The Legends of Rome: Walking Tour of the Velabrum

Rome is full of incredible mysteries, but to be able to see with your very eyes the exact spot where it was born is certainly something else. It is here, in Velabrum that we explore the amazing combination of beauty, history, and myth that lives in the shadow of the renowned Bocca della Verità. Follow your expert local guide and discover local traditions, as well as some sayings that are still used today; formulae for good luck that the daring can try to conjure to tempt fate. You also get to step into ancient churches, arches, and temples and let them reveal their treasured stories and timeless secrets.

The tour begins from Piazza Bocca della Verità, from the legendary mask, which was once a wellhead. Find out why it is feared to this day, and then walk on to see the great four-sided arch known as the Arch of Janus. Then, check out the 1,000-year-old church of San Giorgio in Velabro, next to which stands the richly decorated Arch of the Argentari.

Stroll along Via di San Giovanni Decollato and its church, until you arrive at Piazza della Consolazione, where the Tarpeian Rock towers. Continue on to the sacred area of S.Omobono (where you will learn about a particular vulgar saying!), before heading to the Church of San Nicola in Carcere, whose edifice stands imprisoned among the ruins of three different Roman temples. This is where the tour ends, and you'll find yourself right back at the starting point– the circle in Piazza Bocca della Verità, where you can see the Foro Olitorio and the Foro Boario, with whose temples are well preserved until today.