  in rivers on four continents in the world, the Nile representing Africa, the Ganges, Asia,  the Danube,Europe, and Rio d la Plata for the Americas.  It also represents world wide evangelism of the church.  The obelisk is not one of the ones brought to Roma from Egypt, but constructed in Roman times  of Egyptian granite originally placed in the Circus Maximus near the Via Appia.  The hieroglyphics  state that the obelisk  was made under Emperor Domitian.

Rome is full of fountains which were a  necessity for the people who lived in the high rise apartments long ago as a source of their water needs.  They were also lasting memorials of beauty for the papal ( pope) patrons. Oh yes , they are a delight for  the tourists’ eyes, ears, and touch on a hot Roman  day !

The man with his eyes covered represents Egypt which is still a rather hidden mystery to the Romans.

The man with the oar represents the Ganga which is a very navigable river.

This Is the Eternal City of Roma!