One of Rome’s seven hills and among the city’s oldest settlements, the Palatine offers ruins of imperial palaces layered beneath Renaissance gardens and views across the archaeological heart of ancient Rome.
At a glance
The Palatine hill rises between the Roman Forum and the Velabro district. Today it functions as a large open-air museum where visitors can explore remains of the residences that housed Rome’s ruling elite, now interspersed with verdant vegetation and Farnese gardens established centuries later.
History
The Palatine was home to the palaces and dwellings of ancient Rome’s governing class. Following the classical period, the hill was transformed by the Farnese family, who established extensive gardens on its slopes. These gardens created a layered landscape where Renaissance cultivation overlaid archaeological remains, a stratification still visible today.
What you see
Visitors encounter vestiges of imperial structures set within a landscape of rich vegetation. The archaeological remains are distributed across the hill’s slopes, offering expansive views across the Forum and surrounding classical sites below. The interplay between excavated stone and cultivated greenery defines the site’s character.
Cultural significance
The Palatine preserves essential evidence of how Rome’s elite lived and governed. Its successive transformations—from imperial power centre to Renaissance estate—make it a palimpsest of European history. The hill remains one of Rome’s most evocative places, bridging legend and tangible archaeological reality.
Key facts
- Address: Largo della Salara Vecchia, 5, Roma
- Coordinates: 41.8909458, 12.4864758
- Phone: +39 06 699841
- Online tickets: www.coopculture.it/ticket.cfm
- Official website: beniculturali.it
Practical information
The site is open during daylight hours as an open-air museum. Admission is required. The ticket office closes one hour before the site closes. Online booking is available through CoopCulture.
Getting there
Two entrances serve the Palatine. The main entrance at Via di San Gregorio charges an admission fee. Alternatively, you can enter via the Roman Forum (separate fee) and ascend by the Clivio Palatino, a path to the right of the Arch of Titus.
See the place
Sources & resources
Find it on the map
See this place and what’s around it →Historical events at this place (6)
📷 Become a Cultural Heritage Online photographer
Share your photos of places: they stay published under your name as the author. The more they're seen, the more you get noticed — and soon a contest will reward the most appreciated photos.
Log in or sign up free to add a photo