The Mausoleum Of Hadrian, Known As Castel Sant`Angelo In Rome Royalty-Free Stock Photography

The Mausoleum of Hadrian, usually known as Castel Sant`Angelo, Castle of the Holy Angel, is a towering cylindrical building in Parco Adriano, Rome, Italy. The Papal state used Sant`Angelo as a prison; Giordano Bruno was imprisoned there for six years. Other prisoners were the sculptor and goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini and the magician and charlatan Cagliostro. Executions were performed in the small inner courtyard. It was the setting for the third act of Giacomo Puccini`s 1900 opera Tosca; the eponymous heroine leaps to her death from the Castel`s ramparts.