Scipione Borghese, one of the Prime European Collectors of the 1600’s. The Sculpture of Villa Borghese in safekeeping at the Museum of Pietro Canonica

In spite of the pillage that the park has been subjected to through the ages, the collection of sculptures of Villa Borghese comprises even today a substantial group of works, some of which come from the collection of Cardinal Scipione Borghese, an important figure among European collectors of the 1600’s. Of particular importance are three statues from San Giovanni in Laterno that originally were part of the Ceoli Collection, l’Ercole coronato (Hercules Crowned), il Satiro in riposo (Resting Satry) e la Filatrice (The Spinner) and two medieval lions from the basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano. Another important nucleus contains four tritons and four masks from the late 1500’s that came from the Fontana dei Mascheroni e dei Tritoni where they have stood in the Giardino del Lago since the beginning of the 20th century but originally came from the Fontana del Moro of Piazza Navona, work of the sculptors Simone Moschino, Taddeo Landini, Egidio della Riviera, Silla Giacomo Longhi da Viggiù and Giovanni Antonio Dosio.