England

Vatican
Piazza San Pietro
St. Peter's Basilica

St. Peter's Interior
Micelangelo's Pieta
Swiss Guards

Vatican Museums
Passage
Castle St. Angelo


The Vatican - St. Peter's Basilica		Swiss Guards

Michelangelo's Pieta		Castle St. Angelo and St. Angelo Bridge

Vatican: Vatican City, officially State of the Vatican City, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome. At approximately 110 acres, and with a population of around 800, it is the smallest independent state in the world by both population and area.

Vatican City is a city-state. It came into existence only in 1929. It is thus clearly distinct from the central authority of the Roman Catholic Church, known as the Holy See, which existed long before 1929. Ordinances of Vatican City are published in Italian. Official documents of the Holy See are issued mainly in Latin.

Piazza San Pietro: Saint Peter's Square, or Saint Peter's Piazza (Italian: Piazza San Pietro), is located directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the papal enclave within Rome

The open space which lies before the basilica was redesigned by Gian Lorenzo Bernini from 1656 to 1667, under the direction of Pope Alexander VII, as an appropriate forecourt, designed "so that the greatest number of people could see the Pope give his blessing, either from the middle of the façade of the church or from a window in the Vatican Palace". Bernini had been working on the interior of St. Peter's for decades; now he gave order to the space with his renowned colonnades, using the Tuscan form of Doric, the simplest order in the classical vocabulary, not to compete with the palace-like façade by Carlo Maderno, but he employed it on an unprecedented colossal scale to suit the space and evoke emotions of awe.

At the center of the ellipse stands an Egyptian obelisk of red granite, 25.5 meters tall, supported on bronze lions and surmounted by the Chigi arms in bronze, in all 41 meters to the cross on its top. The obelisk, of the 13th century BC, was moved to Rome in AD 37 by the Emperor Caligula to stand in the central spina of the Circus Gai et Neronis, which lay to the left of the present basilica. It was moved to its current site in 1586 by the engineer-architect Domenico Fontana under the direction of Pope Sixtus V; the engineering feat of re-erecting its vast weight was memorialized in a suite of engravings (illustrated right). The Vatican Obelisk is the only obelisk in Rome that has not toppled since ancient Roman times. During the Middle Ages, the gilt ball on top of the obelisk was believed to contain the ashes of Julius Caesar. Fontana later removed the ancient metal ball, now in a Rome museum, that stood atop the obelisk and found only dust. Though Bernini had no influence in the erection of the obelisk, he did use it as the centerpiece of his magnificent piazza.

On either side of the obelisk, there is a marker indicating the center point of the half wheel of columns on that side. If you stand on the marker and look at the columns, you will see exactly 1 column in each location and not the 4 rows of columns. The first two photos show 1 column while the other photos are taken off center to show that there are actually 4 rows on columns.

The Sistine Chapel is the small pointed roof immediately to the right of the Basilica in the distance.

St. Peter's Basilica: The Basilica of Saint Peter, officially known in Italian as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St. Peter's Basilica, is located within the Vatican City in Rome. It occupies a "unique position" as one of the holiest sites and as "the greatest of all churches of Christendom". In Catholic tradition, it is the burial site of its namesake Saint Peter, who was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus and, according to tradition, was the first Bishop of Antioch, and later first Bishop of Rome and therefore first in the line of the papal succession. While St. Peter's is the most famous of Rome's many churches, it is not the first in rank, an honour held by the Pope's cathedral church, the Basilica of St. John Lateran.

Catholic tradition holds that Saint Peter's tomb is below the altar of the basilica. For this reason, many Popes, starting with the first ones, have been buried there. There has been a church on this site since the 4th century. Construction on the present basilica, over the old Constantinian basilica, began on April 18, 1506 and was completed in 1626.

St. Peter's is famous as a place of pilgrimage, for its liturgical functions and for its historical associations. It is associated with the papacy, with the Counter-reformation and with numerous artists, most significantly Michelangelo. As a work of architecture, it is regarded as the greatest building of its age. Contrary to popular misconception, Saint Peter's is not a cathedral, as it is not the seat of a bishop. It is properly termed a basilica. Like all the earliest churches in Rome, it has the entrance to the east and the apse at the west end of the building.

People climbing to the top of the dome. We had done this on a previous trip and it gives wonderful views of the San Pietro Piazza and all of Rome.

St. Peter's Interior

Michelangelo's Pieta: The Pietà (1499) by Michelangelo is a marble sculpture in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the first of a number of works of the same theme by the artist. The statue was commissioned for the French cardinal Jean de Billheres, who was a representative in Rome. The statue was made for the cardinal's funeral monument, but was moved to its current location, the first chapel on the right as one enters the basilica, in the 18th century.

This famous work of art depicts the body of Jesus on the lap of his mother Mary after the Crucifixion. The theme is of Northern origin, popular by that time in France but not yet in Italy. Michelangelo's interpretation of the Pietà is unique to the precedents. It is an important work as it balances the Renaissance ideals of classical beauty with naturalism. The statue is one of the most highly finished works by Michelangelo.

The process took less than two years. Michelangelo's interpretation of the Pieta was far different than those previously created by other artists—he decided to create a youthful, serene and celestial Virgin Mary instead of a broken-hearted and somewhat older woman.

The Pietà's first home was the Chapel of Santa Petronilla, a Roman mausoleum near the south transept of St. Peter's, which the Cardinal chose as his funerary chapel. The chapel was later demolished by Bramante during his rebuilding of the basilica. According to Giorgio Vasari, shortly after the installation of his Pietà Michelangelo overheard someone remark that it was the work of another sculptor, Cristoforo Solari. Michelangelo then carved MICHAELA GELUS BONAROTUS FLORENTIN FACIEBA (Michelangelo Buonarroti, Florentine, made it) on the sash running across Mary's breast. It was the only work he ever signed. He later regretted his outburst of pride and swore never to sign another work of his hands.

In subsequent years the Pietà sustained much damage. Four fingers on the Virgin's left hand, broken during a move, were restored in 1736 by Giuseppe Lirioni and scholars are divided as to whether the restorer took liberties to make the gesture more 'rhetorical'. The most substantial damage occurred on May 21, 1972 (Pentecost Sunday) when a mentally disturbed geologist named Laszlo Toth walked into the chapel and attacked the Virgin with a geologist's hammer while shouting "I am Jesus Christ."

After the attack, the work was painstakingly restored and returned to its place in St. Peter's, just to the right of the entrance, between the Holy door and the altar of Saint Sebastian, and is now protected by a bullet-proof acrylic glass panel.

Swiss Guard: Swiss Guards is the name that has been given to Swiss mercenary soldiers who have served as bodyguards, ceremonial guards, and palace guards at foreign European courts from the late 15th century until the present day. They are now represented in some sense by the Papal Swiss Guard. They have generally had a high reputation for discipline and loyalty to their employers. Apart from household and guard units, some formations have also served as fighting troops in the field. There were, for example, regular Swiss mercenary regiments serving as line troops in various armies, notably those of France, Spain and Naples until the 19th century.

Various units of "Swiss Guards" have existed for hundreds of years. The earliest such detachment was the Swiss "Hundred Guard" (Cent-Garde) at the French court (1497 – 1830). This small force was complemented in 1567 by a Swiss Guard regiment. The Papal Swiss Guard in the Vatican was founded in 1506 and is the only Swiss Guard that still exists. In the 18th century several other Swiss Guards existed for periods in various European courts.

The Corps of the Pontifical Swiss Guard or Swiss Guard is a small force responsible for the safety of the Pope, including the security of the Apostolic Palace and access to the entrances to the Vatican City. Its official language is Swiss German. It serves as the de facto if not de jure Military of the Vatican City.

Museums: Various photos from throughout the museum.

Passage: The passage leading from the Vatican to Castle St. Angelo originally designed to allow the pope to escape to the protection of the Castle. In contrast to Dan Brown's book Angels and Demons, the passage is not located underground but rather a covered fortified corridor called the Passetto di Borgo. The fortress was the refuge of Pope Clement VII from the siege of Charles V's Landsknecht during the Sack of Rome (1527).

Castle St. Angelo: The Mausoleum of Hadrian, usually known as the Castel Sant'Angelo, is a towering cylindrical building in Rome, initially commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family. The building was later used as a fortress and castle, and is now a museum.

Castle St. Angelo Bridge with some of it's statues

<<< Previous Page Home >>>