This area was once the secret garden of Paul III, a Pope who saw the Church through changes during the Reformation, convened the Council of Trent, approved the religious order of the Jesuits, and significantly supported the arts during his pontificate.

The historical garden decorates the squared plaza with four sprawling grass planes in front of the Pinacoteca, the painting gallery of the Vatican Museums. A large fountain is located in its center surrounded by young orange trees in terracotta pots.

Computer graphics allowed restorers to recreate the original appearance of the Giardino Quadrato during the pontificate of Paul III as it was depicted in sixteenth-century drawings and engravings. The garden would have followed a traditional “secret” Renaissance garden design with high walls surrounding its perimeter. Today, only two of these four walls remain on the west and south sides of the Quadrato. The axis of pathways between the grass quadrants would have beared four trellis arcades converging in the center with a large trellis dome with lunette openings. Plantings would have covered the entirety of this enormous trellis structure, which must have been both a marked feat of gardening and a dazzling sight. In the early twentieth century, Pope Benedict XV had four greenhouses constructed in the space. These greenhouses were removed during a large scale remodeling of the Giardino Quadrato made necessary by the construction of the Pinacoteca in the early 1930’s, which today borders the garden’s north edge. Today, the Giardino Quadrato is divided into four flower beds with a lawn and a fountain in the center.

The restoration of the Giardino Quadrato pertains not only to the refurbishing of its plantings but to its stone components as well. These stone works include the fountain located at the nexus of the quadrato, various marble spolia or architectural fragments from larger Roman buildings relocated to the garden as decoration, and the wall and its monumental entrances that border the Giardino Quadrato on its west and south sides. The stone objects are often cleaned with a blend of essential oils. The inhibitory effects against bacteria found in rose, lavender, clove, and juniper oil have allowed restorers to remove naturally occuring substances with a completely organic solution.