Jewish Quarter and Surroundings and Isola Tiberina
In contrast, walk along Via Arenula across the river to the Jewish Quarter. It is easy to get lost in a tangle of narrow streets and alleys, which is falling into decline, but you can also inhale the atmosphere of bygone eras with whole gulps. The Jewish population lived in Rome from the early years of the empire and after Rome seized the colonies in the Middle East, it reached the number of approx.. 40000. Uprisings in the colonies provided an excuse to impose taxes on Jews and to conduct a special census, but they were never a specially persecuted group. They were effectively confined in the ghetto only in the mid-16th century., when Pope Paul IV introduced a series of drastic laws, which forced Jews to live in one of the wretched districts of Rome; the district was surrounded by a wall and all Jews were to wear yellow hats and scarves (a chilling harbinger of future events).
The main artery of the Jewish quarter is via Portico d'Ottavia, and the main historic building is a huge nineteenth-century synagogue on the river. It houses a permanent exhibition devoted to the Jewish community of Rome. The Fontana delle Tartarughe is also worth a look, that is, the "turtle fountain" in the tiny Piazza Mattei, beautiful 16th-century fountain, perhaps restored by Bernini.
Via Portica d’Ottavia prowadzi do Portico d’Ottavia, the not very well preserved gate from the 2nd century. p.n.e., rebuilt by August and dedicated to St. 23 r. BC. his sister. The gate was the entrance to the Teatro di Marcelo, which is now in ruins, but over the years it has served different purposes: erected by Julius Caesar, completed by August, w IV w. partially demolished for the construction of Ponte Cestio and restored only in the Middle Ages - it was a fortified palace of various rulers, including the Orsini family.
Between the theater and the river there is a wide area of Piazza della Bocca Verita, where are two of the better-preserved Roman temples: - The Temple of Fortune Virilis and the round Temple of Vesta, both from the end of the 2nd century. BC. You can't go inside. The buildings look a bit neglected while lying in the center of a busy square, and are beautiful examples of religious buildings from the republican era. At that, the Temple of Vesta, whatever you say about her, it is considered to be the oldest marble structure in the city. More interesting is the church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin at the back of the square (codz. 9.00-12.00 i 15.00-17.00), a typical Roman medieval basilica with a huge marble altar and ambulatory, and a colorful one, ingenious mosaic in the style of Kosmatów, one of the prettiest in Rome. The name of the square comes from Bocca di Verita, that is, located in the portico of the "Mouth of Truth". It is an antique gutter outlet cover, shaped like a huge face, which in the Middle Ages allegedly devoured everyone's hand, who missed the truth. Behind the square on the Tiber are more ancient ruins, inter alia Ponte Rotto (Broken Bridge), remnants of the first stone bridge across the river, built in 179-142 p.n.e., which collapsed at the end of the 16th century.
Further down the Ponte Fabricio River, leading to Isola Tiberina, had more luck - built in 62 r. BC. it is the only old Roman bridge, which survived in its original state without the help of restorers. (Ponte Cestio on the other side of the island has been partially rebuilt in the last century). The island itself is an oasis of peace in the city center, and when crossing the river to Trastevere, it is worth visiting the 10th-century church of St.. Bartholomew (San Bartolomeo).