Fontana dei Mori, Piazza Matteotti
Even when it's not spouting wine, the 17th-century Fontana dei Mori is the dramatic heart of Marino's main square — a layered travertine composition of tritons, Moorish figures and papal heraldry that would look at home in Rome itself. The piazza around it is lined with ochre palazzi and pavement cafés that invite a long, slow espresso.
The Fountain's History
Commissioned in the early 1600s and attributed to the workshop of Gian Lorenzo Bernini's circle, the fountain celebrates the victory at Lepanto in which the Colonna family — longtime lords of Marino — played a decisive role. The 'Mori' (Moors) depicted as defeated figures at the base are a direct reference to the Ottoman fleet.
The fountain was restored in the 1990s and the stonework is crisp and photogenic; the best light falls on it in the late afternoon when the sun drops behind the western ridge and catches the water spray in golden tones.
The Piazza as Living Room
Piazza Matteotti doubles as Marino's communal living room: pensioners play cards under the arcades of the Palazzo Colonna, children chase pigeons around the fountain basin, and on weekend evenings the passeggiata fills the square with dressed-up locals.
The Collegiata di San Barnaba, just off the piazza, is worth a quick look inside for its 16th-century frescoes and the underground Cripta dei Papi — a subterranean corridor with early Christian inscriptions.
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