A fascinating place, rich in tradition and mystery
Piazza Leandra is located in the heart of the historic part of Civitavecchia. As evidenced by a marble slab, the square owes its name to an ancient legend whose protagonist is an old sailor named Leandro. It is said, in fact, that after the Saracen invasion (828 AD) the population of the new city of Leopoli gathered in the open countryside in the shade of a large oak tree, to decide whether to retun to the sea and refound the old Centumcellae or remain on the hill of the new town.
This square, although so small, not only passes on the tradition that the population unanimously voted to retun to the old city, but also holds another little surprise. In 1972, Tarcisio De Paolis, after buying a house in the historic Piazza Leandra, noticed that under layers of lime, paint and wallpaper, there were paintings of extraordinary beauty. It is a replica of the Raphaelesque frescoes in the Stanza di Eliodoro in the Vatican, painted by Pope Julius II between 1511 and 1514. While we await the results of a diagnostic investigation of the materials entrusted to the University of Tuscia, the most recent hypothesis suggests that it is not just a copy, but a preparatory sketch commissioned by Raphael to a collaborator to show to Pope Julius II, who used to come to Civitavecchia every year to closely follow the work on the Forte Michelangelo built by Bramante.
However, the choice to commission the work in a non-noble palace, and moreover inside a room without windows, probably used at the time as a grain warehouse, remains a mystery. On June 26, 2015, the last restoration works of the Fountain in Piazza Leandra were concluded, which has thus retuned to live its ancient splendor.
