Giardini Vaticani

The Vatican Gardens extend from south to north-west of the Vatican State and represents the resting place of the Pope from 1279 when, within the walls, were planted an orchard, a lawn and a real garden. The period of greatest architectural development of the Gardens is between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when here worked Donato Bramante and Pirro Ligorio, as well as painters and engravers that portray the beauty of the place. Within the Gardens are still visible, in two sections, the old Leonine Wall, there are also many fountains, including that of Galera, result of three centuries of elaboration and changes (a galleon that shoots jets of water from its cannons), and the Eagle. In the Gardens are also Casine, fountains, small temples, shrines and grottos dedicated to the Virgin Mary as the Madonna of the Guard (1917), or the replica of the Lourdes's Cave (1902). Plants, trees, flowers, shrubs, climbers from all over the world complete the Garden.