Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers, completed in 1651 for Pope Innocent X, stands at the exact center of Piazza Navona in Rome as a triumphant Baroque monument to papal authority and the Pamphili family. The composition features four monumental river gods representing the major rivers of the known continents: the Danube of Europe, reaching toward the papal coat of arms; the Nile of Africa, its head veiled to signify the river's then-unknown source; the Ganges of Asia, holding a long oar to denote navigability; and the Rio de la Plata of the Americas, seated on a pile of coins symbolizing New World wealth. Rising above them is an ancient Roman copy of an Egyptian obelisk, crowned by the Pamphili dove with an olive branch. Bernini's daring design leaves the obelisk's base hollow, supported only by four angled travertine piers, creating the illusion of weightless suspension and establishing one of the most celebrated sculptural ensembles of Baroque Rome. - AsNotedIn