Mouth of Truth

## Mirror of Lies: Soul-Eating Ceremony of the Mouth of Truth When you squeeze through the noisy crowd of the Cosmedin Church, you suddenly bump into the iron-blue stone face in the niche - the mask of the river god with slightly open fangs is covered with moss, and the eye sockets are covered with centuries of dust. This ancient Roman sewer manhole cover was transformed into a lie-eating beast because of "Roman Holiday". Don't be deceived by the laughter of tourists: the moment you put your hand into its mouth, you will fall into a soul trial spanning a thousand years. **Roman humor under the myth of lie detection**. Please look closely at the stone surface when queuing: the craftsmen in the first century AD deliberately carved the sea god into a horrified expression, originally to deter floods. One night in the Middle Ages, a drunkard stuck his hand between the fangs and cried and confessed his guilt, and an absurd legend was born. Today, husbands pretend to be bitten and scream, and wives hold their mobile phones and laugh and bend over - when the jungle of selfie sticks submerges the stone statue, the Mouth of Truth has long become a stage prop for contemporary people to create sweet lies. **The hidden line of truth between the stone pillars of the church**. Don't ignore the church behind because of the crowd! On the sixth-century mosaic altar, Christ is crushing the head of a snake (the incarnation of truth). Look up at the dome: St. Peter is the only one missing among the twelve apostles - it is said that the devil stole his statue during construction, but it fell into the Tiber River due to the burns of the church's holy light. When your fingertips brush over the cracks in the north wall (the signature of the 1348 earthquake), you suddenly see the afterimage of the saint in the red light of the stained glass window: it turns out that truth never lives in the fangs of stone statues, but flows in the scars of time that have crushed the building. **The Liar's Monologue in the Moonlight**. After closing, go around to the small garden on the east side of the church, and the Mouth of Truth turns back into a gloomy monster behind the fence. Put your palms against the iron bars and look at the stone statue, and the roar of the ancient Roman aqueduct floats in the wind. One night in the third century AD, pagans carved anti-Christian slogans on this stone, and the priests used holy water to wash the fangs that appeared. At this moment, the cool air seeps out of the cracks in the stone and wraps around my wrist, as if two thousand years of lies and confessions have condensed into salt here - what we fear is never the bite of the stone, but the piercing of the shadow in our hearts. Please take out the coins and put them in the donation box before leaving. When the crisp sound of metal hitting the bottom of the box echoes through the empty courtyard, it is like the trembling sound of the soul's balance returning to zero. As the candlelight flickers in the altar, you suddenly realize: the most terrifying thing about this stone statue is not the fangs but the hollow throat - there are countless untold truths deposited there, like the silent ancient pottery fragments at the bottom of the Tiber River. And the 14th-century crucifix forgotten by tourists in the corner of the church, wild violets are blooming between the ribs of the wooden sculpture of Christ, mocking the human obsessive pursuit of "absolute truth" with gentle vitality.

Italy Rome The Mouth of Truth Bocca della Verità, the Originator of the Lie Detector Piazza della Bocca della Verità, 00186 Roma RM, Italy In 1485, this sculpture was first named "Mouth of Truth"; since then, one of Rome's most meaningful symbols has been preserved. The Mouth of Truth is a marble sculpture resembling a human face, located in the porch of Santa Maria delle Greco in Rome, Italy. There are many different opinions about the human face carved on the Mouth of Truth. Some say that he is the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea, while others say that he depicts a pagan god. According to research, it was actually a fountain or a manhole cover in ancient Rome. However, the most famous feature of the Mouth of Truth is that it is used as a lie detector. Since the Middle Ages, people believed that if someone lied, his hand would be bitten if he put it into the mouth. The sculpture has a diameter of 5 feet 9 inches and weighs about 2,850 pounds. It represents the face of a bearded man, with holes for eyes, nose and mouth. Its original function is still unclear: was it a fountain? A drainpipe? Or even a manhole cover? This large mask is famous for its legend and long history. In the Middle Ages, this mouth was believed to have the ability of clairvoyance. In the 17th century, it was placed on the porch of the Church of Our Lady of Grecian. Since the church houses the skull of Saint Valentine, the Mouth of Truth also has a meaning related to love. In the movie "Roman Holiday", the male protagonist pretended to put his hand into the Mouth of Truth and was bitten off, which frightened the female protagonist Audrey Hepburn. The Mouth of Truth became famous for this classic plot, and every tourist who came to Rome must make a pilgrimage here. Tourists who come here to visit put their hands into the mouth to try whether their hands will be bitten. Because thousands of hands have been stretched in and out of the Mouth of Truth, this big mouth has been polished by people's fingers. The Mouth of Truth is an ancient manhole cover, located at the door of a dilapidated chapel. It opens at 09:30 every morning. You can just walk in when it opens, no tickets are required. You can also take a look at the chapel. On the left side of the entrance, there is a person at the door of the altar basement, persuading people to donate money. It feels like you can only enter the basement after donating money. Don't donate too much, or don't donate at all, just give a few cents or dimes, because there is nothing in there, and it takes less than a minute to get out. It's best to go early in the morning, especially in the summer tourist season, when the queue is at least half an hour.

The Mouth of Truth is famous all over the world for the classic scene in the movie "Roman Holiday". It is a good distance to walk from the Roman Forum. You can see a group of people queuing up to take pictures from a distance. There are staff to help take pictures. Think about the actions in advance and make quick decisions. The church where the Mouth of Truth is located is very old. Although it is not big, it is worth a visit.

During the days in Rome, I passed by this place several times and saw many people queuing up. I was still curious about whether it was a tourist attraction... It turns out that people all over the world love the Mouth of Truth. I also met 2⃣️ couples of Chinese people taking wedding photos. It is very popular; Waiting in line for half an hour, taking photos for 1⃣️ minutes, posing, snapping, and then leaving quickly to avoid others waiting too long; By the way, I visited the church inside. The souvenir shop was full of Roman holiday elements. Many people bought them, so I took a look.

The historical monuments and cultural heritage are all treasures of Italy and need our protection. Seeing that so many of their history are preserved, we Taiwanese should learn how to preserve our own culture and evolve it into a tourist attraction. This is something Taiwan needs to learn.

【Mouth of Truth】 This is a manhole cover from the ancient Roman period. It was found on the outer wall of the church in 1632. It is said that if you put your hand in her mouth, you can't pull it out if you lie. In the movie "Roman Holiday", it scared the lovely princess. The church itself was built in the sixth century and decorated with Byzantine-style mosaics. The Mouth of Truth is a marble sculpture that resembles a human face, with a nose and eyes, and a big mouth. It is located in the porch of the Church of Our Lady of the Greeks in Rome, Italy. According to legend, if someone does not tell the truth, it will bite his hand. Tourists who come here to visit put their hands into the mouth to try whether their hands will be bitten. Tickets: Free Opening hours 9:30-18;00 Address: Piazza della Bocca della Verità, 18, 00186 Roma RM, Italy