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Less Well-Known SightsDomus Aurea | Vatican Excavations | Borghese Gallery | Moses Ranking
the Top Attractions | Suggested
Itineraries Complete Index of Articles on Rome/Italy A reminder: operating hours for most of these attractions may be found at Rome Visiting Hours.
The builder of the Palazzina Borghese, Cardinal Scipione Borghese built this 'suburban villa' for entertaining, and at the same time amassed one of the world's greatest private collections of sculptures and paintings, much given to the the Louvre at the time of Napoleon. The remains are nonetheless one of Rome's finest patrician collections. The principal works include the notorious (at the time) nearly-nude sculpture of Pauline Borghese (Napoleon's sister), Bernini's David, and Daphne and Apollo, Raphael's Deposition and other works by Titian, Bellini, del Sarto, Perugino and Caravaggio. This remains a 'hot ticket' in town. Reservations aren't mandatory, but strongly recommended. (Only 300 visitors at a time are permitted.) Tours start every two hours. Go to the museum's website and you will find a link to reserve. You can also reserve by phone (011 39 06 32810) or fax (011 39 06 326 51329). An English speaker should be available. Price is ITL10,000 plus ITL2,000 for the reservation. Guided tours in English available on request at certain times through 011 39 06 8555952 for a cost of ITL6,000. (No credit cards for either.) Show up an hour before your appointed time at the desk in the basement of the museum; you'll need your reservation number to claim your tickets. You'll be allowed two hours in the galleries.
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Reservations required and you can book at 011-39-06-4815576 or 3974907. Groups are limited to just 25 people for each of the 45-minute tours; three groups may be going at the same time. Tickets cost Lit.10,000 plus a 2,000 booking fee.
A bit difficult to find, it's on Piazza San Pietro in Vincoli. On foot reached most easily from via Cavour. There is a flight of stairs on your right coming from the Forum about three+ blocks up from via dei Fori Imperiale. The stairs are just to the north of via degli Annabaldi. Another access is from Annabaldi which runs from the right side of the Colosseo Metro station. Cavour is the nearest Metro stop to the church. The church was thorougly renovated for the Jubilee and shines more brightly than ever and "The Moses Project" is restoring the statue for the first time.
Now it has become the Torre Argentina Cats of Rome Sanctuary, the romping grounds for 300 abandoned house cats who are cared for by a multinational group of volunteers. Whether or not you're a cat fancier you'll enjoy a tour of the underground shelter that is an excavation of one of the temples. Here's your chance to explore what we've missed!
Ranking
the Top Attractions | Suggested
Itineraries Vatican | Ancient Rome
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Gehrlein Traveling
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he 
hile you're in the Villa Borghese area consider
visiting the Villa Giulia, the city's fine collection of
Etruscan artifacts. Relatively little is known of the civilization which pre-dates the
Roman. Much of Rome's traditions and culture appear to stem from the Etruscans. You'll
find the museum just outside the northeast corner of the park. It's a rewarding visit.
ne of the all-time highlights of
our visits was a visit to the Necropolis beneath St. Peter's.
St. Peter was buried in a cemetery. When Constantine built the church in his honor and
name it was set above the spot where he was thought to be buried, covering the cemeteries
in the area. 
round the corner from the baths facing
Piazza Cinquecento you'll find the National Museum of the Baths. Closed for several years,
it's now reopened with a collection of the best of the ancient statuary found in the city.
omus Aurea (Nero's Golden House) had been closed
for 18 years. A few dozen of the more than 150 rooms were in renovation over the last five
years of the 20th century at a cost of 5 billion (yes, billion) Italian lire. We last saw
it more than 20 years ago in its ruined state. This is a must see.
Dateline: Rome, May 5, 2001
an Clemente - two layers of
Christian churches, built on the remains of an old house used for early Christian worship
plus Mithraic cult worship site - all layers still visible.
ust down the road from the foot of the Campidoglio, the 'Mouth of Truth' at Santa Maria in Cosmedin is of interest, as are
the nearby temples, square arch (Arch of Janus) and the Theater of Marcellus. 
emains of Republican Era temples
are found at the bus terminal at Largo Torre Argentina on via Vittorio Emmanuele II.
This area has always fascinated us, but we've never had a chance to explore it.
inally, what is most
less well-known in Rome are the underground remains. Somewhat off the beaten track, and
often only for visitors with no sense of claustrophobia, much of Rome's remains are out of
sight ... perhaps more in total than remain above ground. Here's a brief introduction to 