Testaccio
Testaccio | |
|---|---|
Rioneof Rome | |
 | |
 Seal | |
 Position of therionewithin the center of the city | |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Lazio |
| Province | Rome |
| Comune | Rome |
| Demonym | Testaccini |
| Time zone | UTC+1(CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2(CEST) |
Testaccio(Italian:[teˈstattʃo]) is the 20thrioneofRome,Italy, identified by the initialsR. XX,deriving its name fromMonte Testaccio.It is located within theMunicipio I.Its coat of arms depicts anamphora,referencing to the broken vessels that Monte Testaccio is made of.
History
[edit]In antiquity, much of theTibertrade took place here, and the remains of brokenclayvessels (amphorae) were stacked creating the artificial Testaccio hill, which today is a source of much archaeological evidence as to the history of ancient everyday Roman life.
Until the urban recovery that took place after 1870, which destined a huge area to industrial and manufacturing purposes, the borough was chiefly inhabited by poor farmers and shepherds, it was vulnerable to the Tiber floods and infested bymalaria.The zone between Monte Testaccio and the city walls (Prati di Testaccio) was public and commonly used by the citizens as a recreation ground, traditional destination of holiday trips and of the typicalottobrate,hence the nameprati del popolo romano(lit. 'Rome people's meadows').
The portion of therione,inside theAurelian Walls,is born as a residential extension of the productive area, housing the laborers of the several industries that arose at the end of 19th century by the side ofVia Ostiense.The first town plan, in 1873, designated the area for the industrial expansion of Rome because of the level terrain and of the several communication routes with the city, such asVia Ostiense,the river and the new railway.
Albeit until 1921 therionewas administratively a portion ofRipa,Testaccio has always had a strong identity, even if it had often a bad reputation, especially due to the countless traffics that took place in the harbor. In 1884 an inquiry launched by the municipality bestowed on Testaccio the national record in alcohol usage, while between the 1980s and the 90s it was the stronghold of the so-calledTestaccini,a branch of theBanda della Magliana.
Testaccio is considered the cradle ofA.S. Roma,as theCampo Testacciohas been the home stadium of the football club between 1929 and 1940.
In modern times, the area became a center of activity for butchers. Testaccio was one of Rome's traditional working-class neighbourhoods, but the recent process ofgentrificationhas made it increasingly attractive to tourists.[1]The neighbourhood is home to several of Rome's culinary highlights. Testaccio's reputation among tourists is expanding.[2]
Geography
[edit]Initially a part ofRipa,therionewas established in 1921.
Testaccio has two principal squares:
- Piazza Testaccio,the core of therione,location of the local market until 2012, when it was moved to Via Luigi Galvani;
- Piazza Santa Maria Liberatrice,the social kernel of the borough, where the church and the theatre are: the square has an ample park in the middle, which is named after the Di Consiglio family, fallen in theArdeatine massacre.
Boundaries
[edit]Eastward, therioneis separated fromSan Saba(R. XXI) by the portion of Via Marmorata between Piazzale Ostiense and Largo Manlio Gelsomini, while the boundary withRipa(R. XII) is marked by the remaining stretch of Via Marmorata, up to Piazza dell'Emporio.
To the west and to the north, Testaccio borders withquartierePortuense(Q. XI), from which it is separated by the stretch of the RiverTiberbetweenPonte Sublicioand Ponte San Paolo.
Southward, therioneborders withquartiereOstiense(Q. X): the border is defined by theAurelian Wallsbeside Viale del Campo Boario, between Ponte San Paolo and Piazzale Ostiense.
Odonymy
[edit]Roads and squares of Testaccio are mostly named after explorers, scientists and engineers. Odonyms of therionecan be categorised as follows:
- Local names,such asLungotevere Testaccio,Via Marmorata (named after the countless marbles and stones arriving at the harbour in the past centuries), Via Caio Cestio (named after the Roman magistrate for whom thenamesake pyramidwas built) and Piazza dell'Emporio (after theEmporium);
- Explorers and seamen,e.g.Ludovico di Vartemà,Orazio Antinori,Gustavo Bianchi, Antonio Cecchi,Romolo Gessi,Pietro Querini,Amerigo Vespucci;
- Entrepreneurs and ship owners,e.g.Florio,Ginori andRaffaele Rubattino;
- Scientists and engineers,likeGiovanni Branca,Galileo Ferraris,Beniamino Franklin,Luigi Galvani,Alessandro Volta,Nicola Zabaglia;
- Typographers,such asGiovanni Battista BodoniandAldo Manuzio;
- Artists,e.g.Luca della Robbia,Paolo Caselli,Lorenzo Ghiberti,Mastro GiorgioandOttavio Leoni;
- Roman dialect poets,e.g. Orazio Giustiniani.
Places of interest
[edit]Palaces and other buildings
[edit]- Ex Mattatoio
- Porta San Paolo
Archaeological sites
[edit]Churches and religious features
[edit]- Santa Maria Liberatrice
- Santa Maria della Divina Provvidenza
- Protestant Cemetery
Other
[edit]Education
[edit]Testaccio has a public library, named afterEnzo Tortora,and abiblioteca federata,Biblioteca della Scuola popolare di musica Testaccio.[3]
Famous residents
[edit]- Elsa Morante,writer
- Luigi Di Biagio,Serie Afootballer
- Claudio Ranieri,Series Acoach
- Enrico Letta,Italian politician
- Giuliano Ferrara,journalist and opinion maker
- Rachel Roddy, writer[4]
References
[edit]- ^Firpo, Erica (28 March 2013)."Why You Should Visit Rome's Hot Testaccio Neighborhood".Forbes Travel Guide.Retrieved18 January2014.
- ^Shteyngart, Gary."Hidden Rome".Travel and Leisure. Archived fromthe originalon 7 May 2018.Retrieved2 April2023.
- ^"Biblioteche ed i Centri specializzati."City of Rome. Retrieved September 8, 2012.
- ^"Rachel roddy + evan kleiman {rome}".13 September 2017.
External links
[edit]
Aventino and Testacciotravel guide from Wikivoyage
41°52′34″N12°28′30″E/ 41.87611°N 12.47500°E
