Tag Archives: Tour of the Vatican

Saint Peter’s Basilica, Vatican, Rome

July 30, 2016 chaput@live.com

We toured the “Papal Basilica of St. Peter” which is commonly referred to as simply St. Peter’s Basilica.

IMG_20160720_154549128 — The St. Peter Basilica with Michelangelo’s done n the Vatican Rome

The history of the church and why it is called St Peter is interesting. Peter was one of the 12 apostles of Christ and was crucified upside down at the top of the hill called “Vaticanus” and the site of the Clementine Chapel. His remains are said to be those contained in the underground Confessio in St. Peter’s Basilica.

We entered the Basilica through the massive main doors and we were immediately exposed to the vast size of the church.

IMG_20160720_151805867 (1) — Entrance of the St. Peter Basilica in Rome

The high ceiling and ornate designs were very impressive. The high ceilings accented the vast size of the church. The ceilings were decorated with ornate gold designs and other art motifs with marble pillars throughout.

IMG_20160720_145438672 (1) — Ceiling in St Peter Basilica

IMG_20160720_145609339 — Ceiling section in St Peter Basilica

There were numerous statues throughout the church some of which were from the 1st century. These statues were created by many famous artists including Michelangelo. The first chapel on the right when we entered the Basilica contained the famous sculpture by Michelangelo “Pieta” which he completed before he was 25 years old.

IMG_20160720_145516376 (3) — Michelangelo’s “Pieta” sculpture

There were mosaic decorations that were very impressive including the mosaic decoration of the Martyrdom of St. Sebastian. It adorns the chapel of St. Sebastian and at the base of the chapel is the tomb of Saint John Paul II.

IMG_20160720_150828843 (1) — Chapel of Saint Sebastian in St. Peter Basilica

IMG_20160720_150845545 — The tomb of Saint John Paul II

The basilica floors were marble and had different designs. One area of the floor had engraved markings identifying different churches throughout the world and their size in comparison to St. Peter Basilica.

IMG_20160720_150025809 — St. Peter Basilica floor with engravings of different Churches throughout the world

We went to the center of the Basilica and looked up to see the interior of the Michelangelo’s dome decorated by Calvalier d’Arpino. It is breathtaking with the rays of the sun shining through.

IMG_20160720_150705942_HDR (1) — Interior of Michelangelo’s Dome in the St Peter Basilica

We saw so many different monuments, altars and works of art that were very impressive. One monument that was amazing was situated under the Michelangelo dome .

basilica copy — Monument under the Michelangelo dome in St Peter’s Basilica

There is an alabaster window which is quite impressive and large. It is located above the “Chair of St Peter” the window displays a dove signifying the holy spirit.

The window is very large and the dove wing span is 6 feet wide. The beauty of this window is unbelievable. The light shines through the alabaster window highlighting the dove in a stunning and brilliant manner. It is one of the most stunning pieces of art we have ever seen.

We exited the Basilica and stepped out to see and admired the St Peter Square. The size and scope of the square were amazing.

IMG_20160720_145214953 — View from the front steps of the St Peter Basilica looking towards St Peter Square

We walked through the square and stopped to see two of the swiss guards who are the official guards of the Vatican since the 15th century. They are wearing their tradition dress uniform whose design is traditionally attributed to Michelangelo.

IMG_20160720_151940551_HDR (1) — Two swiss guards protecting an entrance to the Vatican

St Peter Square is a very large area with several iconic features. The square is bordered by two colonnades. They are composed of pillars and on, top there are 140 statues of Saints.

IMG_20160720_154650099 — End of the Colonnade in St Peter Square

IMG_20160720_154556789 (1) — One of the colonnades at St Peter Square

From the far end of the square, you overlook the square with St. Peter’s Basilica and the Michelangelo dome in the distance.

IMG_20160720_154546737 — View of Saint Peter Square

The square has an Egyptian obelisk from the 1st century which was erect in the centre of the square in the fifteenth century.

IMG_20160720_152626171 — Egyptian obelisk of red granite, 25.5 metres tall, in the centre of the St Peter Square

We had a very long day walking through the Vatican museums, The Saint Peter’s Basilica and the Saint Peter Square. It was an amazing experience for us. Below are some pictures from St Peter’s Basilica and the St Peter Square.

IMG_20160720_152813730 — Ray and Shelley in the St Peter Square with the St Peter’s Basilica in the background

“bene vale , et postea videbo vos”

View of the Chair of St. Peter in the Basilica

Vatican City

The Sistine Chapel

July 28, 2016 chaput@live.com

When we entered the hallway towards the Sistine Chapel we were informed that we could not take any pictures. The reason for this was not entirely clear, however, the guide indicated it was because of copyright infringement. So we did not get any photos inside the chapel but we used non-copyright images of the Sistine Chapel that were available for the blog.

sistene chapell copy 2 — Judgement day wall and Sistine Chapel ceiling in Vatican

The pictures cannot convey the beauty and spectacular images we saw in the chapel. The artwork by Michelangelo on the Sistine Chapel ceiling was completed between 1508 and 1512 using a “frescoes” style. The process he used to paint the Sistine Chapel was extraordinary. The painting was done quickly in watercolour on the wet plaster on the ceiling so that the water colours penetrate the plaster and become fixed as it dried. This is how Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel.

The Sistine Chapel paintings were restored between 1980 and 1994 by a group of experts from the Vatican Museums, coordinated by Director Carlo Pietrangeli. The Ceiling frescoes were cleaned between 1980 and 1992, while the “Last Judgement” took four years of intense work, ending in 1994. The candle smoke and even previous restorations (which consisted painting over the frescos or retouching the colours to “brighten” them, which diminished over time)

When we entered into the Chapel we were struck by the size, brilliance, and beauty of the ceiling and walls of the chapel. The ceiling is high around 20 meters above the floor. The room was crowded and everyone was not saying a word. It was very surreal as everyone looked up and stared quietly at the ceiling admiring the paintings.

ceiling of Sistine Chapel copy — Ceiling of Sistine Chapel in Vatican

The first thing that struck me was the vibrant colours and the story behind the paintings of Michelangelo. The ceiling’s nine main sections depict stories from the Book of Genesis. The creation of the world, Adam and Eve, Noah ending with the altar wall that depicts the last judgement.

We looked at each section following the story of Genesis and admiring the work of Michelangelo.

IMG_20160728_101132626_HDR — God creating Adam with the touch of his finger

IMG_20160728_101144575_HDR — God creating Eve from the rib of Adam

IMG_20160728_101217929_HDR — The great flood

The altar wall which was painted by Michelangelo between 1536 and 1541 was twenty-five years after he finished the Sistine Chapel ceiling.

What was very interesting to us was that a Cardinal “Biagio da Cesena” indicated his dislike with the paintings because the paintings depicted nudes with exposed genitalia. That the paintings should not be in a place of worship. This upset Michelangelo so he painted Cesena’s face into the final judgement scene as being sent to the underworld. Cesena’s image is in the bottom right-hand corner of the painting. Cesena is depicted with donkey ears, and his nudity is covered by a coiled snake which is biting his genitals.

cesena copy — Cesena depicted in Judgement day at Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo

What was also very interesting was the fact that the original paintings by Michelangelo depicted everyone nude. It was two decades after it was completed when the more “prominent” nudes in The Last Judgment were painted over with underwear, or “braghe” meaning draperies after Michelangelo died in 1564. The artist Daniele da Volterra painted the underwear when the Council of Trent condemned nudity in religious art.

Seeing the Sistine Chapel was truly a once in a lifetime event. The feelings and emotions of seeing such a spectacular and historic place and seeing Michelangelo’s paintings was awe-inspiring. Words cannot begin to explain the magnificence of the Chapel.

Below is a link to view the Sistine Chapel in a 3D virtual tour.

http://www.vatican.va/various/cappelle/sistina_vr/index.html

“bene vale , et postea videbo vos”

Vatican City

A tour of the Vatican in Rome

July 27, 2016 chaput@live.com

We took a tour of the Vatican when we were in Rome. To say it was amazing would be an understatement. The Vatican is the smallest State in the world and its official language is Latin. The Vatican is so full of history, art, and architecture that it is almost surreal.

We arrived outside of the Vatican and could see the large 30 feet high stone wall which surrounds the entire Vatican. The walls which were built-in the 15th and 16th century to protect the Vatican are quite impressive. There was a major lineup of people waiting to get into the Vatican.

IMG_20160720_125644890 — Line up to enter the Vatican

IMG_20160720_130136886 — 30 feet high walls surrounding the Vatican City

The tour allowed us to by-pass the lineup and gain entry through a separate entrance. As we were walking to our entrance area we came across a very impressive gate in the Vatican wall made with stone and marble.

IMG_20160720_130126018_HDR — One of the gates into the Vatican

IMG_20160720_125954969 — Our Tour guide preparing to enter into the Vatican

Once we entered the entrance area we went through a security check. There were a lot of people at the Vatican and it was very busy.

IMG_20160720_131137416 — Heading through the security before going into the Vatican

Once we were through security we began our tour at the “Cortile della pigna” outdoor garden area. There we learned from the tour guide, what the tour would contain including The Basilica of St. Peter, The Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel and finishing in the St Peter Square. We will blog about each section in a separate blog entry because there is just so much to see and talk about.

The Vatican Museums

The Vatican museum is actually several museums in different buildings and they are very large. One of the first things we saw when entering the museum courtyard area was the large niche by Pirro Logori. The bronze pinecone on display was once in the Constantinian Basilica.

IMG_20160720_134901202 — Bronze pinecone monument with peacock birds in outside area of the Vatican Museums

We were truly amazed when we went inside the Museum, the art and architecture were beautiful. Some of the stunning and incredible things we saw were statues from the first century. One, statue, in particular, was the “Belvedere Torso” which is a fragment of a statue made of marble. This torso was found in Rome in the 15th century and it has been in the Vatican since then.

IMG_20160720_140122651 (1) — The Belvedere Torso in the Vatican Museum from the 1st century

There were numerous statues throughout the museum some dating back centuries. It was fascinating seeing the ancient statues from as far back as the first century.

IMG_20160720_135721159 — The “Laocoon” is an original Hellenistic work of the 1st century BC

IMG_20160720_135611452 — A Hellenistic statue, A roman work from the 1st century BC

We went to the Vatican gallery of maps and saw the stunning paintings on the ceiling and tapestries on the walls. The view was marvelous and almost took your breath away. The Gallery of Maps contained paintings and tapestries. The long hall had numerous different artist over the centuries paint and do the art.

IMG_20160720_142345796 — The gallery of maps Library

The ceiling was painted with different images and filled the entire ceiling area. Some of the images were beautiful.

IMG_20160720_142333416 — Gallery of maps ceiling

IMG_20160720_142130724 — Ceiling in the Gallery of Maps library

The tapestries on the walls were of the different maps of the world at the time they were created. The tapestries were hand crafted and stitched with gold thread throughout the designs. We went to the upper floor of the Gregorian Etruscan museum and saw the “round room” which was designed by Simonetti. In the middle of the round room is a large monolithic porphyry basin which is more than 4 meters in diameter.

IMG_20160720_140345454 — A large monolithic porphyry basin in the Round room of the Vatican

There is also the sarcophagus of St. Helen, the Emperor Constantine’s mother.

IMG_20160720_140634682 — The porphyry sarcophagus of St Helen, the Emperor of Constantine;s mother

We walked throughout the museums for approximately two hours exploring the numerous museums. Ray took video and was trying to see it all.

IMG_20160720_142851736_HDR — Ray taking video and enjoying the tour

Everywhere we looked there was gorgeous paintings and artwork. Even the floors were done in mosaics that displayed religious scenes.

IMG_20160720_140431964 — Mosaic artwork on the floor of the Vatican Museum

IMG_20160720_140441744 — Mosaics floor area in Vatican museum

IMG_20160720_140758098 — Mosaic tile artwork on the floor of the Vatican

IMG_20160720_141332185 — Artwork on the floor of the Vatican museum

IMG_20160720_140642313 — Mosaic artwork on floor of Vatican museum

The ceilings had different artwork and designs throughout the museums.

IMG_20160720_135838655 — Ceiling in the hallway of Vatican museum

We saw so many different and amazing pieces of art, architecture, and religious artifacts that it was almost impossible to take it all in. We will do separate blogs for the Sistine Chapel and Basilica of St. Peter.

The only drawback was the fact that there were so many tourists that the museum was very crowded. It made it difficult to see everything and the take your time to view the beautiful artwork.

Below are some of the pictures we took when in the museum sections of the Vatican.