Today was spent mostly in Vatican City. Our morning started with the Scavi Tour. A tour given to about 150 people a day that leads you into the necropolis underneath St. Peter's Basilica and ends at the tomb of Peter.
In St. Peter's Square
Jumping Pic!
The tour started in the necropolis (which means city of the dead). We entered through automatic doors used to protect the air and keep it humid and stepped into a small underground street. Initially everything we walked through was above ground however when Constantine built the first basilica he leveled the hill burying the city beneath it. The mausoleums (which were originally places for families to visit and spend time with their ancestors) were encased in dirt but preserved totally intact. Archeologists excavated here and found 100s of sarcophagi both Christian and Pagan. There are many more tombs still buried but because of the shaky foundation at the entrance to the basilica archeologists stopped digging. Inside the necropolis we saw many family mausoleums full of mosaics, urns and decorated sarcophagi. Also underground you can see where the foundation of the original basilica (which was rebuilt because it started to lean to one side) was.
The tour ended at what is believed to be Peter's tomb. When Peter died the first Christians built two 4 foot collumns as a monument to him. Constantine encased these in a 10ft marble box when he built his basilica. This all lies under what is now the papal alter and directly under the dome. Michelangelo believed this was Peter's resting place and placed his dome over it. When archeologists excavated they found the marble box as well as the (all described throughout history). They also found bone fragments wrapped in purple and gold cloth (reserved for special people). The bones were from a man around 65 years old who was short and robust (matching Peter). We could see the collumns as
Well as some inscriptions and the case the bone fragments now lie in. Pretty cool tour.
Our tour ended underground in the Varican Grottos. Here you see tombs of past pipes
And eventually end up outside the basilica. From there we skipped the line and entered the basilica to see it. St. Peter's is HUGE! As well as gorgeous!
Doors only opened once every 25 years
John Paul II's Tomb
The Dome
Papal Alter looking toward the entrance
One of the Swiss Guard
At 2:00 we had a guided tour of the Batican Museums. We saw Greek and Roman sculpture, Roman baths, and lots of art (all gifts to various popes). My favorite was the map room. It was a long hall consisting of 40 maps of various areas of Italy painted on the wall. Above the maps was a gorgeous golden ceiling and from this room you can see the gardens. We also saw 4 rooms done by Raphael for one of the pope's apartments.
In the Pinecone Courtyard. The Shpere inside and Sphere was a gift to John Paull II
A Roman copy of a Greek original. Shows a scene from the Trojan War
The Torso. Michaelangelo was asked to complete it but refused because it was perfect the way it is
Nero's bath
Mosaic that came out of a rich family's home
These statues have eyes!
The map room
Raphael's painting showing Christianity's triumph over other religions
The tour ended at the Sistine Chapel (where pictures aren't allowed but everyone takes them anyway). The last window on the right is where the smoke comes out during a papal election. The wall at the front is covered in Michaelangelo's Final Judgement a painting depicting the non-Catholics going to hell. The ceiling is covered in bible stories depicting creation of earth and man, Adam and eve and the apostles and Sybil's. Every other inch of the chapel is covered in paintings too. Including paintings of fake tapestries on the bottom section of the walls.
After we left the Vatican we headed to Castle Sant'Angelo and continued to the Pantheon (which was closed so we wandered until the mass going on inside ended). From the Pantheon we went to Piazza Navona and saw The Fountain of the Four Rivers. Here was has delicious espresso mixed with cream and liquor. We also checked out all the local artists in the square. We ended the day with a leisurely walk back to the hotel stopping at shops and for dinner along the way.
The Pantheon
Four Rivers
