1644 Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598/1680) for Urban VIII Barberini (1623/44) with the famous bees symbol of his family
Originally in the coat of arms there were horseflies, but then they thought that bees would have been much more dignified for an ambitious family
The fountain was removed in 1880 from its original location in Via Sistina and abandoned in a warehouse where it crumbled
It was reconstructed here in 1917 by Adolfo Apolloni (1855/1923) with only a fragment of the original shell with one bee
Bernini had carved the number XXII as year of the pontificate of Urban VIII when there were still two months to the completion of the 22nd year. This was considered a bad omen and then the figure was changed to XXI. Too late: the pope died eight days before arriving to the fateful anniversary
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