Truly a special apartment, from its owner Nieves (an interesting Spanish artist who came to Rome at only 17 years of age and stayed forever), to its location in one of the most ancient and vibrant streets of the city centre. Via dei Banchi Nuovi, onto which the windows of this ancient edifice face, was once the street of the bankers, notaries, scribes and merchants who conducted their business in the shadow of St. Peter’s and catered to the many requests of Popes. Here lived Baroque protagonist Carlo Maderno, architect of that famed basilica and other noteworthy palaces.

Nieves refurbished the apartment with the help of a renowned architect according to a refined and contemporary sense of style, and has decorated it with her own paintings. The gracious living room, furnished in grey, taupe and matte-black tones, sports a little masterpiece of deconstructivist architecture: a fireplace graces the wall, its sinuous lines shifting into a seating area, shelf and bookcase.

Nearby points of interest include Piazza Navona, Campo de’ Fiori and Ponte Vittorio, which leads across the Tiber to St. Peter’s. The neighborhood’s web of streets offer everything from intimate trattorias to multi-star restaurants, artisan shops, art galleries and studios, piazzas filled with young people, musicians and artists, and entertainment for every possible taste. But the atmosphere within the home is also lovely, with the spectacle of a multicolour life to be observed every day from its windows.