ROME
We got to Rome about three o'clock in the afternoon and drove through the city streets for 30 minutes or so until we reached our hotel. We saw the mundane, non-tourist areas of the Eternal City, which I enjoyed – but glad someone else was doing the driving. We got to the hotel about four o’clock.
The Hotel Aberdeen according to its website is “the perfect base for a visit to the Eternal City on foot or by public transportation. It is located in a quiet area near the Termini Train Station and the Trevi Fountain.” That is a pretty accurate statement.
The Hotel Aberdeen according to its website is “the perfect base for a visit to the Eternal City on foot or by public transportation. It is located in a quiet area near the Termini Train Station and the Trevi Fountain.” That is a pretty accurate statement.
In Rome you do as the Romans do. So after getting to our rooms and unpacking, we set off for a visit to the Pantheon and an “evening walk through the heart of Rome” (per our itinerary). We walked two blocks to the bus stop, hopped on the #40 for a 15 minute ride to the Pantheon. But this is rush hour and there is standing room only. Hold on tight to your valuables.
We would learn a lot about public transportation in the next few days. We were given 9 passes for the bus and the Metro (subway), which would take us wherever we needed to go. |
Although it’s in an old building, the hotel's interior is surprisingly modern: tile and marble in the halls, but clean lines throughout them and in the rooms.
|
An Evening Walk the through the Heart of Rome
Pantheon
The Pantheon (a temple to all the gods) is one of the best preserved of Roman buildings. What we see today dates from AD 126, but an earlier version was built during the reign of Augustus in the first century. That was destroyed in a fire.
|
The building is circular with a rectangular front porch supported by Corinthian columns. The interior is a wide open dome 142 feet across and high. The “eye” at the top of the dome is open to the sky. Even today it is the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome. It has been the inspiration for St Peter’s in Rome and the Duomo in Florence. |
|
The Pantheon has been in continuous use since its completion in the second century. Since the 7th century it has been a Catholic church. The consecration of the building as a Catholic Church saved it from the abandonment, destruction, and the worst of the despoiling that befell the majority of ancient Rome's buildings during the early Middle Ages.
|
Since the Renaissance the Pantheon has been used as a burial place: for the Renaissance artist Raphael and two kings of Italy (Vittorio Emmanuel and Umberto I), and others. It is still used as a Catholic Church, with masses being celebrated on more important feast days. There are many niches and side altars, commissioned by Pope Clement XI in the first decades of the 18th century. |
Side Altars & Niches
|
Raphael's Tomb
|
Raphael was interred in the Pantheon in 1520. In 1833 Pope Gregory XVI gifted the Pantheon with a marble sarcophagus saying: “Here lies Raphael by whom nature feared to be outdone while he lived, and when he died, feared that she herself would die.”
|
|
Piazza Navona & Fountain of the Four Rivers
|
The Piazza Navona, Unlike most piazzas, is long, narrow and rounded at the north and south ends. In the first century it was a stadium where people came to watch games and races. It has been a gathering place for centuries. In the 17th century Pope Innocent X commissioned the huge Fountain of the Four Rivers for the center of the Piazza. His family's palace faced onto the piazza.
The four rivers are: Danube, Ganges, Nile, Rio de la Plata - each represented by a flow of water and heroic figure. |
|
|
As the sun set we continued our evening walk, visiting the baroque church of St Mary Magdalen, the Temple of Hadrian - and our customary gelato stop.
The very baroque church of St Mary Magdalen (1699) (Click on image for larger picture.)
|
A gelato stop had become an at least once a day event since we had arrived in Florence. This night It was followed by a small but very tasty pasta dinner at Osteria dell Ingegno.
|
One wall is all that is left the Temple of Hadrian (1st century AD) The remaining walls were torn down to use as stones to build the piazza (Piazza di Pietra) where the Temple stands. The holes in the walls are caused by the removal of the pinings that held marble to the wall. (Click on image for larger picture.)
|
Our evening walk concluded with visits to two of the most famous tourist gathering places in Rome: The Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps.
|
|
|
The Colosseum and Forum
A Short Lesson on Roman Archeology
Rome is a city in layers. If
you have any interest in the archeology of Rome, the Basilica of San Clemente
provides a comfortable lesson. Until the
middle of the 19th century San Clemente was thought to have been built
in the 11th century. But in
1857 Fr. Joseph Mullooly, Superior of the Dominican community there, began
excavations which showed over several years that San Clemente was just the top of many archeological layers on that site.
- an 11th century church;
- a 4th-century basilica;
- the home of a Roman nobleman, built on the foundations of a building existing before the birth of Jesus;
- the site of secret Christian services (1st century AD);
- a temple for worshipers of Mithras a mystery religion existing in Rome from first to the fourth century.
|
|
Floor tiles recycled from the 11th century church
|
The Colosseum: Two Views
|
An ancient building in a modern city
|
An archeological preservation site
|
Elaria was our guide for San Clemente and the Colosseum.
As you go through it, you have to imagine scenes like these artistic re-creations of a typical day in the life of the Colosseum. |
All around, you see work that will preserve what presently exists of the original Coliseum. And if you look closely in some places you can see how much that is needed.
The purpose of this work is not to restore the Colosseum to its original 1st century condition, but to preserve what exists today, which was weakened by centuries of neglect and organized efforts in the Middle Ages to obtain material that could be used to construct other buildings.
|
The “games” at the Coliseum lasted all day (not 2-3 hours), and the tailgating took place inside, not in the parking lot. The attendees were mostly adult males. “Family entertainment” had not yet been invented. Capacity was about 60,000, and it was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology.
|
The collossum’s correct name is the Flavian Amphitheater, because it was built by the three emperors of the Flavian family (70 AD – 90 AD): Vespasian began construction in 70 AD, and it was continued, completed, and modified under Titus and Domitian. It is considered one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and engineering. It is built of concrete and stone, and is the world’s largest amphitheater
The "games" stopped in the 6th century when the Empire fell. In the Middle Ages the Colosseum was used for housing, workshops, quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry, and a Christian shrine. It was not until the 17th century when it once again began to gain respect, both for its original Roman uses but also as a sacred place in respect for the Christians who were martyred there.. |
The Romans invented concrete. They called it opus caementicium. With concrete they could build arches (which the Greeks could not), domes (the Pantheon) and permanent roads and aqueducts which carried supplies, armies, and water over long distances.
|
The Forum
|
|
|
You have to use your imagination when you visit the Forum. In his Guidebook Rick Steves puts it this way:
The Forum is now rubble but imagine its prime: marble buildings with 40 foot columns;
processional chariots rolling down the Via Sacra.
Imagine tribunes in togas instead of tourists in T-shirts;
an orator giving a rabble rousing speech.
Imagine that Julius Caesar once leaned against the rock you are sitting on.
The Forum was the political, religious and cultural center.
It was the place for religious processions, political demonstrations, elections and parades.
For a while it was the center of the civilized world.
processional chariots rolling down the Via Sacra.
Imagine tribunes in togas instead of tourists in T-shirts;
an orator giving a rabble rousing speech.
Imagine that Julius Caesar once leaned against the rock you are sitting on.
The Forum was the political, religious and cultural center.
It was the place for religious processions, political demonstrations, elections and parades.
For a while it was the center of the civilized world.
|
We had to use our umbrellas as well as our imagination. It started raining just as we were coming out of the Colosseum – not hard enough to call it quits, but hard enough to need an umbrella and diminish our experience. So we wandered among the rubble trying to stay dry and use our imaginations. The rain came harder and we called it quits after an hour and headed for the Metro. We needed a lot more than an hour. Some of our group stayed and even went to the Palatine and Capitoline Hills adjacent to the Forum. Here is what we saw. |
|
The Arch of Constantine:
erected by the Roman Senate in 315 AD to commemorate Constantine's victory over Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge on October 28, 312. It is almost 70 feet high and 100 feet wide. It is undergoing restoration. The smaller picture is from Wikipedia |
|
Arch of Titus, built about 70 AD to celebrate Rome’s conquering of Judea, which brought 50,000 Jewish slaves to Rome who were then forced to build this arch and parts of the Coliseum. In the smaller picture you can see carvings of the slaves and the Jewish candelabra.
|
|
The Basilica of Constantine.
These arches represent only about 1/3 of the original building, a huge hall of Justice (Early fourth century).
These arches represent only about 1/3 of the original building, a huge hall of Justice (Early fourth century).
Arch of Septimus Severus
Septimus and his two sons won important victories in Mesopotamia (Iraq today) in the last years of the 2nd century. When Septimus died his sons became co-emperors. This did not work out well. One son (Caracalla) assassinated the other (Geta) and ordered his name and exploits removed from the arch.
Septimus and his two sons won important victories in Mesopotamia (Iraq today) in the last years of the 2nd century. When Septimus died his sons became co-emperors. This did not work out well. One son (Caracalla) assassinated the other (Geta) and ordered his name and exploits removed from the arch.
This is what is left of the Temple of Castor and Pollux, twin gods who helped the Romans win a major battle in the 5th century BC. A temple was built in their honor. It became a meeting place for the Senate, but was destroyed in a fire. These columns are what is left of its successor built in 6 AD.
The Temple of Antoninus Pius and Faustina (about 150 AD). The emperor A.P. built it as a temple for his wife Faustina. But after he died he was deified and a succeeding emperor re-dedicated the Temple to Antonius Pius, as well as Faustina.
At some time between the 7th and 11th centuries it was converted to a Catholic Church, San Lorenzo in Miranda.
At some time between the 7th and 11th centuries it was converted to a Catholic Church, San Lorenzo in Miranda.
The Temple of Vesta Vesta was the goddess of the hearth. The Vestal Virgins tended a fire that was never allowed to go out. As long as this flame burned Rome would be safe. The Vestal Virgins were chosen from noble families before they were ten years old, and were supposed to serve a 30 year term. They took vows of chastity and if they served their term successfully they received huge dowries and were allowed to marry. If they failed they were publicly shamed and buried alive.
The Temple of Venus and Roma is thought to have been the largest temple in Ancient Rome. It was dedicated to the goddesses Venus Felix ("Venus the Bringer of Good Fortune") and Roma Aeterna ("Eternal Rome"). The architect was the emperor Hadrian and construction began in 121 and finished in 135 AD.
* * * * * * *
That evening, when the rain had stopped, we found something different - Flann O’Brien’s, an Irish Pub where I had my first beer since coming to Italy (I was building a liking for red wines), where there were booths instead of tables, and the walls were dark wood paneling (more Italy firsts), and the hostess was a young Thai woman who spoke with a barely intelligible Italian accent. Tomorrow - Vatican City.
Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's
In her notes Bonnie summed up this day: “People, more people. Buildings, more buildings.” To that I would add “lines, more lines.” Vatican City is a crowded place. When we got back to Portland there was an article in the paper saying that the management of the Vatican Museums is thinking about limiting the number of tourists. If the crowds get any bigger they will stress the air conditioning system which will lead to potential harm to the art. There were five million visitors in 2011, about the same as the Grand Canyon.
Our guide through the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel and St Peter’s was Christopher.
Guides are good, very good. In his guidebook Rick Steves has several pages on strategies for negotiating the Vatican – it’s complicated. A guide makes it simple. The downside is that you have to stick with the group; so you can’t linger or branch out and see something that you want to see.
But I’ll stick with the guide.
Guides are good, very good. In his guidebook Rick Steves has several pages on strategies for negotiating the Vatican – it’s complicated. A guide makes it simple. The downside is that you have to stick with the group; so you can’t linger or branch out and see something that you want to see.
But I’ll stick with the guide.
The Vatican Museums are one of Europe’s “top three or four houses of art...with four miles of displays” (Rick Steves). Photography (but no flash) is allowed in all the museums except the Sistine Chapel. But the crowds make it difficult.
|
Pope Julius II founded the museums in the early 16th century when he sent Michelangelo and Giuliano de Sangallo to check out the authenticity of a sculpture of Laocoön and his Sons in a vineyard near the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. On their recommendation, he bought the sculpture and put it on public display at the Vatican.
We were able to get a picture of Laocoon. There is a lot that is not known about this statue, but it seems to date from somewhere between 200 BC and 70 AD.  NOT Julius II
In his history of Rome, Robert Hughes describes Julius II (1503-1513) as a “monster of will and appetite and the greatest patron of art in the Roman Church. He, Michelangelo, and the architect Bramante (designer of St. Peter’s) form the most remarkable body of artistic talent ever assembled by a European.”
This is not Julius II, just an interesting piece. If you want to know more about Julius and nepotism and the papacy during the Renaissance, check out his page on Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Julius_II |
Here are some other pieces that we were able to get decent pictures of in the museums. In the museums the pieces are grouped by chronology, genre and artist. These pictures are arranged by “what came next.”
The Sala Rotunda is shaped like a miniature Pantheon, and contains works from the Roman Empire.
|
|
|
Close-ups of the mosaics on the floor of the Sala Rotonda.
|
Roman Miscellanea
|
|
This sarcophagus in the Greek Cross Gallery was built to contain the remains St Helen, Constantine’s mother or her mother Constance. There are identical sarcophagi on either side of the hall. But the remains were never put there.
|
There is one room (hallway actually) with nothing but tapestries. This is a close-up of one of one of them. I was about 3 feet from the piece when I took the picture. I was amazed by the its fine pictorial quality.
|
|
These maps are in the Galleria delle Carte Geographiche. They are topographical maps of the whole of Italy, painted on the walls by Friar Ignazio Dante and, commissioned by Pope Gregory XIII (1572–1585). It remains the world's largest pictorial geographical study. |
|
The Raphael Rooms - Stanze di Raffaello
The four Raphael Rooms (Italian: Stanze di Raffaello) were the public part of the papal apartments in the Palace of the Vatican. They were painted by Raphael, and together with Michelangelo's ceiling frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, they are the great fresco sequences of High Renaissance in Rome. Julius II commissioned them in 1509 as adornment for his suite of apartments.
|
The School of Athens, a fresco by Raphael, is considered his masterpiece and the perfect embodiment of the classical spirit of the High Renaissance. Plato (red) and Aristotle (blue) are the figures in the center. Diogenes (blue) is at Aristotle’s feet. The seated figure in front leaning on the box is Michelangelo. Socrates is in green in the back row, facing away from Plato and Aristotle. Others pictured are Zeno, Epicurus, Pythagoras – a Greek Hall of Fame, plus a few outsiders like Averroes, Zoroaster, and Ptolemy.
|
|
Sistine Chapel
“SILENZIO!” “SILENCE!” This is what you hear every five minutes or so in the Sistine Chapel. And it is silent, considering there are hundreds of people crowded into a room 131 feet by 46 feet. The picture below is from Wikipedia. For more pictures and information here is the link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistine_Chapel_ceiling
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistine_Chapel_ceiling
Michelangelo is responsible only for the ceiling (1509-1510) and the Last Judgment (1535-1541) which covers the wall behind the altar. The side walls were done earlier – before 1482 – by several different artists.
Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to paint only the twelve apostles on the ceiling, but Michelangelo demanded a free hand and instead painted a series of nine pictures showing God's Creation of the World, God's Relationship with Mankind, and Mankind's fall from God's Grace. Alexander III commissioned the painting of the Last Judgment.
We managed to find some just-vacated spots on the benches lining the sides of the room. What a blessing. Given the crowd it was as pleasant a place to view art as there was. But there is no way you can take all it in, so I just focused on one or two panels.
After 20 minutes we started feeling a little guilty, so we let others have our seats. It was also time to rendezvous with Christopher, who was taking us to St Peter’s.
Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to paint only the twelve apostles on the ceiling, but Michelangelo demanded a free hand and instead painted a series of nine pictures showing God's Creation of the World, God's Relationship with Mankind, and Mankind's fall from God's Grace. Alexander III commissioned the painting of the Last Judgment.
We managed to find some just-vacated spots on the benches lining the sides of the room. What a blessing. Given the crowd it was as pleasant a place to view art as there was. But there is no way you can take all it in, so I just focused on one or two panels.
After 20 minutes we started feeling a little guilty, so we let others have our seats. It was also time to rendezvous with Christopher, who was taking us to St Peter’s.
St. Peter's Basilica
This "is the richest and grandest church on earth…plaques on the floor show where other churches would end if they were placed inside…thousands of people wander about hardly noticing each other” (Steves Guidebook)
This St. Peter’s was built between 1506 and 1614. It was commissioned by Julius II.
- Donato Bramante was the original architect but died in 1514 and the project stalled.
- In 1546 Michelangelo succeeded him. He designed the dome and stayed as chief architect until he died in 1564.
- In 1607 Carlo Maderno extended the length of the church by converting the original Greek cross design (four equal sides) to a Latin cross design (long vertical, short horizontal) which almost doubled the length of the church.
- This new St. Peter’s replaced an older one built in the fourth century on the same site. That St. Peter’s was commissioned by the Emperor Constantine (who legalized Christianity in the Roman Empire). He wanted a place to reverently keep the remains of St. Peter who had been martyred at that spot in 65 AD.
St Peter's dome is the highest in the world (448 ft) but not the widest (136 ft). The Pantheon and the Duomo in Florence are both over 140 ft.
Bernini’s bronze canopy (seven stories high) was finished in 1624. Bernini designed much of the interior: the dove window over the apse, the marble floor decoration, and the Tomb of Alexander VII.
|
|
Michelangelo’s Pieta
The Pieta is now behind glass. In 1972 some crazy attacked it with a hammer.
Michelangelo was 24 when he completed it, and it was the only piece he ever signed – supposedly because he heard some pilgrims attributing it to some other artist. So he carved on it “Michelangelo Buonaroti made this.”
Michelangelo was 24 when he completed it, and it was the only piece he ever signed – supposedly because he heard some pilgrims attributing it to some other artist. So he carved on it “Michelangelo Buonaroti made this.”
* * * * * * *
The Vatican was the last scheduled visit for our tour. That night we gathered for our Official Team Photo and Last Supper.
