9/19 Thursday
We
say a little prayer as we approach the Vatican Museums, passing the line of several
hundred not moving people waiting to buy their tickets. “Thank GOD Laurie
warned us to buy our tickets online.” We walk up to the Online Ticketholders
entry and go in, no waiting at all.
Once
we’re in, we can take our time and avoid the rushing tide of tours threatening
to sweep us away. The collections practically cover the entire time of human
existence as expressed in art, and every inch of the palatial rooms, stairways,
halls and apartments is noteworthy, masterfully painted or embellished to create
a residence worthy of the popes. It is sensory overload to the max. It would be
impossible to see everything in a day, and most of the tours are anxious for
the high points: the Raphael rooms and the Sistine Chapel, which could
certainly keep you occupied for hours. Everyone loves the Animal Room, a
fascinating collection of sculptures ranging from a life-size lion attacking a
stag to a sweet little bunny rabbit. We manage to explore several other wings,
seeing the Egyptian mummies, the reconstructed Roman chariots. We walk slowly
through the corridors, looking at the ceilings, the cabinet panels, the floor
tiles. Some of the corridors are covered with massive, elaborate tapestries.
Every inch of space in the building is worth looking at.
Most
of the tours don’t take a break for lunch, so we found a peaceful spot to share
a sandwich in the express café, tucked away behind a stairwell. It was like
sitting behind a tree with a great beehive in it, knowing that swarms of people
were in the halls just a few feet away.
The
apartments of the Cardinals painted by Raphael were wonderful to see. We could
imagine Raphael working away, taking a little break to go over to the chapel to
see how Michelangelo was doing, trying out some of his techniques on a figure
or two.
The
Sistine Chapel does not disappoint; it is spectacular. The recent restorations
may have been controversial at the time, but the results are incredible. The
colors are bright and luminous; the whole chapel is vibrant with the work. The
audio guide for the room is descriptive and interesting. The very
large room is full of people, walking with their heads tilted, stepping on each
other, but in a polite, well mannered way. The room hums with murmuring
commentary. The sound builds until, at measured intervals it seems, one of the
attending guards will shout “SILENCIO!!!
This is a HOLY PLACE!” (“You creepy tourists, you.”) The chapel becomes
silent for about five seconds, then the inevitable cycle of talking starts
again.
A
person could happily spend hours in the chapel, especially if provided with a
reclining lounge chair, but we manage to move on. We can see the lovely
gardens of the courtyard through the windows in one corridor. The centerpiece
of the garden is a large, shining bronze orb, which I recognize as the work of Pomodoro.
Here, in the center of the Vatican Museum gardens, is the orb counterpart to
our cone. Together they would recreate the emblem for the 1939 World’s Fair!
We
break off from the main stream to hunt down the collection of contemporary art,
down a stairway to a lower chamber of whitewashed rooms, looking stark after
all the rooms before. The collection is very interesting and makes us wish we
knew more about the acquisitions. Some works were probably gifts, others seem
more like commissions. “Say, the Pope likes your stuff, could you do maybe a
crucifixion scene or something for him?” The selections seem like minor works
from major artists, an interesting assortment of names. Lionel Feininger, Ben
Shan, Charles Burchfield, Paul Klee. There is a small, perfect Van Gogh Pieta,
and a sort of throw-away bas relief panel by Gauguin.
We
are getting somewhat exhausted as we stagger through yet another
corridor of exquisitely decorated cabinets, making our way to the end of the
exhibits. We are almost clear, when we come up to the Ethnographic Museum, an
entire new wing full of cultural artifacts from around the world. Again we
pray, Thank God, most of it is closed for a new exhibition. We just visit the first
room, which has some wonderful and enlightening exhibits. There is a ten foot
high feather headdress from New Guinea, and some strikingly beautiful everyday
pieces from Australia, painted with a pattern of dots and colors.
The
director of the museum provides a statement that, to paraphrase, suggests that
the primitive cultures which live, of necessity, in close harmony with nature,
respecting their environment, even honoring nature through the worship of their
own gods, are living with God in the purest sense. It seems incredibly
open-minded and radical to read such an embracing philosophy towards what is
basically paganism in the Vatican, but it makes perfect sense, too.
1 Video Included
Vatican Museum
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