Senatorial Palace

The Senatorial Palace stands on Piazza del Campidoglio atop Rome’s Capitoline Hill and serves as the city hall. Its façade is based on Michelangelo’s 16th-century design for the square, and a broad double staircase rises between ancient Roman statues of the Nile and Tiber. Beneath the palace, the Tabularium preserves part of Rome’s ancient public archive. Check access before planning to go inside; the piazza itself is a striking stop, with views over Rome from the Tabularium and the nearby Terrace Cafe.

A city hall on Capitoline Hill

The Senatorial Palace stands in Piazza del Campidoglio, on a hill that was a political and religious center of ancient Rome. The building has served as the seat of Rome’s municipal government since 1143. Its current façade belongs to a later chapter: Michelangelo redesigned the palace and the square in the 16th century, and the work was completed by successors including Giacomo della Porta.

The design brings the palace into the composition of the piazza. A double staircase leads up to the entrance, with colossal statues of the river gods Nile and Tiber at its base. A central statue of the goddess Roma adds another reference to the city’s ancient past.

The Tabularium and earlier remains

The Tabularium was built beside the palace in 78 BCE as a public archive for laws and other official documents. Part of this ancient structure lies beneath the Senatorial Palace, giving the site an archaeological dimension alongside its continuing civic role. Access to interior spaces, including the Tabularium, should be checked before your visit.

The palace also stands on the site of a temple dedicated to Veiove. The temple was rebuilt in the 1st century AD, and surviving remains include part of its travertine platform, a small portico and the cella. These traces belong to an earlier layer of the hill’s history, beneath the Renaissance setting of Piazza del Campidoglio.