Although I thought I knew what to expect in a visit to the Vatican, I was completely awed by its beauty.
Our tour of the Vatican was divided into 3 parts: Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St Peter’s Basilica.
The Vatican museum is a series of museums of art works collected under different popes. The museums contains over 20,000 art pieces on display; there are another 50,000 pieces in storage. Needless to say, we only saw a small portion of the Museums led by our very knowledgeable and delightful tour guide Gracelynn.
We start in the Pio Clementino museum which houses ancient sculptures. One of the centerpieces is the statue of Laocoon and His Sons which is believed to be from between 27 BC and 68 AD.
These are the sarcophagi of St Helena and Constantia (mother and daughter of Constantine the Great) that date back to the first century.
This is the ceiling which tells about the different regions of Italy. Pope Gregory XIII commissed this work, as well as maps of the regions.
Below is one of the Flemish tapestries created in the 1500s.
Next up is the Sistine Chapel
As the sign notes, we were not allowed to take pictures in the Chapel (you’ll need to do a google search to see it). The Sistine Chapel is visual overload. There is so much to see that you don’t know where to look first. Michangelo’s paintings are superb. We learned that Michangelos was not a painter when the pope persuaded him to paint the Chapel. On the first two Ceiling panels he had several other painters teaching how to paint. He was a quick study!
The last stop in the Vatican tour is St. Peter’s Basilica. It is difficult to describe the size and beauty of St. Peter’s. For comparison, the Statue of Liberty (including the pedestal) could stand up in the church. Other things that could fit in the church: the space shuttle with the external boosters and fuel tanks, Cinderella’s Castle, and 60,000 people.
Below is the Pope’s altar surrounded by Bernini’s baldacchino (canopy). For some perspective, there is a guard standing at the base. This picture also gives a partial view of the dome.
Along the walls of the church are sculptures and mosaics (there are no paintings) by several Renaissance artists including Bernini, Raphael, and Michelangelo
In addition to the art, the Basilica is the final resting place of 3 popes (more are buried in the crypts below the church) and the remains of St Peter, crucified on this site.
Leigh
(Picture credit goes to Bret)