There are, of course, grand monuments to fascism here in Rome -- the Foro Italico (formerly Foro Mussolini) and the EUR being the most spectacular. And there are endless "fabric" buildings -- schools, post offices, government offices -- and streets and squares, some seamlessly integrated into the layers of historic Rome. And then there are the signs on buildings and monuments inscribed with "Mussolini Dux" and the symbol of the fascists -- the fasces, the bundle of wooden rods, often with a blade attached -- on everything from drainage pipes to buildings and post office boxes. Valentina Follo, in charge of the archaeology collection at the Academy, has set me going on finding these elements of the urban landscape which escaped the post-war effort to rid the city of Mussolini's name and fascist symbols. Here is one, on a sidewalk cover.
And another, somewhere along the wall walk this past Sunday:
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