Piazza del Popolo was Rome's reception hall for two thousand years. Travellers arriving via the ancient Via Flaminia, whether pilgrims on foot or Victorian tourists in carriages, got their first taste of the Eternal City here.

The name supposedly comes from the poplar trees that once decorated Nero's family tomb on this spot, though the Romans will tell you it means "the people's square" and therefore belongs to everyone.

The piazza's elegant oval shape, redesigned by Giuseppe Valadier between 1811 and 1822, transformed what had been a cramped, poorly designed space into one of Europe's most theatrical urban stages. An Egyptian obelisk, already ancient when Augustus brought it to Rome, presides over three streets that fan out like a trident into the city's heart.

VoiceMap's self-guided audio tours trace the square's evolution from burial ground to papal showcase, following the footsteps of literary pilgrims like Goethe and Henry James who entered Rome through its northern gate.