This battered, armless figure is Rome’s most famous ‘talking statue’. During the 16th century, when there were no safe outlets for dissent, a Vatican tailor named Pasquino began sticking notes to the statue with satirical verses lampooning the church and aristocracy. Soon others joined in and, as the trend spread, talking statues popped up all over town.
The sculpture is now off limits to disgruntled Romans but there's a convenient board next to it where people still leave messages, traditionally known as pasquinade.