Il Facchino, the Talking Statue off the Via Del Corso in Rome, June 2014

Il Facchino (Italian: Il Facchino, "The Porter") is one of the talking statues of Rome. Like the other five "talking statues", pasquinades - irreverent satires poking fun at public figures - were posted beside il Facchino in the 14th and 15th centuries.

Il Facchino was originally sited on the via del Corso, on the main facade of the Palazzo De Carolis, near the piazza Venezia. In 1874, it was moved to its current position, to the side of the same building, on the via Lata.

Unlike the other talking statues, which are all dated to Ancient Rome, Il Facchino is relatively modern. The statue was created in around 1580 for the Jacopo del Conte for the Corporazione degli Acquaroli (although some sources say it was sculpted by Michelangelo). It depicts a man wearing a cap and a sleeved shirt, carrying a barrel - an "acquarolo", who would take water from the Tiber to sell on the streets of Rome during the period before the Roman aqueducts were repaired at the orders of the Popes and the public fountains played again. Somewhat ironically, water spouts from the centre of the barrel, creating a fountain. Its face is badly damaged.

Text from: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Il_Facchino