Because of its size, the statue of Neptune is called “il
Gigante” (the Giant), or “al Żigànt” in Bolognese dialect. It
was built in 1566 according to the inscription at the base of
the fountain, “to serve the people”; namely, to beautify the
Piazza Maggiore because it was a stop on the route between the
Archiginnasio and the Palazzo del Comune. Freshly elected
Cardinal Carlo Borromeo was responsible for wanting the Piazza
Maggiore improvements; the work was meant to symbolize the happy
rule of Pope Pius IV, his maternal uncle. A young Flemish man,
Jean de Boulogne, was called in from Douai to handle the
undertaking. Known as Giambologna, he was eager to prove himself
after having just lost the competition for the Fontana del
Nettuno in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence. An entire city
block was razed to create the fountain, with both houses and
shops paying the price. The statue of the god Neptune was placed
at the exact point where the cardo and the decumanus – the
proto-typical main streets of a Roman c