写真

This sculpture is part of a well-known group of famous fountains, located in the center of the double staircase leading to the Palazzo Senatorio, in the Piazza del Campidoglio, the famous square on the Capitoline designed by Michelangelo.

The fountains depict the river gods Tiber and the Nile river, seen here, along with the goddess Minerva, the protector deity of Rome and the goddess of wisdom. The Tiber sculpture once actually represented the river Tigris, but the sculpture was modified (the tiger near the main figure is now a wolf rather than a tiger). Both were created in the first century AD, so they are quite ancient. They were found among the ruins of the Baths of Constantine and placed here.