The restoration of the Fontanone, the large marble fountain that overlooks the city of Rome from the Janiculum hill, will be unveiled on Saturday 18 September during the all-night-long festivities of the Notte Bianca.

The restoration has taken two years and has been carried out by the Rome city council with private sponsorship from the Banca Nazionale delle Comunicazioni. It includes a new hydraulic system and new lighting which will be turned on when the fountain is officially returned to the city on 18 September.

Giovanni Fontana and Flaminio Ponzio built the Fontana Paola, as it is officially called, for Pope Paul V in 1612 using marble from the Roman Forum. The fountain's water still comes through the subterranean Trajan's aqueduct from Lake Bracciano.