Piazzetta del Leone

Naples


This semi-circular piazzetta (small square) is named for its somewhat battered-looking protagonist, a marble lion whose origins remain unknown (in spite of the misleading signature on its side). The sculpture once stood by a long-gone dattero closer to the seafront, a tree so famous that it gave its name to nearby Vico Dattero. Urban renewal works saw the lion moved to its current location in the 1860s, from where it continues to eye up passersby.


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