Day Two - Vatican Museums - Tapestries

The tapestry gallery in the Vatican Museums is amazing. I know, one usually finds tapestries less than exciting. The gallery was not brightly lit, presumably to protect the tapestries from fading. When I took photos without a flash, however, what I saw in the camera was much brighter and the work is amazing.

You may need to click on these for detail. It will be worth it.














--the BB

Day Two - Vatican - Statuary

Onward in the Vatican Museums tour!

The photos here are not in order and I don't feel like rearranging them, so just enjoy.

Here we have a full three-dimensional Mithras slaying the bull, complete with dog, serpent, scorpion. It is in the "zoology" room full of animal sculptures. It was roped off or I could have gotten some wild stuff. So to speak.






The Braccio Nuovo (New Arm, or what we might call the New Wing) was not crowded, unlike everywhere else except the Egyptian section, and I found this room very relaxing.






Octavian hails a taxi. (I could not resist.)






Great is Artemis of the Ephesians. There is debate over whether these are breasts or bulls' testicles. We report; you decide.




Whew. This has been a marathon day for posting and we are not through with the Vatican Museums yet. We still have the tapestries, the Raphael Rooms, the Sistine Chapel, and miscellaneous to go.

I refer to it as the Vatican Museum Death March. It takes stamina but one should not miss it.

Ciao for niao, bambini.

--the BB

Les fleurs du printemps

I just watered the yard. Here are some photos I took before watering. It is, indeed, the month of May in ABQ.







--the BB

Day Two - Vatican Museums - Octagonal Courtyard

Il Cortile Ottagonale, inner court of the Belvedere Palace, was given its current shape in 1773. This is the starting point of the tour of the Vatican Museums and houses some terrific classical statuary, including some of the most famous statues of antiquity.

[Remember, you can click on the photos to see detail. These are memory-intensive pictures.]

An amazing sarcophagus with a battle scene

Scholar or philosopher, I'm not sure

Alas, poor horse

I think it's Hermes but I'm not sure

Isn't she lovely?

You may recall that December 25 in ancient Rome was the feast of Sol Invictus, the Unconquered Sun, corresponding to the winter solstice a long time ago. The sun, with rays, is in the upper left and Mithras slays the bull in the center. Mithraism centered in Rome and was a popular religion among Roman soldiers. When in northern England I saw the ruins of a Mithraeum, or temple of Mithras near Hadrian's Wall.


Here is the famous statue of Laocoon and his sons attacked by sea serpents. Ah, so much to say. Laocoon was a priest in Troy. When the Trojan Horse was brought up to Troy and left as a "gift" to appease the goddess Athena, Laocoon objected to taking it into the city. According to Vergil's Aeneid he said: Quidquid id est timeo Danaos et dona ferentes (Whatever it is I fear Greeks even bearing gifts). This is where we get the maxim to beware Greeks bearing gifts, a reference to the Trojan Horse, its belly full of Greek soldiers waiting to be taken within Troy so they could open the gates and attack.

Fearing lest her darling Greeks lose, Athena sent two sea serpents to attack Laocoon and his sons, slaying them. This was interpreted as divine judgment on his impiety. In fact, it was a divine act to shut him up lest he foil the plot. He was a priest of Poseidon, god of the sea, and the sea serpents were misinterpreted as sent by his own deity.

This awesome statue is not only technically beautiful and artfully composed, it captures a death struggle. Copies do not do it justice. It is also one of those illustrations from art history that young, closeted gay men could find in encyclopedias and swoon over. Well, at least one did. That muscled, manly body is - stone or no stone - H. O. T.

You need to click and enlarge these to appreciate them.

A river god

Ladies messing with a bull

Celebrating another military victory, no doubt

Apollo Belvedere
[It really is stunning.]

Yours truly. These ancient pieces make one feel young.

And that, my friends, is the first installment. I took hundreds of photos that Monday.

--the BB