Castel Sant’Angelo

Castel Sant’Angelo

This iconic cylindrical structure offers stunning city views, a historic papal passageway, and showcases ancient architectural adaptation.
Castel Sant’Angelo began as Hadrian’s mausoleum in the 2nd century AD and was later transformed into a fortress, papal refuge and prison. Its cylindrical mass beside the Tiber makes it one of Rome’s most distinctive silhouettes. The Passetto di Borgo linking it to the Vatican, the terraces and the views across the city all add to its appeal. Few monuments in Rome reveal so clearly the adaptation of an ancient structure to changing needs.