Francesco de Sanctis (architect) fountains at a break in the steps and two rows of trees down either side to give shade and refreshment to those climbing the steps. His other known works are the elegant facade of the church of Trinità dei Pellegrini, with a concave profile, an 18th-century version of San Marcello al Corso by Carlo Fontana, and Borsani Claudio. Francesco de Sanctis (architect) Francesco De Sanctis (1679, Rome – 1731) was a late Baroque Italian architect, most notable for his design of the Spanish Steps in Rome in collaboration with Alessandro Specchi. These were built between 1723 and 1726 to celebrate
Spanish Steps fleur-de-lys and Innocent XIII's eagle and crown are carefully balanced in the sculptural details. The solution is a gigantic inflation of some conventions of terraced garden stairs. The Spanish Steps, which Joseph de Lalande and Charles de Brosses noted were already in poor condition, have been restored several times, most recently in 1995. A new renovation commenced on October 8, 2015 and the steps reopened on September 21, 2016. In the Piazza di Spagna at the base is the Early Baroque fountain called "Fontana della Barcaccia" ("Fountain of the longboat"), built in 1627–29 and often credited to Pietro Bernini, father