Category Archives: Museums

Uffizi Gallery – The Tribuna (Florence, Italy)

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The Tribuna (Tribune)

The essential highlight of our Grand Tour of the Uffizi Gallery is the Tribuna (Tribune), an octagonal room where the most important antiquities and High Renaissance and Bolognese paintings from the Medici collection were displayed in the 18th century and are still are displayed here. Many years before the Uffizi building was officially transformed into a Gallery, the Tribuna was, in a sense, already a “museum.”

To keep the most precious artworks of the Medici collection as well as his jewels and embellishments, Grand Duke Francesco I de’ Medici (son of Cosimo I de’ Medici) asked his friend and collaborator, the architect Bernardo Buontalenti to design the Tribuna which was realized between 1581 and 1583, making it the most ancient room of the Uffizi Gallery.  At that time, the ground floor was still occupied by the Florentine magistrates.  In 1737, the Grand Duchess Anna Maria Luisa de’ Medici ceded the collection to the Tuscan government and, by the 1770s, the Uffizi (and in particular the Tribuna) was the hub for Grand Tourists visiting Florence.

The most important room at the first floor and the first nucleus of the Uffizi Gallery, it is probably the only room that, from the 16th century, has been rearranged more frequently, with artwork relocated to other museums or replaced so that the paintings and sculptures had more space.  Changes were made in 1970 and, in 2012, the restoration of the room was finished.

In 1772, Queen Charlotte of the United Kingdom commissioned Johann Zoffany‘s famous painting of the Tribuna.  It portrayed the northeast section but varies the arrangement and brings in works not normally displayed in the room, such as Raphael’s Madonna della Sedia. Connoisseurs, diplomats and visitors to Florence, all identifiable, are seen admiring the works of art.

Arrotino

The Tribuna displayed, according to the concept of a museum in that period, not just works of art (such as sculptures and paintings) but also extraordinary natural items such as precious stones, coins, etc., making it a cabinet of curios containing a condensate of knowledge. The structure was octagonal because, according to Christian tradition, eight is the number which draws near Heaven. In ancient times, octagonal plans were recurrent in the construction of important buildings as well as of baptisteries and basilicas, making the Tribuna a kind of profane temple dedicated to art.

The Dancing Faun

The incredible dome, which symbolizes the Vault of Heaven, has an external lantern with a weather vane (its movements internally reproduced on a painted wind rose) which also works as a sundial. During both equinoxes and solstices, the Sun passing through a hole displays the celestial mechanics also to “those who are inexperienced with planets and the motion of heavenly bodies.”

The Two Wrestlers

The iconography of the Tribune’s decorations and furniture was conceived by Francesco I (who dabbled in alchemy) as a full cosmos featuring the four elements:

  • Earth – represented by the floor, Architect Buontalenti realized it as a wide flower inlaid with polychrome marbles (alabaster from Northern Africa, green porphyry from Turkey, red porphyry from Egypt). Jacopo Ligozzi painted also plants and animals at the base of the walls, along the room’s perimeter.
  • Water – represented on the dome encrusted by 5,780 precious mother-of-pearls coming from the Indian Ocean and masterly set on a background painted with a scarlet varnish achieved, as it was usual in ancient times, by using millions of red cochineals. The shells on the vault refer to the emblem of Bianca Cappello, the woman that the Grand Duke loved for a long time, and that he married in the same period in which the Tribuna was built. The 130 sq. m. of ceiling was then covered, under the varnish, with layers of gold. The frescoed plinth is now lost.
  • Fire – represented by the precious red velvet on the high walls provided with gold fringes.
  • Air – symbolized by the towering lantern open to winds.

The Octagonal Table in the center

At the center of the room is an octagonal table, set with semiprecious stones by Jacopo Ligozzi. The room itself, apart from the paintings, furniture and statues, can be considered a work of art.  Among the series of ancient sculptures, which arrived from the Villa Medici in Rome in the 17th century, is the delicate, Ist century A.D. Venere Medici (Medici Venus).

The Medici Venus

No one can enter the Tribuna as the marble mosaic of the pavement cannot sustain the weight of so many visitors. The most important paintings are now in another room that aspires to reproduce the set-up of the octagonal room.  The paintings on the walls can be admired at a distance.  Still, admiring the Tribuna is, no doubt, a breathtaking experience. The high walls, which terminate with a double drum and a lantern, as well as the windows, ensure that the Tribuna has a natural enlightenment similar to modern museums. The prevalent colors are the same as those in the emblem of the Medici.

Ceiling and wall detail

In the last few years, this room was at the core of the Digital Museum project with a multimedia installation letting visitors observe a 3D version of the sculptures in the Tribune, so they can admire their details and the marvelous project of this room. 

Floor pattern detail

Tribuna: First Floor, Uffizi Gallery: Piazzale degli Uffizi (adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria), Florence, Italy. Open Tuesdays to Sundays, 8:15 AM to 6:50 PM. Closed on Mondays, December 25 and January 1.  Website: www.uffizi.it. Regular admission: €20.  Reduced Price Ticket: €2 for European Union citizens only, aged +18 | -26 upon showing passport or ID, and citizens of non-EU Countries only upon mutual agreement (Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein).  The ticket office closes at 5.30 PM and closing operations start at 6.20 PM.

Free admission for children under 18 years of any nationality (show passport or ID card, children younger than 12 must be accompanied by adults); persons with disabilities (if handicap is certified under Law 104/92, D.M. 507/97 and D.M. 13/2019); scholars; university students and teachers; student groups and teachers; tour guides and interpreters; journalists (enrolled in the Italian Association of Journalists); employees of the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism; and members of the International Council of Museums (ICOM).

Taking photographs and videos is permitted provided they are taken without flash, lights and tripods, for personal, non-profit use only. The museum’s busiest times are weekends, Tuesdays and mornings. Doubtless, the best part of the day to visit the museum is in the afternoon; better after 4 PM once large groups have left the museum.  Long lines are inevitable so, despite the slightly higher cost of entrance (extra booking fees), it is better to buy your Uffizi tickets ahead of time to skip the long line and spend more time in the museum.

How to Get There: bus service from Santa Maria Novella Station, bus 23.

Uffizi Gallery (Florence, Italy)

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Uffizi Gallery

The Uffizi Gallery (Italian: Galleria degli Uffizi), one of the most popular tourist attractions of Florence, was on our list of must see places upon our arrival in Florence.  In high season, particularly in July, waiting times can be up to five hours so we bought our tickets online prior to our departure for Italy.

Here are some interesting trivia regarding the museum:

  • With around 2 million visitors annually, it is ranked as the 25th on the most visited art museums in the world. Serious art lovers should visit the Uffizi at least twice to see all of it.
  • This building was never created to be a museum nor intended to welcome up to an average of 10,000 people a day. It was designed to bring, under one roof, the administrative offices (the name uffizi means “offices” in Italian) of the Florentine magistrates such as the Tribunal, the Archivio di Stato (state archive), judiciary offices, the seats of the Florentine Guilds and a vast theater. At first, the halls of the top floor, where the art-fond family started to place the many pieces of their personal private collections (manuscripts, gems, coins, cameos, etc.) were only accessible to the Grand Ducal family, servants and only a few select guests.  However, guests were welcomed on to admire the grandiose collection of Roman sculptures the Medici loved to collect.
  • According to Giorgio Vasari, architect of the Uffizi and the author of Lives of the Artists (published in 1550 and 1568), artists such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo were said to have gathered at the Uffizi “for beauty, for work and for recreation.”

The construction of this grandiose, U-shaped Renaissance building, right next to Palazzo Vecchio, was begun by painter, art historian and architect Giorgio Vasari in 1560 for Cosimo I de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany and was later continued by Alfonso Parigi and Bernardo Buontalenti and completed in 1581.

Check out “Palazzo Vecchio“

Statue of Cosimo de Medici

The long and narrow cortile (internal courtyard) is open to the Arno River, at its far end, through a Doric screen that articulates the space without blocking it (architectural historians treat it as the first regularized streetscape of Europe).

Its perspective length was emphasized by Vasari by the continuous roof cornices of the matching facades, unbroken cornices between storeys and the three continuous steps on which the palace-fronts stand. The niches, in the piers, alternate with columns filled with sculptures of famous artists in the XIX century.

The Uffizi was also planned to display, on the piano nobile, prime art works of the Medici collections.  The plan was carried out by Grand Duke Francesco I, Cosimo’s son, who commissioned architect Bernardo Buontalenti to design the octagonal-shaped  Tribuna degli Uffizi, the first private room dedicated to items that were “any kind of wonder” (favorite works of art,  jewels, etc.) which they through were interesting objects. A highly influential attraction of a Grand Tour and considered the most ancient and precious heart of the Uffizi, the Tribuna collected a series of masterpieces in one room.

Check out “Uffizi Gallery – The Tribuna”

The Tribuna (Tribune)

Over the years, more sections of the palace were recruited to exhibit paintings and sculpture collected or commissioned by the Medici.

After the House of Medici was extinguished, Anna Maria Luisa, the last Medici heiress, negotiated terms of the famous Patto di famiglia, allowing the art treasures to remain in Florence.  One of the first modern museums, the gallery had been open, since the sixteenth century, to visitors by request and, in 1769, the Uffizi Gallery and its treasures were officially opened by Leopold of the Lorraine to the public.

Because of its huge collection, some of its works have in the past been transferred to other museums in Florence.  For example, some its famous statues were transferred to the Bargello.

Check out “Bargello Museum”

In 2006, the museum’s exhibition space was expanded, from some 6,000 sq. m. (64,000 sq. ft.), to almost 13,000 sq. m. (139,000 sq. ft.), allowing public viewing of many artworks that have previously been in storage.

On May 27, 1993, a car bomb exploded in Via dei Georgofili, damaging parts of the palace and killing five people. The Niobe room, classical sculptures and Neo-Classical interior were most severely damaged but have been restored.

However, its frescoes were damaged beyond repair. The identity of the bomber or bombers are unknown. However, it was almost certainly attributable to the Sicilian Mafia as they were engaged in a period of terrorism at that time.

Check out “Uffizi Gallery – Great Niobe Room”

Great Niobe Room

In early August 2007, Florence and the Gallery was partially flooded during a large rainstorm, with water leaking through the ceiling.  Visitors had to be evacuated. In 1966, a much more significant flood damaged most of the art collections in Florence severely, including the Uffizi.

To enter the building, we had to get through lines and the metal detector. Upon entering, we queued, under the eyes of the bust of Peter Leopold by Francesco Carradori, while waiting to have our ticket checked.

Lorraine Antiricetto.  With a nich is the second century AD statue of Apollo restored by sculptor and architect Giovan Battista Pieratti in the first half of the 17th century.  On the left is a pillar with bas-reliefs that tell the story of military victories. In the foreground is a the sarcophagus used for Hippolytus of Rome, a very important theologian of the ancient Christian Church. On its right is a second century AD statue of a dog.

We then took two flights of Renaissance-era stairs. At the top of the main stairway is the so-called Lorraine Antiricetto, the first vestibule that leads directly onto the first corridor, which displays the busts of the Medici-Lorraines (Lorenzo the Magnificent, Ferdinand II of Lorraine, Leopold II, etc.) responsible for the wealth of art works. 

The busts of the Grand Dukes. Above the bust is the coat-of-arms of Alessandro de ‘Medici (attributed to Baccio d’Agnolo)

The busts, placed on wooden stands, each bears a shield on which golden letters show a brief elegy in Latin commemorating what each individual did for the Gallery. Also on display are statues within niches, old bas-reliefs, busts of deities, sarcophagi, urns of good design and sculpture.

then took two flights of Renaissance-era stairs before arriving at the actual entrance to the museum. Upon entry, we were welcomed by stunning frescoed ceilings and the start of its collections.

The museum is organized as a long labyrinth of rooms with amazing works of art displayed roughly in chronological order. To really enjoy these masterpieces, the newly renovated and reopened halls now have a double ceiling with more soft, better lighting.

Rucellai Madonna (Duccio di Boninsegna, 1285, tempera on wood). Here, the Virgin sits on a marvelous inlaid throne and her face, still enigmatic like that of a Byzantine icon, is softened by the hint of a smile. The heavy decoration, typical of Sienese painting of the time, is visible in the golden border of Holy Mary’s garments.

Sala 2 (Giotto and the 13th Century), the first hall, was like the inside of an ancient church, with low lighting (reminding us about candle lights).  It features a trio of giant Maestà altarpieces (tempera on wood panels) of Gothic painters – Madonna in Majesty (1285-86, 385 x 223 cm.) by Cimabue (considered the last Italian artist to be influenced by Byzantine art),  Madonna di Ognissanti (ca. 1310) by Giotto (the true originator of modern painting) and Rucellai Madonna (1285) by Duccio di Boninsegna (the most important representative of the Sienese school of painting that focused on the importance of color and decoration over drawing).

Madonna in Majesty (Cimabue, 1290-1300, tempera on wood)

Sala 3 (The Gothic Sienese School) pays homage to the 14th-century Sienese school with several delicately crafted works by Simone Martini (Annunciation with St. Margaret and St. Ansanus, 1333) and the Lorenzetti brothers (Pietro and Ambrogio). Of the brothers’ work here, Ambrogio Lorenzetti ‘s Presentation at the Temple (1342) is the finest.

The Coronation of the Virgin (Angelico Fra, 1434)

Sala 4–6 (International Gothic), introducing us to the refined style of painting known as “international or flamboyant Gothic” (developed during the late XIV and the beginning of the XV century), houses the works of the 14th-century Florentine school – Fra Angelico, Jacopo Bellini, Lorenzo Monaco (Coronation of the Virgin, 1413), and Gentile da Fabriano (Adoration of the Magi, 1423).  Here, you can clearly see the influence Giotto had on his contemporaries like Bernardo Daddi and Orcagna.

Adoration of the Magi, a masterpiece by Gentile da Fabriano (1423, tempera on wood), with its carved and gilded frame, was commissioned by Palla Strozzi (the richest citizen of Florence according to the census of 1427). A veritable example of the courteous aesthetics and its dreamy flavor, here silver and gold decorations, splendid details, plushy fabrics and gentle figures catch the eye.

At Sala 7 (Cue the Renaissance) the Renaissance proper starts taking shape, driven primarily by the quest of two artists, Paolo Uccello (The Battle of San Romano, 1456) and Masaccio (Madonna and Child with St. Anne, 1424), for perfect perspective.

The Battle of San Romano (Paolo Uccello)

In the center of the room is the unmistakable  Diptych of Duke Federico da Montefeltro  (ca. 1465 or 1470) by Piero della Francesca, one of the most impressive portraits of the Renaissance.

Madonna and Child Enthroned (Filippino Lippi, 1495-96, tempera on wood)

Sala 8 is devoted to Carmelite monk Fra’ Filippo Lippi (one of the protagonists of the early Renaissance) works such as the Madonna and Child  (1455–66, his most famous painting), Coronation of the Virgin, Allegory, Barbadori Altarpiece, etc.). Also here are a few works by Filippino Lippi, Filippo Lippi’s illegitimate son.

Adoration of the Magi (Filippino Lippi, 1496, tempera on wood)

Sala 9 is an interlude of virtuoso paintings by Antonio del Pollaiuolo, plus a number of large Virtues by Piero del Pollaiolo, his less-talented brother, both masters of anatomical verisimilitude greatly influenced the young Botticelli, three of whose early works reside in the room.

Primavera (Sandro Botticelli)

Sala 10-14 (Botticelli Room), the largest hall of the museum, houses the most stunning and breathtaking paintings by  Sandro Botticelli such as the Adoration of the Magi of 1475, Primavera, the large panel of the Allegory of Spring and the canvas of The Birth of Venus.

The Birth of Venus (Sandro Botticelli, 1484-85)

However, since spring 2015, the Botticelli Room was getting its first restoration in decades so, during our visit, these iconic paintings were temporarily displayed in Room 41, about halfway down the second floor’s Second Corridor.

Portrait of a Man with a Medal of Cosimo the Elder (Sandro Botticelli, ca. 1474)

Remaining there until early 2016, these works will be moved back and Room 41 is given over to Flemish and other northern Renaissance works.

Madonna and Child with Saints (Sandro Boticelli)

Sala 15 (The High Renaissance & Leonardo da Vinci) boasts Leonardo da Vinci’s unfinished Adoration of the Magi  (1481),  the Baptism of Christ (ca.1470-1475) and the beautiful Annunciation (ca. 1472).

Agony in the Garden (Pietro Perugino)

In addition to the works of da Vinci, there are also important works by other famous maestros active during the late 15th and early 16th century such as Pietro Perugino (Pietà, ca.1493-1494), Luca Signorelli, .Lorenzo di Credi (Adoration of the Shepherds) and Piero di Cosimo.

Crucifixion with Mary Magdalene (Luca Signorelli, 1502-05, oil on canvas)

Room 18 (The Tribune) – a small octagonal room (called the Tribuna) designed by Bernardo Buontalenti in 1584 with a pietra dura (stone inlay) floor, mother-of-pearl ceiling dome, and blood red walls covered with High Renaissance and Mannerist paintings.

Ceiling frescoes of one of the salette rooms

Past the Tribune are Sala 19–23 (The Quattrocento beyond Florence), a string of small, narrow rooms (called the salette, in Italian) with lovely but “grotesque” frescoed ceilings (by Lodovico Buti, dating back to 1588), that were reopened in April 2014 after an extensive renovation.

Another ceiling of a salette room

In the middle of the 17th century, the ceilings of the first two rooms were completely redone but the other 3 still contain their original designs which include scenes of battles and other armory-related scenes.

Self Portrait (Albrecht Durer, 1496, oil on panel)

From the end of the 16th century up until 1775, these rooms part of the most ancient section of the Gallery, housed the Medici Armory. The armory was then, in part, moved to the Fortezza da Basso.

Self Portrait (Rubens, oil on panel)

Sold in 1780, Pietro Leopoldo added the rooms to the museum and, only then, did the rooms host paintings by Flemish artists such as Rubens and Rembrandt, designs by Raffaello and prints by Dürer.

Portrait of Pope Julius II (Rafaello, 1443)

These rooms are now a repository for 44 (12 of which are paintings that have been chosen from the large deposit of works owned by the Uffizi Gallery but which were not on display before) of the Uffizi’s greatest paintings by early Renaissance artists working outside of Florence in the 15th century (an era called, in Italian, Il Quattrocento).

Sala 19 displays works by Sienese artists including two large altarpieces of the Madonna and Child Enthroned with Saints, one by Il Vecchietta (the beautiful Madonna in Throne with Saints) and the other by Giovanni di Paolo, as well as works by Matteo di Giovanni and Sano di Pietro.

Madonna and Child Enthroned With Saints (Il Vechietta)

Sala 20 features the greatest artists and works of the Northern Italian Quattrocento masters (Andrea Mantegna, Giovanni Bellini and Antonello da Messina).

Sacred Allegory (Giovanni Bellini, 1490-99,oil on panel)

They include Andrea Mantegna’s Portrait of Carlo de’ Medici, the beautiful Madonna of the Caves (set on a light green background panel) and his triptych Stories from the Life of Christ: Adoration of the Magi, Circumcision, and Ascension (1463–70).

Sacred Allegory (Giovanni Bellini, 1490-99,oil on panel)

Also on display here is Giovanni Bellini‘s Portrait of a Gentleman in his Red Cap and his Sacred Allegory; and a pair of rare works by Antonella da Messina, an early Renaissance master from Sicily.

Sala 20 features the greatest artists and works of the Northern Italian Quattrocento masters. They include Andrea Mantegna’s Portrait of Carlo de’ Medici and his triptych Scenes from the Life of Christ: Adoration of the Magi, Circumcision, and Ascension (1463–70).

Scenes From the Life of Christ (Andrea Mantegna, 1463-64, tempera on panel)

Also on display here is Giovanni Bellini‘s Portrait of a Gentleman in his Red Cap and his Alegoria Sacra; and a pair of rare works by Antonella da Messina, an early Renaissance master from Sicily,.

Sala 21 (The Quattrocento of the Veneto ) features works by Vittore Carpaccio, Cima da Conegliano, etc..

Some of the ceiling decorations in Sala 21 was destroyed in 1944 during the bombing of the streets and bridges along the Arno river by the Germans. In memory of this event, a new mural painting, based on a design by Vittorio Granchi, was made in this spot representing the area after its destruction, with the date “August 1944.”

Madonna and Child (Cima da Conegliano, ca. 1504, tempera on panel)

Sala 22 (Quattrocento of Emilia-Romagna) features the works of Lorenzo Costa, Cosmè Tura, etc. and Sala 23 (Quattrocento of Lombardy) the works of Vincenzo Foppa, Bernardino Luini, etc.

The Doni Tondo (Michaelangelo, 1506-08, tempera on wood)

The fairly new Sala 35, opened in January 2013,  charts the course of art from the period called “High Renaissance” until its final evolution called “Mannerism,” the artistic movement inspired by   Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael.

Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist and St. Job (Franciabigio, early 16th century)

It displays the Doni Tondo (or the Holy Family with the Infant and St. John the Baptist, ca. 1506-1508) of Michelangelo, the only painting by the great artist remaining in Florence, and certainly the only one that is attributed with certainty to the artist that can be moved (not painted directly on a wall).

Salome (Alonso Berruguette, ca. 1512-16) (1)

Vision of St. Bernard (Fra Bartolommeo)

The new hall also contains works by Andrea del Sarto, Franciabigio, Francesco Granacci, Fra Bartolomeo and Alonso Berruguete, to name just a few.

Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist and St. Job (Franciabigio, early 16th century)

Joseph Led to Prison (Francesco Granacci, 1515)

In the center of the room is the Sleeping Arianne, a Roman sculpture dating back to the second century A.C.

Sleeping Ariadne

Sala 66 houses  Raphael’s portraits and The Annunciation (1475-80), Leonardo da Vinci ‘s one and only completed panel painting.

Portrait of Pope Leo X with Two Cardinals (Raphael)

The beautiful, long Sala 83 displays 10 works by the great portraitist Titian (also well known by his Italian name, Tiziano), the leading figure of the Venetian school. 

Flora by Titian (ca. 1515-17, oil on canvas) is a sensual image greatly admired long before it arrived in the Uffizi’s collection in 1793 (after an exchange with the Imperial Gallery of Vienna). The beautiful woman, appearing as the Goddess of Fecundity, is also a portrait of a future wife, with similar symbols employed in his more famous Venus of Urbino.

They include Flora,Venus of Urbino, Madonna of the Roses, Portrait of a Knight of Malta, Portrait of Francesco Maria della, Portrait of Pope Sixtus IV, Portrait of Eleonora Gonzaga della Rovere, etc.)

The famous Venus of Urbino, by Titian (1538, oil on canvas), is a masterpiece of sophistication and sensuality

Sala 90 includes 3 masterpieces by Michelangelo Merisi (more widely known as Caravaggio).  According to lore, the Shield with the Head of Medusa says that the face is actually a self-portrait of when the artist was younger.

Sacrifice of Isaac (Caravaggio)

The very famous Bacchus Holding his Goblet of Wine has extraordinarily detailed particulars that make the setting come to life. The Sacrifice of Isaac reveals elements the artist used often as a young painter.

Medusa (Carravaggio, 1597, oil on canvas covered panel)

Other famous works from the painting collection include:

The author with the Madonna of the Goldfinch (Raphael, 1505-06, tempera on wood) in the background

Though the Uffizi Gallery is known worldwide for its famous paintings, it was once called the “Gallery of statues” since the first collection displayed consisted mainly in ancient Roman and Greek statues.

Doryphoros torso

Some of the famous statues of the Medici’s later collections that we can admire today are the wonderful Venus, in the Tribuna, and the so-called Niobe group for which a room of its own was created.

Hercules and Nessus

Moreover, many are the alternating statues and busts displayed all along the wide corridors which outline the u-shaped second floor of the museum.  They include:

Apollo Playing the Cithara

Along the corridors are wide windows where we had great views of  the San Miniato Church, the Bardini Gardens and the Ponte Vecchio over the Arno River.

View of the Arno River from the Uffizi Gallery

Uffizi Gallery: Piazzale degli Uffizi (adjacent to the Piazza della Signoria), Florence, Italy. Open Tuesdays to Sundays, 8:15 AM to 6:50 PM. Closed on Mondays, December 25 and January 1.  Website: www.uffizi.it. Regular admission: €20.  Reduced Price Ticket: €2 for European Union citizens only, aged +18 | -26 upon showing passport or ID, and citizens of non-EU Countries only upon mutual agreement (Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein). The ticket office closes at 5.30 PM and closing operations start at 6.20 PM.

Free admission for children under 18 years of any nationality (show passport or ID card, children younger than 12 must be accompanied by adults); persons with disabilities (if handicap is certified under Law 104/92, D.M. 507/97 and D.M. 13/2019); scholars; university students and teachers; student groups and teachers; tour guides and interpreters; journalists (enrolled in the Italian Association of Journalists); employees of the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism; and members of the International Council of Museums (ICOM).

Taking photographs and videos is permitted provided they are taken without flash, lights and tripods, for personal, non-profit use only. The museum’s busiest times are weekends, Tuesdays and mornings. Doubtless, the best part of the day to visit the museum is in the afternoon; better after 4 PM once large groups have left the museum.  Long lines are inevitable so, despite the slightly higher cost of entrance (extra booking fees), it is better to buy your Uffizi tickets ahead of time to skip the long line and spend more time in the museum.

How to Get There: bus service from Santa Maria Novella Station, bus 23.

Borghese Gallery (Rome, Italy)

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Borghese Gallery (Galleria Borghese)

Borghese Gallery (Galleria Borghese)

The Galleria Borghese (English: Borghese Gallery), an art gallery housed in the former Villa Borghese Pinciana, houses the largest collection of private art in the world – a substantial part of the Borghese collection of paintings, sculpture and antiquities, begun by Cardinal Scipione Borghese, the nephew of Pope Paul V (reign 1605–1621), an early patron of Bernini and an avid collector of works by Caravaggio.

Museum lobby

Museum lobby

Borghese used it as a villa suburbana, a party villa at the edge of Rome. The collection was originally housed in the cardinal’s residence near St Peter’s but, in the 1620s, he had it transferred to the Casino Borghese, the central building of his new villa just outside Porta Pinciana.  Here are some historical trivia regarding the villa:

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  • The villa was built between 1613 and 1614 by the architectFlaminio Ponzio and Vasanzio, developing sketches by Scipione Borghese himself.
  • About 1775, Prince PrinceMarcantonio IV Borghese added much of the lavish Neo-Classical décor. Under the guidance of the architect Antonio Asprucci, the now-outdated tapestry and leather hangings were replaced, the Casina was renovated and the Borghese sculptures and antiquities were restaged in a thematic new ordering that celebrated the Borghese position in Rome.
  • In 1808, PrinceCamillo Borghese, Napoleon’s brother-in-law, was forced to sell the Borghese Roman sculptures and antiquities to the Emperor.
  • In 1902, the entire Borghese estate and surrounding gardens and parkland were eventually sold to the Italian government.
  • The late 18th century rehabilitation of the much-visited villa as a genuinely public museum was the subject of an 2000 exhibition at theGetty Research Institute, Los Angeles, spurred by the Getty’s acquisition of 54 drawings related to the project.

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The important collection of paintings by Caravaggio, Raphael and Titian, as well as some sensational sculptures by Bernini  and Canova are arranged around 20 decorated rooms over two floors.

Trompe l'oeil ceiling fresco by the Sicilian artist Mariano Rossi

Trompe l’oeil ceiling fresco by the Sicilian artist Mariano Rossi

The ground floor gallery is mainly dedicated to Classical antiquities of the 1st–3rd centuries AD, Classical and Neo-Classical sculpture, intricate Roman floor mosaics (including a famous 320–30 AD mosaic of gladiators found on the Borghese estate at Torrenova, on the Via Casilina outside Rome, in 1834) and over-the-top frescoes.  Its decorative scheme includes a trompe l’oeil ceiling fresco in the first room (or Salone),  by the Sicilian artist Mariano Rossi that makes such good use of foreshortening so much so that it appears almost three-dimensional.The upper floor houses the pinacoteca (picture gallery), a snapshot of Renaissance art.

Pinacoteca (picture gallery)

Pinacoteca (picture gallery)

The entrance hall is decorated with 4th-century floor mosaics of fighting gladiators and a 2nd-century Satiro Combattente (Fighting Satyr). High on the wall is the Marco Curzio a Cavallo, a gravity-defying bas-relief, by Pietro Bernini (Gian Lorenzo’s father), of a horse and rider falling into the void. 

Antonio Canova's Venere vincitrice (Victorious Venus or Venus Victrix, 1805–08), a daring depiction of Paolina Bonaparte Borghese, Napoleon's sister

Antonio Canova’s Venere vincitrice (Victorious Venus or Venus Victrix, 1805–08), a daring depiction of Pauline Bonaparte Borghese, Napoleon’s sister

Sala I is centered on Antonio Canova’s Venere vincitrice (Victorious Venus or Venus Victrix, 1805–08), a daring depiction of Pauline Bonaparte Borghese, Napoleon’s sister, reclining topless. It is the most famous piece in the museum and virtually its symbol.

Apollo Chasing Daphne (Gian Lorenzo Bernini)

Kyle and Grace in front of statue of Apollo and Daphne (Gian Lorenzo Bernini)

Gian Lorenzo Bernini‘s spectacular output of secular sculpture of flamboyant depictions of pagan myths also steal the show.  In the swirling Apollo e Dafne (Apollo and Daphne, 1622–25, created by Bernini at the tender age of 24 for the Scipione Borghese) in Sala III, Daphne’s hands morph into leaves, while in the dynamic Ratto di Proserpina (Rape of Proserpine, 1621–22) in Sala IV, Pluto’s hand presses into the seemingly soft flesh of Persephone’s thigh.

Rape of Proserpine (Gian Lorenzo Bernini)

Rape of Proserpine (Gian Lorenzo Bernini)

All are considered seminal works of Baroque sculpture. Other works include Goat Amalthea with Infant Jupiter and Faun (1615), David (1623) and Aeneas, Anchises & Ascanius (1618–19).

Author in front of statue of Aeneas, Anchises & Ascanius

Author in front of statue of Aeneas, Anchises & Ascanius

Sala VIII (Sala de Sileno) is dominated by works by Caravaggio including the dissipated-looking Bacchino Malato (Young Sick Bacchus; 1592–95), the strangely beautiful La Madonna dei Palafenieri (Madonna with Serpent; 1605–06) and San Giovanni Battista (St John the Baptist; 1609–10), probably Caravaggio’s last work.

David (Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1623)

David (Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1623)

There’s also the much-loved Ragazzo col Canestro di Frutta (Boy with a Basket of Fruit, 1593–95), St Jerome Writing (1606), and the dramatic Davide con la Testa di Golia (David with the Head of Goliath; 1609–10, Goliath’s severed head is said to be a self-portrait sent to the Pope to beg for forgiveness after Caravaggio was accused of murder).

Fragment of mosaics

Fragment of mosaics

Upstairs, the pinacoteca displays Raphael’s extraordinary La Deposizione di Cristo (Entombment of Christ, 1507) in Sala IX, and his Dama con Liocorno (Lady with a Unicorn; 1506). In the same room is Fra Bartolomeo’s superb Adorazione del Bambino (Adoration of the Christ Child; 1495) and Perugino’s Madonna con Bambino (Madonna and Child; first quarter of the 16th century).

Leda and the Swan (followers of Leonardo da Vinci)

Leda and the Swan (followers of Leonardo da Vinci)

Madonna and Child (Giovanni Battista Sassoferrato)

Madonna and Child (Giovanni Battista Sassoferrato)

Other highlights include Correggio’s erotic Danae (1530–31) in Sala X, Bernini’s self-portraits in Sala XIV, and Titian‘s early masterpiece, Amor Sacro e Amor Profano (Sacred and Profane Love; 1514) in Sala XX.

Sleeping Venus (Girolamo da Treviso il Giovane)

Sleeping Venus (Girolamo da Treviso il Giovane)

The Deposition (Peter Paul Rubens)

The Deposition (Peter Paul Rubens)

There are also works by Peter Paul Rubens and Federico Barocci. In addition, several portrait busts are included in the gallery, including one of Pope Paul V, and two portraits of Cardinal Scipione Borghese (1632, the second portrait was produced after the a large crack was discovered in the marble of the first version during its creation).

Mourning the Dead Christ (Ortolano)

Mourning the Dead Christ (Ortolano)

Borghese Gallery: Piazzale del Museo Borghese, 5, 00197 Rome, Italy. Tel: +39 06 841 3979 and +39 06 32810. Open Mondays to Fridays, 9 AM – 6 PM, Saturdays, 9 AM – 1 PM.  Website: www.galleriaborghese.it. Admission: € 11.00. To limit numbers, visitors are admitted at two-hourly intervals, so you’ll need to pre-book your ticket and get an entry time.

How to Get There: Pinciana- Museo Borghese (Bus 52, 53, 83, 92, 217, 360, 910)

Castel Sant’Angelo (Vatican City)

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Castel Sant’Angelo

Castel Sant’Angelo

The towering, cylindrical Castel Sant’Angelo (English: Castle of the Holy Angel) was initially commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian  in 123 AD (finished in 139 AD) as a mausoleum (a decorated cylinder, with a garden top and golden quadriga) for himself, his wife Sabina, and his first adopted son, Lucius Aelius. The remains of succeeding emperors (the last recorded deposition being Caracalla in 217) were also interred there.   Here’s some historical trivia regarding Castel Sant’Angelo:

Entrance

Entrance

  • Aside from a mausoleum, the monument has gone through several different uses. In 401, it lost its native function and became a fortified military outpost in order to defend Rome. In 271 AD, it was subsequently included in the Aurelian Walls by Flavius Augustus Honorius. Beginning in the 14th century, after different changes of properties between the noble Roman families, the Castel Sant’Angelo tied its fate to that of the popes who converted the structure into a castle.  At the beginning of the 11th century, the Papal state also used Castel Sant’Angelo as a prison (up to 1906).  Prisoners here include Giordano Bruno (accused of heresy and imprisoned here for six years); wizard, masonic alchemist and healer Count Cagliostro; and sculptor and goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini (the only one who managed to escape the fortress). Executions, by decapitation, were performed in the small inner courtyard.
  • It was once the tallest building in Rome.
  • The Castel is the only building that has followed the development of the city of Rome for about 2000 years (other Roman monuments were reduced to ruins or used as quarries to pick up materials to recycle in new, modern constructions).
  • There’s a secret, covered, 800 m. long fortified corridor called the Passetto di Borgo, built by Pope Nicholas III  in 1277.  It leads from Castel Sant’Angelo to the Leonine walls and Peter’s Basilica. During the famous Sack of Rome (1527), the scurrying Pope Clement VII used it to escape the siege of Holy Roman Emperor  Charles V‘s Landsknechte. Borgia Pope Alexander VI also used it in 1494 to escape to the castle and from Charles VIII troops.
  • The bronze statue of the Archangel Michael on the roof depicts the legendary sighting, by Pope Gregory I (the Great), of the specter in the year 590 when he appeared and sheathe his sword as a sign of the end of the destructive plague that had seized the city, thus lending the castle its present name – the Castle of the Saint Angel.
  • Its terrace was also the setting for the third act of Giacomo Puccini‘s 1900 opera Tosca where the eponymous heroine, wild with pain for the loss of her lover and chased by the guards, leaps to her death from the Castel’s ramparts.
  • Decommissioned in 1901, the castle is now a museum, the National Museum of Castel Sant’Angelo (Museo Nazionale di Castel Sant’Angelo).
Entrance Ramp

Entrance Ramp

The building consists of a square, 89 m. (292 ft.) wide base on which a cylindrical colonnaded drum, with a diameter of 64 m. and covered with an earthen tumulus (topped with a statue of Hadrian driving a quadriga), was constructed.

Terrace

Terrace

View of Rome from terrace

View of Rome from terrace

With its chunky round keep, this castle is an instantly recognizable landmark. A huge spiral ramp ascends upwards the Castel Sant Angelo for about 400 feet.  The panoramic terrace, two storeys up, offers unforgettable views over Rome.

Angel Statue (Peter Anton von Verschaffelt)

Angel Statue (Peter Anton von Verschaffelt)

At the top of the fortress, overlooking the terrace, is a bronze statue of Saint Michael holding his sword, executed in 1753 by the Flemish sculptor Peter Anton von Verschaffelt. It replaced a marble statue, of the same subject, created in 1536 by Raffaello da Montelupo. Montelupo’s can still be seen in an open court in the Castel interior.

Statue of Michael the Archangel (Raffaello da Montelupo)

Statue of Michael the Archangel (Raffaello da Montelupo)

The castle’s upper floors are filled with lavishly decorated Renaissance interiors, including the beautifully frescoed Sala Paolina built by Paul III. The notoriously and sumptuously lavish Papal Apartments, complete with gardens and fountains, was built by the infamous Borgia Pope Alexander VI.  Known to have the most opulent of decorations and designs, it was said to even have one room painted by Raphael.

Pauline Hall (Sala Paolina)

Pauline Hall (Sala Paolina)

The Farnese apartment overlooks the interior Courtyard of the Angel, so called because it houses the original angel that used to perch on the top of the castle until 1747. However, this piazza has had other names, such as the ‘Courtyard of Shootings’ or ‘Courtyard of the Bell’ where from there it was possible to hear the bell tolling announcing the impending executions. Leo X built a chapel with a Madonna by Raffaello da Montelupo. Below the apartments are several floors which include prisons and even a torture chamber.

Treasury Room

Treasury Room

The Hall of Urns, in what is now known as the Treasury room deep within the heart of the building, is where the urn containing Hadrian’s ashes (scattered by Visigoth looters during Alaric‘s sacking of Rome in 410) are believed to be kept. Its museum has an eclectic collection of Renaissance paintings, sculpture, pottery, military memorabilia and antique Medieval firearms (many used by soldiers fighting to protect the castle).

Ponte Sant'Angelo

Ponte Sant’Angelo

The now solely pedestrian, 135 m. (443 ft.) long Ponte Sant’Angelo (formerly the Pons Aelius), also built by Hadrian, faces straight onto the Castel. Renowned for the Baroque additions of statues of angels holding aloft elements of the Passion of Christ, it still provides a scenic approach from the center of Rome and the right bank of the Tiber.

The author at the terrace

The author at the terrace

Castel Sant’Angelo: Lungotevere Castello 50, Parco Adriano, 00193 Rome, Italy.  Open April-September, 9 AM – 7:30 PM, October-March, 9 AM -2 PM. Closed on public holidays. Last admission 1 hour before closing time.  Admission: Adults €8, reduced ticket €6. Website: www.castelsantangelo.com. E-mail: info@castelsantangelo.com.

How to Get There:

– Lepanto (Metro A) Ottaviano (Metro A). From Termini take bus #40 Express.  From Piazza Navona take Zanardelli St.  north to Ponte Umberto I Bridge.  After the bridge turn left and Lung Castello will take you straight to the castle.  From the Vatican walk east, along Via di Conciliazione Pia, directly to the castle.

Vatican Museum – Sistine Chapel (Vatican City)

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The Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel

The piece de resistance of our visit to the Vatican Museums is the Sistine Chapel, a high, rectangular chapel in the Apostolic Palace (the official residence of the Pope in Vatican City) and the very last sala within the museum. A place of both religious and functionary papal activity, it is the site of the Papal conclave, the process by which each successive pope is selected by the College of Cardinals.

Old Testament Books of the Bible - Isaiah

Old Testament Books of the Bible – Isaiah

Originally known as the Cappella Magna, the present chapel, on the site of the Cappella Maggiore, was designed by Baccio Pontelli for Pope Sixtus IV, for whom it is named, and built under the supervision of Giovannino de Dolci between 1473 and 1481. The pope also hired the most famous High Renaissance artists (including Sandro Botticelli, Pietro Perugino, Pinturicchio, Domenico Ghirlandaio and Cosimo Roselli) to create a series of frescos, completed in 1482, depicting the Life of Moses and the Life of Christ, offset by papal portraits above and trompe l’oeil drapery below. On August 15, 1483, the Feast of the Assumption, Sixtus IV consecrated the Sistine Chapel, dedicated it to the Virgin Mary, and celebrated the first mass.

Drunkenness of Noah

Drunkenness of Noah

Here are some trivia regarding the chapel:

  • The chapel is 40.9 m. (134 ft.) long by 13.4 m. (44 ft.) wide, the same dimensions of the Temple of Solomon, as given in the Old Testament.
  • It has an unadorned exterior façade, devoid of architectural or decorative details (common in many Italian Medieval and Renaissance-era churches), which can only be seen only from nearby windows and light-wells in the palace.
  • It has no exterior processional doorways. Ingress has always been from internal rooms within the Apostolic Palace.
  • Very large buttresses  brace the exterior walls.
  • The building is divided into three stories. The lowest storey is a very tall basement level, robustly vaulted to support the Sistine Chapel above, with several utilitarian windows and a doorway giving onto the exterior court. The third storey, a wardroom for guards above the vault, has an open, roofed, projecting gangway which encircles the building, supported on an arcade springing from the walls.
  • The Sistine Chapel has 6 tall arched windows down each side and two at either end, several of which have been blocked.
The arched windows

The tall arched windows on the side walls

  • The 20.7 m. (68 ft.) high ceiling is a flattened barrel vault springing from a course that encircles the walls at the level of the springing of the window arches. It is cut transversely by smaller vaults over each window which divide the barrel vault, at its lowest level, into a series of large pendentives rising from shallow pilasters between each window.
  • The pavement, in opus alexandrinum (a decorative style using marble and colored stone in a pattern that reflects the earlier proportion in the division of the interior), marks, from the main door, the processional way used by the Pope on important occasions such as Palm Sunday.
  • A screen (transenna), sculpted in marble by Mino da Fiesole, Andrea Bregno and Giovanni Dalmata (they also provided the cantoria or projecting choir gallery), divides the chapel into two parts.  It is surmounted by a row of ornate, once gilt candlesticks and has a wooden door (formerly an ornate door of gilded wrought iron).
The ceiling frescoes

The ceiling frescoes

The chapel’s fame, however, lies mainly in the frescoes by Michelangelo that decorate the interior, most particularly the Sistine Chapel ceiling, a masterpiece without precedent that was to change the course of Western art.  Michelangelo used bright colors, easily visible from the floor. Ever since they were revealed five hundred years ago, the fame of Michelangelo’s paintings has drawn multitudes of visitors to the chapel.

Eritrean Sibyl

Eritrean Sibyl

Here is the timeline of the painting of the walls and ceiling of the chapel:

The Last Supper (Cosimo Rosselli)

The Last Supper (Cosimo Rosselli)

Perugino's Keys to Peter

Pietro Perugino’s “”Delivery of the Keys to Peter”

  • In 1572, the eastern wall was repainted with the Resurrection of Christ by Hendrick van den Broeck (over Domenico Ghirlandaio’s original) and, in 1574, by the Disputation over Moses’ Body by Matteo da Lecce (over Luca Signorelli’s original).
  • The ceiling of the barrel vault was first painted in brilliant-blue, studded with gold stars, to the design of Piermatteo Lauro de’ Manfredi da Amelia, and with decorative borders around the architectural details of the pendentives.
  • The ceiling, entirely replacing the old one, was commissioned by Pope Julius II and painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and November 2, 1512. Originally commissioned to paint the 12 Apostles on the triangular pendentives which support the vault, Michelangelo, however, demanded a free hand in the pictorial content of the scheme and he painted a series of 9 pictures showing God’s Creation of the World, God’s Relationship with Mankind, and Mankind’s Fall from God’s Grace. On the large pendentives he alternately painted 12 Biblical and Classical men and women, with Jonah over the altar, who prophesied that God would send Jesus Christ for the salvation of mankind.  On the highest section, Michelangelo painted 9 stories from the Book of Genesis. Around the arched tops of the upper parts of the windows, on the lowest part of the ceiling, are areas known as the lunettes which Michelangelo painted with the Ancestors of Christ as part of the scheme for the ceiling.
The Ancestors of Christ

The Ancestors of Christ

  • Between 1535 and 1541, between two important historic events (the Sack of Rome by mercenary forces of the Holy Roman Empire in 1527 and the Council of Trent which commenced in 1545), Popes Clement VII and Paul III Farnese commissioned Michelangelo to decorate the entire wall above and behind the altar with The Last Judgment (depicting the second coming of Christ on the Day of Judgment as described in the Revelation of John, Chapter 20).  The painting of this scene, designed on a grand scale, necessitated the obliteration of two episodes from the Lives, the Nativity of Jesus and the Finding of Moses; several of the Popes and two sets of Ancestors.  High on the wall is the heroic figure of Christ, with the saints clustered in groups around him while, at the bottom left of the painting, the dead are raised from their graves and ascend to be judged. To the right are those who are assigned to Hell and are dragged down by demons.
  • On November 7, 1984, the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling restoration began. The chapel was re-opened to the public on April 8, 1994.
Noah After The Flood

Noah After The Flood

Here are some interesting trivia regarding the paintings:

  • Contrary to popular belief, Michelangelo did not lie on the scaffolding (which he designed and built) while he painted, but painted from a standing position.
  • The Last Judgment was an object of a bitter dispute between Cardinal Carafa and Michelangelo because he depicted naked figures (the artist was accused of immorality and obscenity).  A censorship campaign (known as the “Fig-Leaf Campaign”) was organized by Carafa and Monsignor Sernini (Mantua‘s ambassador) to remove the frescoes. The genitalia in the fresco were later covered by the artist Daniele da Volterra, whom history remembers by the derogatory nickname “Il Braghettone” (“the breeches-painter”).
  • In The Last Judgment, Michelangelo painted his own portrait on the flayed skin held by St Bartholomew. The semblance of Biagio da Cesena, the Pope’s Master of Ceremonies  and another of Michelangelo’s critics, was worked into the scene as Minos, judge of the Underworld (it is said that when he complained to the Pope, the pontiff responded that his jurisdiction did not extend to Hell, so the portrait would have to remain).
Adam and Eve

Adam and Eve

  • After the ceiling work was finished, there were more than 300 figures showing Biblical scenes such as the Creation, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and the Great Flood. The painted area is about 40 m. (131 ft.) long by 13 m. (43 ft.) wide which means that Michelangelo painted well over 5,000 sq. ft. (460 m2) of frescoes.
The Great Flood

The Great Flood

  • During the 1984-1994 restoration, the ceiling, painted by Michelangelo, caused the most concern because the emergence of the brightly colored Ancestors of Christ from the gloom sparked a reaction of fear that the processes being employed in the cleaning were too severe and removed the original intent of the artist.

Vatican Museums (Vatican City)

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The Vatican Museums (Italian: Musei Vaticani) display works from the immense collection built up by the Popes throughout the centuries including some of the most renowned classical sculptures and most important masterpieces of Renaissance art in the world. The Sistine Chapel (the very last sala within the museum), with its ceiling decorated by Michelangelo, and the Stanze di Raffaello, decorated by Raphael, are on the visitor route through the Vatican Museums. The group of museums includes several sculpture museums surrounding the Cortile del Belvedere.

Entrance to the Vatican Museums

Entrance to the Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums trace their origin to the marble sculpture Laocoön and his Sons which was discovered on January 14, 1506, in a vineyard near the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, purchased from the vineyard owner by Pope Julius II and placed on public display at the Vatican exactly one month after its discovery. On October 2006, the Museums celebrated their 500th anniversary by permanently opening the excavations of a Vatican Hill necropolis to the public.

Laocoon group

Laocoon and his Sons

Here’s some trivia regarding the Vatican Museums:

The new building, designed by Luca Beltrami, was inaugurated on October 27, 1932. The museum has paintings including:

Other notable museums and galleries include:

Contemporary Art Collection (Collezione Arte Contemporanea)

Contemporary Art Collection (Collezione Arte Contemporanea)

Matisse Room (Sala Matisse)

Matisse Room (Sala Matisse)

  • The Greek Cross Gallery (Sala a Croce Greca) houses a 3rd century mosaic from Tusculum in the middle and two colossal sarcophagi in red porphyry. The sarcophagus on the left (4th century) belonged to Saint Helen, mother of Constantine the Great (306-337), comes from her mausoleum in Via Labicana.  The sarcophagus on the right belonged to Constance, Emperor Constantine’s daughter and was in the Church of Santa Costanza in Via Nomentana.
Greek Cross Gallery (Sala a Croce Greca)

The 3rd century mosaic from Tusculum at the Greek Cross Gallery (Sala a Croce Greca)

Sarcopahgus of Costanza

Sarcopahgus of Costanza

  • The Round Room (Sala Rotonda), built by Michelangelo Simonetti in the late 18th century in a pure Neo-Classical style, has a 21.60 m. diameter dome actually modeled on the Pantheon.   It has impressive and fascinating ancient 3rd century mosaics from the Baths of Otricoli (Umbria region ) on the floors and ancient statues lining the perimeter, including a 2nd century gilded bronze statue of Hercules found near the Theater of Pompey. In the middle of the room is a huge round monolithic porphyry basin, measuring almost 5 m. across, which came from the Domus Aurea and was brought here in the late 18th century.
Round Room (Sala Rotonda)

Round Room (Sala Rotonda)

  • The Gallery of Maps (Galleria della Carte Geografiche) features topographical maps of the whole of Italy, painted between 1580 and 1585 on the walls by friar Ignazio Danti of Perugia, a famous geographer of the time, commissioned by Pope Gregory XIII (1572–1585). It remains the world’s largest pictorial geographical study. It takes its name from the 40 maps frescoed on the walls, which represent the Italian regions and the papal properties at the time of Pope Gregory XIII (1572-1585). Considering the Apennines as a partition element, on one side the regions surrounded by the Ligure and Tyrrhenian Seas are represented; on the other, the regions surrounded by the Adriatic Sea. The map of the main city accompanies each regional map.
The author at the Gallery of Maps (Galleria della Carte Geografiche)

The author at the Gallery of Maps (Galleria della Carte Geografiche)

  • The Gallery of the Statues (Galleria delle Statue), originally an open loggia of the Palace of Innocent VIII and later walled in during the second half of the 18th century, holds various precious and important Roman statues including some copies of Greek statues of the Classical period (5th-4th century B.C.) such as the bust of Menander; the Apollo Sauroktonos, the lizard-killer, copied from Praxiteles (c.350 B.C.); and the famous Sleeping Ariadne, a Roman copy of the 2nd century from an original by the School of Pergamon (2nd century B.C.).  It also contains the Barberini Candelabra.
  • The Gallery of the Busts (Galleria dei Busti) displays many ancient busts of Roman emperors.
  • The Gallery of the Candelabra (Galleria dei Candelabri), originally an open loggia built in 1761 and walled up at the end of the 18th century, has a ceiling was painted in 1883-1887. The gallery contains Roman copies of Hellenistic originals (3rd-2nd century B.C.) and some great 2nd century candelabra from Otricoli.
Gallery of the Candelabra

Gallery of the Candelabra (Galleria dei Candelabri)

  • The Chariot Room, a late 18th century room, contains a large marble Roman chariot drawn by two horses, dating from the 1st century A.D., but heavily restored in 1788. The copy of the famous Discobolus found in Hadrian’s Villa (Villa Adriana) at Tivoli, from a bronze Greek original by Myron (c. 460 B.C.) is also displayed here.
The Chariot Room

The Chariot Room

  • The Cabinet of the Masks (Gabinetto delle Maschere) has a mosaic on the floor of the gallery, found in Hadrian’s Villa (Villa Adriana), which shows ancient theater masks. Several famous statues are shown along the walls including the Three Graces (one wove the thread of life, the second nurtured it and the third cut it) and the remarkable Roman Venus of Cnidos (the original, mid 4th century B.C., also by Praxiteles, came from the Greek sanctuary of Cnidos and was much admired in antiquity).
  • The Room of Muses (Sala delle Muse), octagonal in shape, houses the 4th century BC statue group of Apollo and the nine Muses (copied from Greek originals and uncovered in 1774 in a Roman villa near Tivoli) as well as and statues by important ancient Greek philosophers and writers (Homer, Socrates, Plato, Euripides, etc.). Its center piece is the famous Belvedere Torso, a 1st century B.C. original by the Athenian sculptor Apollonius and revered by Michelangelo and other Renaissance men for its powerful and vigorous muscolature. Recent studies identify the statue with the figure of the Greek hero Ajax.
Room of the Muses

Room of the Muses

Belvedere Torso

Belvedere Torso

  • The Room of the Animals (Sala degli Animali) is so named because of the many ancient Roman statues of animals, heavily restored at the end of the 18th century.
Room of the Animals (Sala degli Animali)

Room of the Animals (Sala degli Animali)

  • Museo Chiaramonti, founded in the early 19th century, was named after Pope Pius VII (whose last name was Chiaramonti before his election as pope). This large arched gallery, organized by the Neo-Classical sculptor Antonio Canova in 1807, exhibits a collection of about a thousand Roman sculptures, including portraits of emperors and gods, several fragments, friezes and reliefs of sarcophagi. Noteworthy is a funerari monument of a miller dating from the 1st century A.D. which was found at Ostia.
Museo Chiaramonti

Museo Chiaramonti

  • Braccio Nuovo, the New Wing of Museo Chiaramonti built by Raffaele Stern and inaugurated in 1822 by Pius VII, houses important Roman statues and Roman copies of Greek original statues like  a statue of Augustus, found at the Prima Porta (north of Rome); a Roman copy of the Doryphorus from an original by the Greek sculptor Polykleitos (440 B.C.); two splendid gilded bronze peacocks (copies of which are in the Courtyard of the “Pigna”), that may come from Hadrian’s Mausoleum; and the statue of The River Nile, a Roman copy of a 1st century Hellenistic statue originally found in the Temple of Isis, near the Pantheon and showing the great Egyptian river with its tributaries. Mosaics are set on the floors.
  • Galeria Lapidaria, another part of Museo Chiaramonti, has more than 3,000 stone tablets and inscriptions, the world’s greatest collection of its kind. However, it is opened only by special permission, usually for reasons of study.
  • Gallery of Tapestries (Galleria degli Arazzi) exhibits, along its walls, Flemish tapestries, realized in Brussels by Pieter van Aelst’s School from drawings by Raphael’s pupils, during the pontificate of Pope Clement VII (1523-1534). They were first shown in the Sistine Chapel in 1531 and, in 1838, arranged for the exhibition in this gallery.
Gallery of Tapestries (Galleria degli Arazzi)

Gallery of Tapestries (Galleria degli Arazzi)

  • Museo Gregoriano Etrusco, founded by Pope Gregory XVI in 1836, has eight galleries and houses important Etruscan pieces such as vases, sarcophagus and bronzes, all coming from archaeological excavations from southern Etruria; the Guglielmi Collection; a large collection of Hellenistic Italian vases and some Roman pieces (Antiquarium Romanorum). In Room II is the notable Regolini-Galassi tomb and Rooms IV-VIII, known as the “Precious,” exhibit gold jewelry realized by Etruscan goldsmiths during the ten centuries of their civilization.
  • The Missionary Ethnological Museum, inaugurated by Pius XI in 1926, was also moved from the Lateran Palace. The collection consists of artworks and historical vestiges from missions all over the world. There are some interesting models of non-Catholic places of worship, such as Beijing’s Temple of the Sky (originally from the 15th century but re-done in the 18th century), the Altar of Confucius and the Shintoist Temple of Nara, Japan’s ancient capital city. The Buddhist devotional statues are testimonies of spiritual life in Tibet, Indonesia, India and the Far East; the findings of Islamic and Central African culture are also interesting, and so are objects and works of art, especially from Mexico, Guatemala and Nicaragua.
  • Museo Gregoriano Egiziano, inaugurated on February 2, 1839 to commemorate the anniversary of Pope Gregory XVI‘s (1831-1846) accession to the papacy, was formerly housed in the Lateran Palace.  In 1970, Pope John XXIII had it relocated in the Vatican.  The museum houses a grand collection of Ancient Egyptian material such as papyruses, the Grassi Collection, animal mummies and reproductions of the famous Book of the Dead.
  • The Vatican Historical Museum (Italian: Museo storico vaticano), founded in 1973 at the behest of Pope Paul VI, was initially hosted in environments under the Square Garden. In 1987, it was moved to the main floor of the Apostolic Palace of the Lateran and opened in March 1991. It has a unique collection of portraits of the Popes from the 16th century to date, the memorable items of the Papal Military Corps of the 16–17th centuries and old religious paraphernalia related to rituals of the papacy.
  • The Carriage Pavilion, a section of the Historical Museum located in a large room under the Square Garden, was founded by Paul VI in 1973. It contains saddles, carriages, papamobili (Popemobiles), automobiles (including the first cars used by popes) and sedan chairs used by various popes and cardinals. Curiosities include some 19th century carriages, a model of Vatican City’s first train engine (1929) and a Berlin built for Pope Leo XII, used by popes for gala occasions until Pius XI’s time.
  • The Pius-Clementine (Pio-Clementino) Museum, founded Pope Clement XIV in 1771, originally contained Renaissance and antique works. Pius VI, Clement’s successor, enlarged the museum and its collection and, today, it houses works of Greek and Roman sculpture. After passing through a square vestibule and a small room with a magnificent marble cup, visitors enters the Cabinet of Apoxyomenos (shows an athlete scrapping off his sweat with a strigil, a kind of razor used in antiquity), named after a Roman copy of an original Greek bronze work by Lysippos (c. 320 B.C.). Bramante’s Staircase, seen from the next room, was commissioned by Julius II in 1512 as a link between the Palace of Innocent VIII (1484-1492) and the city of Rome.  The spiral staircase, built in a square tower, could also be climbed on horseback.
Apoxyomenos

Apoxyomenos

  • The Sobieski Room (Sala Sobieski) derives its name from the large painting by the Polish painter Jan Matejko (1838-1893), which represents Polish King John III Sobieski’s victory over the Turks in Vienna in 1683. All the other paintings in the room date from the 19th century.
The large painting by the Polish painter Jean Matejko (1838-1893) in the Sobieski Room (Sala Sobieski)

The large painting by the Polish painter Jean Matejko (1838-1893) in the Sobieski Room (Sala Sobieski)

  • The Room of the Immaculate Conception (Sala dell Immacolata Concezione) contains a big showcase, a gift from the French company Christofle, full of books given to Pope Pius IX (1846-1878) by kings, bishops, cities and dioceses, when the dogma of the Immaculate Conception was promulgated.
Room of the Immaculate Conception (Sala dell Immacolata Concezione)

Room of the Immaculate Conception (Sala dell Immacolata Concezione)

  • The Octagonal Courtyard (Cortile Ottagono), named after its shape by Clement XIV in 1772, houses famous statues such as the Apollo Belvedere, a Roman 2nd century copy from a Greek bronze original possibly by Leochares (330-320 B.C.), originally placed in the Agora of Athens and  brought to the Vatican by Pope Julius II; the Perseus with the head of Medusa between two boxers by Antonio Canova (1800-1801); and the celebrated Laocoon group, a 1st century Roman copy from the Greek original in bronze by Hagesandros, Athanadoros and Polydoros, found in Rome on the Esquiline Hill in 1506 and purchased by Julius II who had it set in the Vatican. The latter sculpture represents the Trojan priest Laocoon who warned his fellow citizens about the ruse of the wooden horse, a gift of the Greeks.  With his two sons, he was condemned to die by the wrath of Athena, victim of some serpents emerging from the sea.
Octagonal Courtyard (Cortile Ottagono)

Octagonal Courtyard (Cortile Ottagono)

Apollo del Belvedere

Apollo del Belvedere

  • The Picture Gallery (Pinacoteca), situated in a building that dates back to 1932 and designed by the architect Luca Beltrami, was commissioned by Pope Pius IX (1922 -1939) expressly to house a collection of paintings, belonging to various popes and started by Pope Pius VI (1775-1799). It is connected to the Museum complex (at the entrance of the Quattro Cancelli) by an elegant portico. The works, covering a period from the Middle Ages to 1800, are set in chronological order, in eighteen rooms.
  • Pio Christian Museum (Museum Christianum), founded by Pius IX in 1854, contains Christian antiquities such as statues, sarcophagi, inscriptions and archaeological findings dating from the 6th century, all originally exhibited in the Lateran Museum.  Noteworthy is the statue of the Good Shepherd (represents a beardless young man wearing a sleeveless tunic and a bag) restored in the 18th century.
  • The Gregorian Profane Museum, founded by Gregory XVI, was also formerly housed in the Lateran Palace but relocated to the Vatican in 1970 by Pope John XXIII. It contains original Greek works, Roman copies and sculptures dating from the 1st to the 3rd century A.D. The most famous group is Athena and Marsyas, a copy of a Greek original by Myron (c. 450 B.C.).

Other highlights of the museums include:

Hall of Constantine (Sala di Costantino)

Hall of Constantine (Sala di Costantino)

Room of Heliodorus (Stanza di Eliodoro)

Room of Heliodorus (Stanza di Eliodoro)

Room of the Signatura (Stanza della Segnatura)

Room of the Signatura (Stanza della Segnatura)

Room of the Fire in the Borgo (Stanza dell Incendio di Borgo)

Room of the Fire in the Borgo (Stanza dell Incendio di Borgo)

  • The Niccoline Chapel
  • The Sistine Chapel, including the Sistine Chapel ceiling.
  • Courtyard of the “Pigna,” named after a colossal almost 4 m. high bronze pine cone which, in the Classic Age, stood near the Pantheon in Rome, known as the “Pigna Quarter,” was probably first moved to the atrium of the ancient St Peter’s Basilica during the Middle Ages and then moved here in 1608. Two bronze peacocks, copies of 2nd century A.D. originals in the Braccio Nuovo, flank the pine cone. In the middle of the wide-open space are two concentric spheres by sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro (1990).
Courtyard of the Pigna

Courtyard of the Pigna

  • The Borgia Apartment (Appartamento Borgia) a private wing built for Pope Alexander VI (Borgia,1492-1503), was decorated with frescoes by Bernardo di Betto (called il Pinturicchio) and his assistants. After the pontiff’s death, the work on the apartments stopped. However, at the end of the 19th century, they were only reopened to the public. Most of the rooms are now used for the Collection of Modern Religious Art.
Borgia Apartments (Appartamento Borgia)

Borgia Apartments (Appartamento Borgia)

  • The double spiral staircase, designed by Giuseppe Momo in 1932, has two parts. A double helix,  of shallow incline, being a stepped ramp rather than a true staircase,  encircles the outer wall of a stairwell of approximately 15 m. (49 ft.) wide and with a clear space at the center. The balustrade around the ramp is of ornately worked metal.
  • The Apartment of Pius V, built for Pope Pius V (1566-1572) and frescoed by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari, consists of a gallery, two small rooms and a chapel. It contains Flemish tapestries of the 15th and 16th centuries. The first of the two small rooms, next to the gallery, contains a rich Medieval and Renaissance collection of ceramics found in the Vatican Palaces and in other Vatican properties in Rome; the other room has a suggestive collection of minute mosaics, made in Rome between the end of the 18th and the first half of the 19th century.
Apartment of Pius V

Apartment of Pius V

Vatican Museums: Viale Vaticano, 00165 Rome, Italy. Open in winter Mondays to Saturdays, 8:45 AM to 1:45 PM, and at Easter, July, August and September, Mondays to Saturdays, 8:45 AM to 4:45 PM. Entry is free on the last Sunday of every month. Admission to the museum allowed up to 45 minutes before the closing time. Closed on Sundays, except the last Sunday of the month.  The entrance to the museums is on Viale Vaticano, near Piazza Risorgimento.

 

Fountain of the Four Rivers (Rome, Italy)

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Fountain of the Four Rivers

Fountain of the Four Rivers

The Fountain of the Four Rivers (Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi), triumphantly and theatrically unveiled to the Roman populace on June 12, 1651, is Rome’s greatest achievement in this genre and the epitome of Baroque theatricality.

Piazza Navona

Piazza Navona

The author (right) and son Jandy at Piazza Navona

The author (right) and son Jandy at Piazza Navona

This fountain, which can be strolled around, was built on Piazza Navona, the site of the Stadium of Domitian, built in 1st century AD. It was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini for Pope Innocent X (reigned 1644-1655).  The pope’s family palace, the Palazzo Pamphili, faced onto the piazza as did the church of Sant’Agnese in Agone of which Innocent was the sponsor.

Palazzo Pamphili

Palazzo Pamphili

Bernini‘s design was influenced by the design of the Monument of the Four Moors (Monumento dei Quattro mori). It may have also been influenced by a fountain in Marino, Lazio which was constructed to commemorate the defeat of the Ottomans at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.

The obelisk

The obelisk

The base of the fountain is a basin whose center has a slender, ancient Egyptian obelisk, brought in pieces from the Circus of Maxentius to Rome by the Emperor Caracalla. It was built for the Roman Serapeum in AD 81 but had been buried for a long time at Capo di Bove.

Pamphili family emblem

Pamphili family emblem

Beneath it are four semi-prostrate giant nudes of river gods, all in awe of the central tower surmounted with the Pamphili family emblem of a dove with an olive twig, symbol of Papal power and the Holy Spirit. The river gods depict the four major rivers of the four continents, (whose rivers feed the ocean, represented by the large pool) as then recognized by the Renaissance geographers, through which papal authority had spread.

The river gods

The river gods

Supported on the base by a jagged and pierced mountainous disorder of  travertine marble rocks, the marble giants are arranged at the center of a scene of carved grottoes and decorated with flowers, exotic plants and 7 animals (a horse, a sea monster, a serpent, a dolphin, a crocodile, a lion and a dragon) that further carry forth identification.

Lion

Lion

Sea monster

Sea monster

Each carries a certain number of allegories and metaphors with it. The Nile, representing Africa, has a head draped with a loose piece of cloth, meaning that no one, at that time, knew exactly where the Nile’s source was.  Symbolically, this also refers to what the Catholic world saw as the dark ignorance of the “pagan” world: the sculpture has not seen the light of Christianity

Statue of the Nile River

Statue of the Nile River

The apathetic Ganges river god, representing Asia, carries a long oar, representing the river’s navigability, and looks away from the light of the Church, representing the spiritual ignorance of this hedonistic land.

Statue of the Ganges

Statue of the Ganges

The Danube, representing Europe, touches the Pope’s personal coat of arms, since it is the large river closest to Rome.  The most “civilized” and cultured of the figures, the Danube looks toward and embraces the light of the lord.

Statue of the Danube

Statue of the Danube

The Río de la Plata (the word plata means “silver” in Spanish), representing America, sits on a pile of coins, a symbol of the riches America could offer to Europe. The Río de la Plata also looks scared by a snake, showing rich men’s fear that their money could be stolen. Although he throws his hands back in surprise, this representative of the newly converted lands has begun to see the light.

Statue of the Rio de la Plata

Statue of the Rio de la Plata

There are a number of urban legends regarding the fountain, nasty rumors fed by the famous rivalry between the Bermini and Borromini, designer of the church of Sant’Agnese right in front of the fountain.  Borromini lost the fountain commission to Bermini. Many tour-guides, would tell you that Bernini positioned the cowering sculpture of the Rio de la Plata River as if it feared the facade of the church could possibly crumble against him; that the statue of the Nile covered its head so as not to have to see the church; and that the statue of Sant’Agnese on the facade of the church, with her hand on her chest, seems to reassure the Rio de la Plata of the church’s stability. However, the truth is the fountain was completed several years before Borromini began work on the church.

Church of Sant' Agnese

Church of Sant’ Agnese

Today, this revolutionary and grandiose monument to the power and glory of the pope and his family and dynamic fusion of architecture and sculpture, with its highly dramatic, evocative, and individualized figures, dramatically spurting water and a wealth of surprising and charming sculptural details, continues to amaze and entertain visitors to Rome.

Fontana del Moro

Fontana del Moro

Statue o the Moor

Statue of the Moor

One of our Tritons

One of four Tritons

Piazza Navona has two other fountains – the Fontana del Moro, at the southern end, and the Fountain of Neptune at the northern end. The Fontana del Moro has a basin and four Tritons sculpted by Giacomo della Porta in 1575.  In 1673, Bernini added a statue of a Moor,  standing on a conch shell, wrestling with a dolphin.

Fountain of Neptune

Fountain of Neptune

The Fountain of Neptune was also created by Giacomo della Porta in1574.  In1878, the statue of Neptune, by Antonio Della Bitta, was added in to create a balance with La Fontana del Moro.

Museo di Roma

Museo di Roma

Other buildings within the piazza include the Museo di Roma, housed in the large Neoclassical Palazzo Braschi, covering the history of the city in the period from the Middle Ages through the nineteenth century; and the Church of Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore (Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, also known as the Church of San Giacomo degli Spagnoli), the national church of the Spanish community in Rome.

Church of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart

Church of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart

Fountain of the Four Rivers: Piazza Navona, Boccadellaverità, Rome, Italy.

Cape Bojeador Lighthouse Museum (Burgos, Ilocos Norte)

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Cape Bojeador Lighthouse

Cape Bojeador Lighthouse

After touring Bacarra Church, Melissa, Almira, Albert, Jandy and I again boarded our bus or the 33-km./40 min. drive to the century-old (first lit on March 30, 1892) Cape Bojeador Lighthouse, the most accessible of all the lighthouses in the island of Luzon and the highest elevated (the tower of the Cape Melville Lighthouse is the tallest at 90 ft/27 m.), still original and active Spanish era lighthouse in the country.

NHI Plaque

NHI Plaque

Last April 6, 2004, on our way to Bauang (La Union) from Pagudpud, my family and I dropped by to visit the lighthouse but wasn’t able to go in as it was then being rehabilitated. A few months after our visit, on August 13, 2004, Cape Bojeador Lighthouse was declared a National Historical Landmark and, on June 20, 2005, was also declared by the National Museum as a National Cultural Treasure. Recently, the lighthouse was used as the backdrop for the romantic scenes of Coco Martin and Julia Montes in ABS CBN’s  2012 teleserye “Walang Hanggan.”

View of Cape Bojeador and the West Philippine Sea

View of Cape Bojeador and the West Philippine Sea

In Brgy. Paayas in Burgos, a sign on the right side of the Maharlika Highway indicates the winding and narrow, two-lane concrete road that leads to the base of the lighthouse. From the base, we boarded two tricycles (PhP50/each way) that took us to the small parking lot where  there are stalls selling ice candy, canned soda, some finger foods and souvenirs (including a wooden craft replica of the lighthouse with a pen stand).

The courtyard

The courtyard with cistern in the middle

Service building

Service building

Upon arrival, we climbed a flight of concrete stairs to the perimeter wall.  Here, we had a good view of the rough and rocky Cape Bojeador coastline and the whitecaps of the West Philippine Sea. We then proceeded to the courtyard where the service buildings and the cistern are located.

T-shaped stairway

T-shaped stairway

The main pavilion

The main pavilion

An elegant T-shaped stairway then lead us up the verandah of the main pavilion, with its 3 apartments, 2 offices, capiz and louvered window panes and decorative iron grilles, where a hallway took us to the foot of the covered stairs that that lead to the entrance of the  20 m. (66-ft.) high octagonal stone tower.

Albert, Almira, Melissa an Jandy at the veranda of main pavilion

Albert, Almira, Melissa an Jandy at the veranda of main pavilion

This was as far as we could go as no visitors were allowed to go up, via a steep spiral metal staircase (not recommended or senior citizens), to the lantern room (now a modern electric lamp powered by solar panels) on top. Only a certain number of people are allowed in the tower at a time and access to the viewing gallery (surrounded with decorative iron grille work) depends on the outside wind condition.  As it was Holy Week, it was closed to visitors.

The lighthouse tower

The lighthouse tower

One place we had access to was the small, newly restored Cape Bojeador Lighthouse Museum.  Housed in the pavilion at the foot of the Cape Bojeador Lighthouse, the rooms lining the hallway used to be shut but, since its inauguration last November 21, 2015, it is now open to the public. At the time of our visit, the rooms were sparsely decorated with low wooden furniture, including four-poster beds by the windows.

The author at one of the apartments

The author at one of the apartments

One room was filled with items that were once used to run the lighthouse (the original kerosene lamp, batteries, a part of the original first order Fresnel lens, etc.), perhaps the most striking in the area, plus samples of original brick work and old photos.

The lighthouse museum

The lighthouse museum

Original kerosene lamp

Original kerosene lamp

We also dropped by the Paru de Kabo Bojeador, the new tourist center which has stalls selling souvenirs and a safe resting area on what had previously been a construction road. The pavilion has also been transformed into lodging for people seeking basic accommodation (except for shared cooking facilities and water from the cistern, no other amenities are provided).

Original brick work

Original brick work

Cape Bojeador Lighthouse: Vigia de Nagpartian Hill, Burgos, Ilocos Norte. Admission: PhP40 for adults and PhP30 for children aged 7-12 years old.

Taoid: A Museum of the Cordilleras in Ilocos Norte (Laoag City)

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Taoid: A Museum of the Cordilleras in Ilocos Norte

Taoid: A Museum of the Cordilleras in Ilocos Norte

Inaugurated last November 17, 2015, the Taoid Museum is located a stone’s throw away from the Laoag Provincial Capitol. The museum showcases a Pre-Colonial side of Ilocandia and the province’s Cordilleran roots.

Mga Sagisag ng Pagka-Lalake at Pagka-Babae (Symbols of the Masculine and Feminine)

Mga Sagisag ng Pagka-Lalake at Pagka-Babae (Symbols of the Masculine and Feminine)

Pamumuno at Karangyaan (Leadership and Wealth)

Pamumuno at Karangyaan (Leadership and Wealth)

A tribute to the indigenous people in the municipalities of Nueva Era, Dumalneg, Carasi and Adams, it focuses on the ancient trade relations that Ilocanos had with the different tribes from the Cordilleras, whose culture and belief systems share many similarities.

Hagabi (prestige lounging bench)

Hagabi (prestige lounging bench)

A coffin

A coffin with lizard design on lid

The two-story museum was inspired, conceptualized, put together and curated by Mr. Floy Quintos, a nationally renowned director and screenwriter, and designed by Ohm David, resident technical director of Dulaang Unibersidad ng Pilipinas.

Balog (trophy carabao skull)

Balog (trophy carabao skull)

Iugao bulul

Iugao bulul (rice god)

It is divided into seven sections – “In the Home in the Village,” “In the Fields,” “Symbols of the Masculine and the Feminine,” “Leadership and Wealth,” “Warfare, Headhunting and Vengeance,” “One with the Ancestors in Healing and in Death” and “A Continuance.”

Bontoc house detail (probably a hanger)

Bontoc house detail (probably a hanger)

Ifugao Percussion Instruments

Ifugao percussion instruments

The glassed-in displays of authentic Ifugao ethnographic and historical items are on loan, many of which are from avid collectors like Gov. Imee Marcos. Visitors can also touch and inspect some artifacts, a feature that parents with inquisitive school-aged kids will appreciate.

Bontoc flat dish for meat

Bontoc flat dish for meat

Baskets for gathering snails

Baskets for gathering snails

Hinagit (trophy skull plaque)

Hinagit (trophy skull plaque)

Among the items on display are a tudoh, an Ifugao cursing object used only by accomplished shamans.   Considered one of the most potent of vengeance rite paraphernalia, it uses a crocodile skull, a small wooden bulul figure and hawk’s wings lashed to a woven fiber plaque.

Tudoh (Ifugao cursing object)

Tudoh (Ifugao cursing object)

The Wake of Malakai

The Wake of Malakai

There’s also a life-size reproduction of “The Wake of Malakai,” a leader of the Tingguian tribe.  Above the figures is a display of blankets, wrap-around skirts and loincloths that indicate the great wealth of the deceased.  It also wards off evil spirits that would have to count each thread of the textiles displayed before they could harm the deceased or his family.

Ifugao porcelain wine jar with woven cover

Ifugao porcelain wine jar with woven cover

Ilongot machetes

Ilongot machetes

Also on display are baskets, weapons (spears, shields, Kalinga and Bontoc head axes, Ilongot machetes, etc.), bululs (rice gods), wine jars, padao (territory markers), a balog (trophy carabao skull), a hinagit (trophy skull plaque), a granary door and a hagabi (prestige lounging bench).

Padao (territory marker)

Padao (territory marker)

Sagawsaw (wooden substitute head)

Sagawsaw (wooden substitute head)

Walking through the museum, visitors get to form a fuller, more vibrant image of the connection shared between these geographical neighbors—one that exists up to this day.

Our guide Ken, Albert, Almira and Melissa

Provincial Tourism Office staff Ken with museum visitors Albert, Almira and Melissa Tinonas

Taoid Museum: Tabacalera Lifestyle Center, Gen. Luna cor. Llanes Sts., 2900 Laoag City, Ilocos Norte. Admission: PhP40 for adults and PhP30 for children aged 7-12 years old. Open daily, 8 AM – 5 PM.

Museo Ilocos Norte (Laoag City)

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Museo Ilocos Norte

Museo Ilocos Norte

Also called the Laoag Museum and Gameng (an Iloco word meaning “treasure”), this impressive an snazzy lifestyle museum, managed by Gameng Foundation Inc., is located beside the city hall and a block away from the city plaza.

Museo Ilocos Norte (2)

One of the better ethnographic museums in the country, it is housed in the restored former Spanish-era Camarin de Tobacco de la Tabacaler or tobacco storage house which was erected in 1878. Opened last December 31, 1999 by Gov. Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., it replaced the Ilocandia Museum of Traditional Culture which dates back to 1977.

Museo Ilocos Norte (1)

At one corner of the museum is a 75 cm. excavation done by the National Museum on February 2004 exposing the different floor levels of the building.

National Museum archaeological excavation

National Museum archaeological excavation

This museum is divided into 15 main sections, each one narrating an aspect of the province’s history. The items are arranged by themes such as ‘The Land (Iti Tak-Dang),” “The Sea (Ti Baybay/Taaw),” ‘The Highland (Kabanbantayan Ken Tanap),” “The Farm (Ti Talon),” “The Market (Ti Tiendaan),” and “The Town (Ti Ili).”

The Highland (Kabanbantayan Ken Tanap)

The Highland (Kabanbantayan Ken Tanap)

The Market (Ti Tiendaan)

The Market (Ti Tiendaan)

The Sea (Ti BaybayTaaw)

The Sea (Ti BaybayTaaw)

The Town (Ti Ili)

The Town (Ti Ili)

The Laud (West) Gallery displays a dap-ayan (meeting place)  while the Daya (East) hallway describes the beginnings of Ilocos Norte.

Dap-Ayan

Dap-Ayan

Ulnas ken karison (carabao-drawn sled and wagon)

Ulnas ken karison (carabao-drawn sled and wagon)

At the Abatagan (South) end of the museum stands a replica of a typical, two-storey, fully-furnished bahay na bato (stone house, Ti Daan nga Balay) whose façade is based on the Lazo Residence in Bacarra.

Dining area

Dining area

Sala (Living Area)

Sala (Living Area)

Bedroom

Bedroom

Kitchen

Kitchen

Weaving loom

Weaving loom

Also on display are properly labeled samples of abel iloko and musical instruments such as the pito (bamboo flute), kulkulutong (bamboo zither), the ludag (log drum) and tangguyob (carabao horn).

Musical instruments

Musical instruments

Teatro

Teatro

A teatro (theater) for small groups has, behind the curtains, a monitor for a 15-minute video showing the musical traditions of the province.

Pugon

Pugon

The museum’s West Gallery displays a typical pugon made with bamboo slats, mud, dried leaves and carabao dung. Derived from the Spanish word fogon meaning “furnace,” it is a structure where tobacco leaves are flue-cured.

Traditional Ilocano Clothing

Traditional Ilocano Clothing

A calesa

A calesa

Also on display are a large collection of Ilocano, Igorot and Itneg traditional clothing; weapons; accessories, household utensils, calesas, ceremonial objects, an alang (Itneg house) and small furniture of the ethnic tribes of Northern Luzon.  One room is dedicated to the late Pres. Ferdinand E. Marcos.

An alang (Isneg House)

An alang (Isneg House)

Ferdinand E. Marcos Exhibit

Ferdinand E. Marcos Exhibit

There is also a museum gift shop (Museo Sarusar Shop) selling travel guide books and the very best Ilocos Norte souvenirs (ref magnets, key chains, pottery, bags, baskets, shellcraft, woo carvings, etc.) and  popular food products such as cornik and basi. Outside the museum is a dapil (sugar mill).

Museo Sarusar Shop

Museo Sarusar Shop

Ilocano food products

Ilocano food and souvenir products

A useful brochure in English comes with the ticket and everything is also well labeled in English. The visit is best done clockwise.

Dapil (Sugar Mill)

Dapil (Sugar Mill)

Museo Ilocos Norte: cor. Gen. A. Luna St.  and Don Vicente Llanes Ave., Laoag City, Ilocos Norte. Open Mondays to Saturdays, 9 AM to 5 PM, and Sundays, 10 AM – 5 PM.  Tel: (077) 770-4587. Website: www.museoilocosnorte.com.   Admission: PhP50.