What is the name of the staircase leading to Piazza del Campidoglio designed by Michelangelo? It is the Cordonata.
The Cordonata is the broad, gently ascending ramp-like staircase that leads from the lower streets of Rome to Piazza del Campidoglio on the Capitoline Hill. Michelangelo designed it in the sixteenth century as part of Pope Paul III’s renovation of the Campidoglio, transforming the approach into a monumental civic entrance.
Unlike a steep conventional staircase, the Cordonata was designed to be easy to climb and wide enough for horses and ceremonial movement. Its relatively shallow steps create a gradual ascent toward the piazza. At the top stand the ancient statues of Castor and Pollux, the Dioscuri, which frame the entrance to Michelangelo’s redesigned urban ensemble.
The Cordonata is often confused with other famous Roman stairways, including the Scala Santa and the Scala Regia. Those belong to different architectural settings and are not the approach to Piazza del Campidoglio. Michelangelo also designed the piazza’s surrounding architectural scheme and the placement of the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius.