Where: Vatican City, Holy See
When: February 6, 2012
With: Loren and Rachel
After a quick walk across the Tiber from our hotel, we were miraculously in another country. First stop were the Vatican museums.
We thought it logical to head straight for the center of St. Peter's square to enter. But apparently our assumption that this was the entrance to the Vatican museums was incorrect. Apparently, you need to walk around the giant fortified walls of the Vatican to the other side, quite a ways.
After our long journey around the walls of this mini-country, we finally made it to our entrance. Booking tickets in advance let us get right in.
First up was the Egyptian artifacts. Lots of sarcophagi and statues, and even a couple of mummies. There were also recreations of tombs. Very cool.
Next was the hall of statues and busts, the Chiaramonti Museum and Braccio Nuovo Gallery.
Apparently, someone was commissioned to sculpt fig leaves onto all the ancient statues. Interesting thing to put on your resume.
We also laughed at the number of statues that were nothing but a torso. The audioguides would say "but this is an extremely important torso". Even though they had no idea whose it was...
This rotunda was pretty cool. It reminded me of the monuments in DC, although this was way more ornate, between the painted ceilings, the mosaics, the giants statues.
Next, we entered Raphael's apartments. He was commissioned to paint these when he was 23. He had a bunch of help, but still, he designed all of these rooms (there were probably 4 giant rooms covered floor to ceiling in paintings).
The Sistene Chapel was pretty crazy. When you walk in, you don't really appreciate what you're seeing when you look up. There's just so much going on that you can't immediately absorb the intricacy of it all. I would definitely recommend having an audio guide. It takes maybe 30 minutes to get through, but it's worth it. They explain each component of the ceiling, as well as Michelangelo's life as he painted each part. By the end, you can just admire the whole thing.
This is the view the pope has of St. Peter's when giving his blessings from his balcony.
In one world, St Peter's Basilica was STUNNING. First of all, it was HUGE. The length of the cathedral from front to end is longer than two football fields. But Michelangelo wanted it to feel not-quite-so-imposing, so he did all these things to trick your eyes and alter your perspective so that you think its smaller than it is.
Apparently, this was on purpose, but I loved the bodiless arm that was reaching out to the light. It was so striking.
Also in St. Peter's was Michelangelo's Pieta. Kept behind glass because a crazy man tried to hack it with a hammer in the 70s, this was a pretty cool sculpture. It was completed when Michelangelo was only 23.
I think my favorite part of this (aside from how this was a historic and monumental sculpture from an artistic perspective) was that being a young and cocky new artist on the scene, Michelangelo immersed himself in a crowd of onlookers after it was revealed to listen to the their reaction to his work. Upon hearing someone mistakenly assume that another artist sculpted the statue, Michelangelo furiously went up to his work and essentially carved "Michelangelo did this" into Mary's sash. It would end up being the only work of art he ever signed, later saying that he wouldn't let his youthful pride get the best of him ever again. It's ok, Mike, we all know you were pretty awesome.
And so, back out into the cold we wandered, leaving the Vatican City and heading back to Rome. Just in time too, as the well trained staff at the Vatican was just starting to hose down the snow in the square...and right before night fall...smart.
When: February 6, 2012
With: Loren and Rachel
After a quick walk across the Tiber from our hotel, we were miraculously in another country. First stop were the Vatican museums.
We thought it logical to head straight for the center of St. Peter's square to enter. But apparently our assumption that this was the entrance to the Vatican museums was incorrect. Apparently, you need to walk around the giant fortified walls of the Vatican to the other side, quite a ways.
After our long journey around the walls of this mini-country, we finally made it to our entrance. Booking tickets in advance let us get right in.
Next was the hall of statues and busts, the Chiaramonti Museum and Braccio Nuovo Gallery.
We also laughed at the number of statues that were nothing but a torso. The audioguides would say "but this is an extremely important torso". Even though they had no idea whose it was...
This statue is so creepy.
And now for the animal statues.
And back to the classics.
This rotunda was pretty cool. It reminded me of the monuments in DC, although this was way more ornate, between the painted ceilings, the mosaics, the giants statues.
Next was the Etruscan Museum. The Etruscans predated the Romans and were pretty advanced back in the day. It was pretty crazy to see how sophisticated their relics were: jewelry, chariots, and shields.
At least they didn't close the Vatican for the snow.
This ceiling was actually painted to look like it had texture. Pretty impressive.
The hall of maps.
Next, we entered Raphael's apartments. He was commissioned to paint these when he was 23. He had a bunch of help, but still, he designed all of these rooms (there were probably 4 giant rooms covered floor to ceiling in paintings).
Finally, we wandered through a modern art exhibit on our way to the Sistine Chapel. Everyone from Monet to Degas to Picasso was included.
The Sistene Chapel was pretty crazy. When you walk in, you don't really appreciate what you're seeing when you look up. There's just so much going on that you can't immediately absorb the intricacy of it all. I would definitely recommend having an audio guide. It takes maybe 30 minutes to get through, but it's worth it. They explain each component of the ceiling, as well as Michelangelo's life as he painted each part. By the end, you can just admire the whole thing.
After leaving the museum, we set off for a much needed lunch. What did we eat? Pizza...shocking. We were tired after spending almost 5 hours in the museum (it flew by), but we decided that if the line wasn't long, we should check out St. Peter's Basilica. For some reason, we thought it would be more museum-like things and we weren't super enthusiastic.
The line was only maybe 10 minutes long, so we decided to wait. The views while in St. Peter's square were nice too, so it wasn't tough keeping ourselves entertained.
This is the view the pope has of St. Peter's when giving his blessings from his balcony.
In one world, St Peter's Basilica was STUNNING. First of all, it was HUGE. The length of the cathedral from front to end is longer than two football fields. But Michelangelo wanted it to feel not-quite-so-imposing, so he did all these things to trick your eyes and alter your perspective so that you think its smaller than it is.
Michelangelo wanted the cathedral to have a smaller nave. It originally was designed to have two arches. But, after his death, a third arch was thrown on, making it one of the longest cathedrals in the world. Another play on perspective: the words around the tops are seven feet high.
There were statues decorating the walls from the floor to the ceiling. The statues near the floor were designed to be smaller than the ones that were higher up so that again the cathedral seemed not quite so tall. This does not mean the lower statues were small though; these two angels are larger than human beings (my models serve as frame of reference).
There were lots of statues of old popes. And some creepy tombs.
The pulpit was incredible. Apparently, it is 7 stories high. You would never know.
The dome was yet another one of Michelangelo's works. It's the largest dome in the world. Even the statues appear to be impressed.
In the back is a small window that has stain glass showing "The Dove of the Holy Spirit". We were lucky with the time of the day and the way the light came in from the windows.
Apparently, this was on purpose, but I loved the bodiless arm that was reaching out to the light. It was so striking.
Also in St. Peter's was Michelangelo's Pieta. Kept behind glass because a crazy man tried to hack it with a hammer in the 70s, this was a pretty cool sculpture. It was completed when Michelangelo was only 23.
I think my favorite part of this (aside from how this was a historic and monumental sculpture from an artistic perspective) was that being a young and cocky new artist on the scene, Michelangelo immersed himself in a crowd of onlookers after it was revealed to listen to the their reaction to his work. Upon hearing someone mistakenly assume that another artist sculpted the statue, Michelangelo furiously went up to his work and essentially carved "Michelangelo did this" into Mary's sash. It would end up being the only work of art he ever signed, later saying that he wouldn't let his youthful pride get the best of him ever again. It's ok, Mike, we all know you were pretty awesome.
And so, back out into the cold we wandered, leaving the Vatican City and heading back to Rome. Just in time too, as the well trained staff at the Vatican was just starting to hose down the snow in the square...and right before night fall...smart.
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