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The Museums of Rome
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The Vatican Museums | |||||||||||||||||||||
| The
Vatican Museums originated as a group of sculptures collected by
Pope Julius II (1503-1513) and placed in what today is the “Cortile
Ottagono” within the museum complex. The popes were among the first
sovereigns who opened the art collections of their palaces to the
public thus promoting knowledge of art history and culture. As seen
today, the Vatican Museums are a complex of different pontifical
museums and galleries that began under the patronage of the popes
Clement XIV (1769-1774) and Pius VI (1775-1799). In fact, the Pio-Clementine
Museum was named after these two popes, who set up this first major
curatorial section. Later, Pius VII (1800-1823) considerably expanded
the collections of Classical Antiquities, to which he added the
Chiaromonti Museum and the “Braccio Nuovo” gallery. He also enriched
the Epigraphic Collection, which was conserved in the Lapidary Gallery. Gregory XVI (1831-1846) founded the Etruscan Museum (1837) with archaeological finds discovered during excavations carried out from 1828 onwards in southern Etruria. Later, he established the Egyptian Museum (1839), which houses ancient artifacts from explorations in Egypt, together with other pieces already conserved in the Vatican and in the Museo Capitolino, and the Lateran Profane Museum (1844), with statues, bas-relief sculptures and mosaics of the Roman era, which could not be adequately placed in the Vatican Palace. The Lateran Profane Museum was expanded in 1854 under Pius IX (1846-1878) with the addition of the Pio Christian Museum. This museum is comprised of ancient sculptures (especially sarcophagi) and inscriptions with ancient Christian content. In 1910, under the pontificate of Saint Pius X (1903-1914), the Hebrew Lapidary was established. This section of the museum contains 137 inscriptions from ancient Hebrew cemeteries in Rome mostly from via Portuense and donated by the Marquisate Pellegrini-Quarantotti. These last collections (Gregorian Profane Museum, Pio Christian Museum and the Hebrew Lapidary) were transferred, under the pontificate of Pope John XXIII (1958-1963), from the Lateran Palace to their present building within the Vatican and inaugurated in 1970. |
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| Borghese Gallery | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| The
original sculptures and paintings in the Borghese Gallery date back
to Cardinal Scipione's collection, the son of Ortensia Borghese
- Paolo V's sister - and of Francesco Caffarelli, though subsequent
events over the next three centuries entailing both losses and acquisition
have left their mark. Cardinal Scipion was drawn to any works of ancient, Renaissance and contemporary art which might re-evoke a new golden age. He was not particularly interested in medieval art, but passionately sought to acquire antique sculpture. But Cardinal Scipione was so ambitious that he promoted the creation of new sculptures and especially marble groups to rival antique works. The statue of Pauline Bonaparte, executed by Canova between 1805 and 1808, has been in the villa since 1838. In 1807, Camillo Borghese sold Napoleon 154 statues, 160 busts, 170 bas-reliefs, 30 columns and various vases, which constitue the "Borghese Collection" in the Louvre. But already by the 1830s these gaps seem to have been filled by new finds from recent excavations and works recuperated from the cellars and various other Borghese residences. Cardinal Scipione's collection of paintings was remarkable and was poetically described as early as 1613 by Scipione Francucci. In 1607, the Pope gave the Cardinal 107 paintings which had been confiscated from the painter Giuseppe Cesari, called the Cavalier d'Arpino. In the following year, Raphael's Deposition was secretely removed from the Baglioni Chapel in the church of S.Francesco in Perugia and transported to Rome. It was given to the Cardinal Scipione through a papal motu proprio. |
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| Capitol Museum - Musei Capitolini | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| It is the most ancient public collection in the world, founded by the Pope Sixtus IV in 1471 with the donation to the Roman people of the bronze statues of the Lateran. After those masterpieces, others where brought, found in archaeological sites like the Boario Forum, and the Roman Forum. In 1566 Pius V wanted to eliminate from the Vatican pagan works and donated 140 images of pagan idols to the Capitol, making the museum become a collection of classic sculptures. In 1733 Cardinal Albani's collection was added, made up by statues and portraits tat allowed Clemens XII to inaugurate the Capitol Museum in 1734. in this period some popular works, like the Capitol Venus, the Faun in ancient red, the statue of the Dying Galatian were added to the collection as well. In 1870 the collection grew bigger with the findings discovered in new sites amongst which there were vases and china. |
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| National Gallery of Ancient Art - Barberini Gallery | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| The father of Cardinal Francesco Barberini bought Palazzo Sforza alle Quattro Fontane in 1624. Carlo Maderno was put in charge of the renovation works and he turned it into an example of a building in late-manneristic style : a unique block whose façade is repeated in the same style and with the same shapes on every side of the building. In 1629, when Maderno died, Bernini became responsible for the works and he turned the second order of the façade from real loggia into a fake loggia with enormous windows. For the inside decorations, he used findings of some excavations in Civitavecchia, Bracciano and Anzio. Inside this palace- villa Pietro da Cortona made the popular fresco with the Triumph of the Divine Providence, allegoric representation of the Barberini family. In 1949 the building was bought by the Italian State and from that date it became the National Gallery of Ancient Art, founded in 1895 and first housed in the Corsini Palace. The core of the collection consists of more or less 1500 paintings and 2000 objects of art decoration, including some furniture. Visitors can admire popular works by Raphael, Caravaggio, Canaletto, Vanvitelli, Pietro da Cortona, Guercino, Domenichino, Titian, Tintoretto and others. |
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| Palazzo Venezia Museum | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| It
is a single collection made up of important works of art, pieces
of furniture, weapons, fabrics, china, tapestries, enamels, ivory
items and paintings from the 13th to the 18th century. The museum
is inside the rooms of the Cybo apartment, completed by Lorenzo
Cybo, nephew of Innocent III, the rooms of the Barbo apartment,
where Paul II used to live, and part of the Venezia severe-looking
building. |
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