The Talking Statues of Rome
Pasquino

The most famous one

Location: Piazza di Pasquino (near Piazza Navona).

Description: Mutilated Hellenistic torso (3rd–2nd century BC), probably depicting Menelaus supporting the body of Patroclus.

Curiosities:

1. • The “leader” of the Talking Statues Pasquino is the first and most important of the six Talking Statues of Rome. The term “pasquinata” (anonymous satirical verses) originates from this statue and is still used today to describe sharp, biting satire.

   • A heavily damaged ancient torso It is a fragment of a Hellenistic sculptural group (3rd–2nd century BC), a Roman copy of a Greek original. It most likely represents Menelaus holding the body of Patroclus (from the Trojan War). The statue is missing its arms, legs, and head — severely damaged — yet it has become a powerful symbol.

   • Discovered in 1501 It was found during renovation works at Palazzo Orsini (now Palazzo Braschi), near Piazza Navona. Cardinal Oliviero Carafa had it placed in its current square and “dressed” it in a toga during the feast of Saint Mark, marking the beginning of the tradition.

   • Origin of the name According to legend, the statue takes its name from a barber, tailor, innkeeper, or schoolmaster from the Parione district, famous for his sharp tongue and irreverent jokes. The statue resembled him so much that people began calling it by his name.

   • The 16th-century “social network” Romans would attach satirical poems on sheets of paper to the statue’s neck or feet at night. By morning, everyone would read them before the papal guards could remove them. Pasquino often “conversed” with the other statue Marforio (now in the Capitoline Museums), creating real satirical dialogues.

   • Pope Adrian VI wanted to destroy it In 1522–1523, the pope hated the pasquinades so much that he proposed throwing Pasquino into the Tiber River. Fortunately, he never did.

   • The most famous pasquinata of all time Directed against Pope Urban VIII Barberini, who stripped the bronze from the Pantheon to make the baldachin of St. Peter’s:
     «Quod non fecerunt barbari, fecerunt Barberini» (What the barbarians did not do, the Barberini did.)

   • Still “alive” today It is the only Talking Statue where people continue to attach pasquinades (now on a protected notice board). Over the centuries, it has criticized popes, politicians, taxes, and scandals of every era.

   • Symbol of freedom of expression In an age of heavy censorship, Pasquino represented the ironic and irreverent voice of the Roman people — a true “Twitter before Twitter”.

The statue of Pasquino, standing on a pedestal in the square, is a drawing by Antonio Lafreri

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