In October 2017, I visited Rome for the first time, and took with me Gerbier’s ‘Subsidium Peregrinantibus‘, published in 1665 as a handbook for young men undertaking the Grand Tour of the European Mainland. As well as containing a great deal of information on orders of Knighthood and courtly protocol, the book is also something of a guide for the seventeenth-century tourist, and offers detailed information for the Traveller on the sights of historical and artistic interest. Although I did not have time to visit all of the places Gerbier recommends, it was interesting to realise how many of the things that excited him are still there, and so I’ve put together a short report on Gerbier’s visit to Rome, and included some photos, as well as listing the main points of interest he mentions in ‘Subsidium Peregrinantibus’. You’ll also find an interactive map showing all these locations, though it’s certainly not as beautiful as the one below – part of a wall painting in the Hall of Maps, through which I walked in the Vatican Museums. Hopefully one day I shall go back, and visit more of the places on Gerbier’s list…

To read more about Gerbier’s guide to Rome, click here: Subsidium Peregrinantibus.