Piazza Colonna Square

Address: Piazza Colonna, 00186 Roma RM, Italy

Hours: Open 24 hours

Admission: Free (public square)

Piazza Colonna is a central square in Rome dominated by the Roman victory column erected in honour of Emperor Marcus Aurelius and by the late Renaissance and Baroque palaces that line the square. The column dates to the late 2nd century AD and is decorated with a spiralling relief depicting imperial military scenes.

Palazzo Chigi, a 17th-century palace on the piazza, is the formal seat of the Italian government’s executive office and faces the column. The square has long served as a civic focal point in the heart of Rome’s historic core.

The piazza stands on a long-used urban site in central Rome, between the Via del Corso and the areas around the Quirinal and the Pantheon, and is fully integrated into the city’s dense street grid.

• Column viewing tip: The Column of Marcus Aurelius has a spiral relief band depicting military campaigns and can be inspected from the surrounding square; photographs work best from the north side to capture the column against the palace background.

Piazza Colonna sits in central Rome on Via del Corso beside the Column of Marcus Aurelius. The piazza is a short walk (about 5-10 minutes) from Metro Line A stations Barberini or Spagna; several city buses run along Via del Corso and the adjacent streets, from which it is a brief walk to the square.

Because it is in the historic centre, driving is subject to ZTL restrictions; walking from the nearest metro exit is usually the simplest option.

• View the Column of Marcus Aurelius from the stretch of Via del Corso for the clearest, unobstructed perspective, especially early in the day before pedestrian and traffic peaks.
• Plan a quick walk around the square to see the façades of Palazzo Chigi and the entrances to nearby government buildings; the political architecture gives context most passing visitors miss.
• If you want a quieter experience, visit mid-morning on a weekday when office crowds are dispersed; weekends and lunch hours tend to be busiest.