World famous buildings: how the Vatican works. More is better. All roads lead to the Papal Palace

A couple of days ago it became known that the residence of the Pope in small town Castel Gondolfo, which is located on the shores of a picturesque lake near Rome, will open its doors to visitors.

Shortly after the feast of the Epiphany, the new director of the residence in Castel Gandolfo, Osavaldo Gianoli, took over his official duties, replacing his predecessor Saverio Petrillo. Before Gianoli had time to get used to the new place, his first project came to his table: he expressed the wish that his summer residence, in which he rarely visits, become open to residents and guests of the city.

By the way, there is something to see in the residence of the pontiff. It belongs to the end of the 16th century. In the Middle Ages, the entire town of Castel Gandolfo was the property of the counts di Tuscolo (di Tuscolo), and then was in the possession of the Gandolfo family.

Later, the city again changed its owner, who could not pay the debts that had piled on him. At the insistence of Pope Clement VII, the picturesque place passed by right into the possession of the Holy See. However, the papal palace was built here only a few centuries later. Roman architect Carlo Maderna received an order to create a project for the residence of the Pope only in 1698. The Palace of the Pontiffs was built on the same site where the castle of the Tuscolo and Gandolfo families had previously been located.

Pope Urban VII, during which the papal palace was being built, was very fond of this secluded town, surrounded by the Albanian mountains (Colli Albani) and the Albanian lake (Lago Albano).

Being a true connoisseur of architecture, sculpture and floristry, the pontiff had a hand in decorating not only the interior of the palace, but also the surrounding areas. Later, Villa Barberini was added to the papal residence. From 1870 to 1929, the palace belonging to the Holy See was not used by the heads of catholic church especially popular, but now the pontiffs prefer to spend almost the entire summer here, trying to hide from the smog and stuffiness that inevitably overtakes them in the Vatican.

Where is

The residence of the Pope stands on western slope Albanian Lake, from where opens amazing beauty a view that cannot leave anyone indifferent.

Thus, the charm of these places enveloped the Russian artist Alexander Ivanov, who painted the marvelous painting “A Tree Above the Water in Castel Gandolfo”.

The town itself is saturated with numerous legends and beliefs. So, locals happy to reveal to you exactly what the founders of Rome, the brothers Romulus and Remus, were born here. This story evokes a genuine sense of pride among the townspeople, who claim that the Latin land came from here.

You will not regret if you decide to spend one day visiting all the beauties of this amazing city. It is worth going here not only for the sake of the papal summer palace. Castel Gandolfo has some of the most beautiful churches, villas and other residences. Getting to the town is not difficult. on a larger map

• If you are traveling by car, you need to go to the SS 7 Appia Nuova and pass the crossing number 23. Numerous road signs will not let you get lost. We sincerely recommend using the most reliable and cheapest search service. For example, you can rent a car for a day for only 18-30 euros.
• You can also get to Castel Gandolfo by bus from Rome by purchasing tickets for a direct route from the Anagnina bus station. The ticket costs 2.6 euros.
• And finally, if you are a fan trains, you should get to (Termini), take the train towards Albano Laziale and get off at Castel Gandolf station. A train ticket will cost you up to 3 euros.

Have a good trip and pleasant impressions!

↘️🇮🇹 USEFUL ARTICLES AND SITES 🇮🇹↙️ SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS

Several magnificent monuments of architecture and art at once formed the basis of a grandiose complex in Rome called the Vatican Palaces. Papal apartments, Catholic government offices, museums, the Vatican library and several chapels form the most magnificent monument in the world.

Vatican palaces. History pages

It was not possible to establish a temporary starting point from which the construction of the future residence of the heads of the Catholic Church began. One version attributes the beginning of construction to Constantine the Great, the other one connects the Vatican palaces with the residence of the apostles of the time of Symmachus (VI century). Of course, today from that ancient building not a trace remained: numerous restructurings and improvements did their job. Initially, the building acted as a temporary residence for the popes (it was permanent) during periods of visits to St. Peter's Cathedral. The small palace gradually expanded and gained more and more importance for history. So, the emperors Otto I and Charlemagne in the 9th-10th centuries were crowned to rule the power in the Vatican Cathedral. In the era of Leo IV, the papal palace was surrounded by a fortress wall, which gave the complex the name "Lion City". True, the subsequent centuries had a devastating effect on the building, and Popes Celestino III and Eugene III had to carry out a significant restoration of the structure.

The project to turn the building into a permanent residence for the heads of the church was initiated in the 13th century by Pope Innocent III. First of all, permanent place the residence of the most holy men had to be well fortified. In this regard, the project was based on existing defensive structures: the fortress walls of the city of Lion and the Castle of Sant'Angelo, associated with the palace, the so-called Borgo Corridor from the time of Pope Nicholas III. But before the palace in Rome becomes the official papal residence, it will take another century.

The end of the exile of the popes to France was marked by the return of Gregory XI to Rome in 1377. Since then, it was the Vatican that became the place of his permanent residence. The next two centuries passed in constant rebuilding and reconstruction of the papal home. Under Nicholas V in 1450, the residence was expanded: retaining all the existing buildings, a grandiose palace was erected, and the parrot yard was inscribed in its square. The new Vatican Palace boasted a huge number of rooms, the interior design of which was carried out by Piero della Francesca and Andrea del Castagno, and the Chapel of Nicholas V, decorated with frescoes with scenes from the life of Saints Lawrence and Stefan Beato Angelico. The halls of the first floor with access to the courtyard became the Vatican Library, which was founded in 1451. Indeed, 20 years later new dad Sixtus IV commissioned the re-decoration of Ghirlandaio and Melozzo da Forli, finding other uses for the halls of the Vatican Library.
And in 1473, Giovanni de Dolce received from Pope Sixtus IV the task of building a chapel, later named, worthy of papal worship. Representatives of the Umbrian art schools, among which were Sandro Botticelli, Perugino and Pinturicchio, in 1481 - 1483 were engaged in the interior decoration of the chapel, performing two cycles about the life of Jesus and Moses in it at once.

The work of Nicholas V was completed by Alexander VI Borgia, on whose orders the Borgia Apartments were equipped in the 15th century. They consisted of six halls, three of which were "sheltered" by the Apostolic Palace, and three belong to the Borgia Tower, the decoration of which was entrusted to Pinturicchio and his students. All new halls were named according to the frescoes that decorated them:

• The prophets and sibyls of the Hall of the Sibyls display the prediction of the coming of the savior;
• The figures of the prophets and apostles adorn the Hall of the Creed, dedicated to Christianity;
• The Hall of Liberal Arts was given frescoes depicting Quamrivium (arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music) and Trivia (rhetoric, grammar, dialectics) by Antonio da Viterbo;
• The Hall of Saints houses frescoes by Pinturicchio depicting scenes from the lives of Christian martyrs and saints;
• The halls of the Miracles of the Faith and the Pontiffs are decorated with frescoes and murals by Perin del Vaga, Giovanni da Udine.

By order of Inocentius VIII, the Belvedere Palace was also erected next to the Vatican. But the most large-scale transformations awaited the Vatican complex during the time of Pope and philanthropist Julius II, who instructed Bramante to unify the palaces of Innocent VIII and Nicholas V. The Belvedere Courtyard appeared as a result of the work carried out. The perspective of the courtyard (instead of the eskedra with two staircases previously made by Bramante) is blocked by a niche created by Pirro Ligorio in 1560. The loggias in the Courtyard of San Damaso, decorated with frescoes by Raphael, were also designed by Julius II. Thanks to the reconstructions carried out, the facade of the Apostolic Palace began to overlook St. Peter's Square. And it was under Julius II that Michelangelo decorated the vault of the Sistine Chapel with his frescoes in 1509-1512, and Raphael in 1508-1524. was engaged in painting Stanz (ceremonial halls).

The supremacy of Pope Sixtus V fell on the Baroque era, then Dominico Fontana created a modern residence, and the Belvedere was "cut" by the Cross Court. The beginning of the construction of the Regia Staircase and the Paolina Halls, designed by Bernini, began in the 17th century during the reign of Pope Urbane VIII. In the next century, work was carried out to create museums: the Museums of ecclesiastical and secular art, the Chiaramonti Museum and the Pio-Clementino Museum appeared. Already in the 20th century, under Pius XII, archaeological research under St. Peter's Cathedral, and under John XXIII, the construction of new museum halls for the collection of the Lateran Palace began.

Description of the complex Vatican Palaces

Given the long period of creation, the complex cannot be an integral monument of architecture and art. This is a collection of palaces, chapels, halls, galleries and courtyards belonging to different historical eras And architectural styles that preserves real treasures of sculpture, mosaic art and painting. The palace itself today has about 200 staircases, 20 courtyards and 12,000 different rooms.

The irregular quadrangle of the Vatican Palace stretches in an oblique direction from south to north from the columns of St. Peter. Two galleries uniting the Old Vatican with the Belvedere form the western and eastern longitudinal facades. The transverse galleries (Bracchio Nuovo and the Library Gallery) divide the space into 3 courtyards. The courtyard closest to the Vatican is called the Belvedere, and the Giardino della Pigna garden is laid out in the third distant courtyard. By the way, this is not the only garden of the complex. On the hillside near the villa of Pius IV, built by Pirro Ligorio, there is a garden Girardino Pontifico.

Ancient part of the Apostolic Palace

Not far from the equestrian statue of Constantine is the main entrance to the Apostolic Palace. The main staircase with an Ionic colonnade leads to the Royal Hall, which serves as a kind of vestibule for the Pauline and Sistine chapels. The truly royal decoration of the Hall itself are the frescoes of Salviatti, Vasari, the Zucchero brothers, Sammacini and Sicchiolante. But the frescoes of Michelangelo "The Crucifixion of the Apostle Peter" and "The Conversion of the Apostle Paul" of the Pauline Chapel suffered quite a lot from the soot of candles, because Easter services are still held here today.

The second floor is famous for its halls and loggias painted by Raphael. The Hall of Constantine passes into the Hall of Chiaroscuro, from which you can get to the gallery of lodges on one side, and to the San Lorenzo chapel on the other side. True, the main road to the gallery of lodges remains the magnificent staircase of 118 steps leading from the Court of San Domaso.

The oldest part of the complex includes some of the Vatican Museums. So, back in the 19th century, behind the Raphael Lodge in the five halls of the third floor, the Vatican Art Gallery, and in 1908 one wing of the Belvedere Palace was enriched by the Vatican Pinakothek.

The audience hall and the personal apartments of the Pope are located on the side of the Cathedral of St. Petra around the Court of San Domaso.

Vatican palaces. galleries

They have Vatican palaces and their own galleries. Galleries Braccio Nuovo and Bramante are the most famous galleries of the Vatican, given over to the Chiaramonti Museum. On each side, the Bramante Gallery is divided into 30 parts, furnished with bas-reliefs, busts and statues of Caesar, Ciciro, Tiberius and others. The Braccio Nuovo Gallery stores busts and statues of Trajan, Augustus, Titus, Hadrian, Mark Antony and other personalities. Just one grate separates the Chiaramonti Museum to the south from the Museum of the Inscriptions, founded by Pius VII and containing more than 3,000 exhibits.

The western part of the Bramante Gallery is truly replete with museums, among which stand out: the Cabinet of Papyri, the Museum of Sacred Objects, the Museum of Secular Objects and the Numismatic Cabinet. On the second floor (Arazzi Gallery) there are precious carpets depicting the apostles based on paintings by Raphael.

Vatican palaces. Belvedere Palace

Two vestibules lead to the Pio-Clementine Museum, located in the Belvedere Palace. From the round one opens a magnificent panorama of The eternal City, and the quadrangular one is famous thanks to the torso of Hercules. The hall of Mileagra with the statue of the mythical hunter is located off the circular vestibule. From here you can also get into the octagonal courtyard, surrounded by a portico with 16 columns of granite. Under the portico itself, antique bas-reliefs, fonts, sarcophagi and altars found their place. And in the niches for many decades flaunt Apollo Belvedere, Perseus Canova, Laocoön with his sons and Mercury.

From the courtyard you can get to the gallery of statues with Sleeping Ariadne and Cupid Praxiteles, then - through the hall of the Beasts - to the hall of the Muses in the form of an octagon, supported by 16 marble columns. This is followed by the Round Hall with a dome supported by 10 marble columns and antique mosaics from Otricoli. Here you can also admire the pool of red porphyry, striking not only in beauty, but also in its size. To the south of the hall is the hall of the Greek Cross with the sarcophagi of Saints Constance and Helena made of red porphyry.

From here you can also go to the main museum staircase, created by Simonette, and from it - to the Egyptian, and then the Etruscan museums, founded by Pius VII and Gregory XVI, respectively. The staircase of the museum, in turn, leads to the Giardino della Pigna, named after the bronze fountain in the form of a cone, located in a niche on the front side of the building.

The grandiose complex of the Vatican Palaces today is considered the most significant architectural ensemble for mankind in the whole world, and the grandeur of the treasures collected here can plunge any connoisseur of beauty into a "sacred" awe for a long time.

Apostolic Palace(also called Vatican Palace or papal palace listen)) is the official residence of the Pope, located in the Vatican. Official name - Palace of Sixtus V(English) Palace of Sixtus V ).

The building complex of the Apostolic Palace includes the Pontifical Apartments, government offices of the Roman Catholic Church, several chapels, the Vatican Museums, and the Vatican Library. The audience halls are located on the 3rd floor of the palace, among them the Clementine Hall, the Consistory Hall, the Large and Small throne rooms, the papal library (the Pope's office and a room for private audiences). On the fourth floor are the premises of the papal secretariat. The palace has more than 1000 rooms that are world famous due to the greatest works of art they contain: the Sistine Chapel and its famous ceiling frescoes by Michelangelo (restored in - years) and Raphael's Stanzas.

Before the transfer of the capital of Italy to Rome in summer residence the Pope was served by the Quirinal Palace. Another papal residence is located in the Lateran Palace, and in the town of Castel Gandolfo there is a country summer residence.

Construction history

Plan of the northern part of the Apostolic Palace (Rodolfo Lanciani, 1893-1901).

Plan of the southern part of the Apostolic Palace (Rodolfo Lanciani, 1893-1901).

There is no exact information about the beginning of the construction of the Vatican Palace: some attribute it to Constantine the Great, others attribute the original construction to the time of Pope Symmachus (VI century). It is only certain that during the arrival of Charlemagne to Rome for the coronation, the residence of Pope Leo III was the palace on the Vatican Hill; but then the palace was neglected and the pope's residence was moved to the Lateran Palace. Only since the return of the popes from Avignon (1377) has the Vatican become a permanent papal residence and expanded with a number of grandiose outbuildings.

Under Sixtus IV (1471), the famous Sistine Chapel was built. Under Innocent VIII (1490), the Belvedere Palace was erected near the Vatican, which was connected to the Vatican by two magnificent galleries by the architect Bramante, on behalf of Pope Julius II (1503). Bramante were also begun surrounding the courtyard of St. Damaz lodges, which were later completed and painted by Raphael and his students. Pope Paul III built the Pauline Chapel and next to it the so-called. Royal Hall (Sala regia). Under Pius IV and Gregory XIII, the northern and eastern wings of the lodges appeared, and Sixtus V built a transverse gallery that houses the Vatican Library. Clement XIV and Pius VI. so-called. Pius Clementine Museum, and Pius VII - Chiaramonti Museum and held a second transverse gallery, the so-called. Braccio Nuovo (1817-22). Gregory XVI founded the Etruscan and Egyptian museums, and finally, Pope Pius IX covered the Raphael Lodge with a glass roof and built the fourth wall of the courtyard of St. Damaza.

Description of the palace

The Vatican Palace is not a homogeneous architectural whole; it is a collection of palaces, halls, galleries, chapels, belonging to different eras in style and time of construction and containing an unparalleled collection of treasures of architecture, painting and sculpture. The palace has up to 20 courtyards, more than 200 staircases and 12,000 rooms. By appearance this is an irregular quadrangle, stretching from south to north in an oblique direction from the church of St. Peter. The longitudinal - east and west - facades are formed by two galleries connecting the old Vatican with the Belvedere. The space between these galleries is divided by two transverse galleries: the Library and Braccio Nuovo into 3 courtyards. The first, closest to the Vatican, is called the Belvedere. In the 3rd courtyard there is a Giardino della Pigna garden. Another big garden(Girardino Pontifico) is located to the west of the palace, on a hillside where the villa of Pope Pius IV (villa Pia), built by Pirro Ligorio, is located.

Southern (oldest) part of the palace

The main entrance is located on the right wing of the colonnade of St. Petra, near the equestrian statue of Constantine the Great. The main staircase (scala Regia) with a magnificent Ionic colonnade (built under Urban VIII) leads to the Royal Hall (Sala Regia), which serves as a vestibule for the Sistine and Pauline chapels. The Sala Regia is decorated with beautiful frescoes by Vasari, Sammacini, the Zucchero brothers, Salviati and Sicchiolante.

The Pauline Chapel is remarkable for two frescoes by Michelangelo: "The Conversion of the Apostle Paul" and "The Crucifixion of St. Peter", significantly affected by the soot of wax candles. During Easter, a service is held here. On the second floor there are the famous lodges of Raphael and 4 rooms, the so-called Stanzas of Raphael, which Raphael and his students painted on behalf of Popes Julius II and Leo X (1508-20). The Constantine Hall leads to the Sala de Chiroscuri (hall of chiaroscuro), from where they go on one side to the San Lorenzo chapel, with frescoes by Fra Angelico, and on the other to the gallery of the Lodges. But the main route to the Lodge is from the courtyard of St. Damaz along the magnificent staircase of 118 steps, built under Pope Pius IX.

In the 19th century, in the 5 rooms of the third floor, behind Raphael's lodges, the Vatican Art Gallery was located, which contained a small number of paintings that are the best works of great masters. Then, on March 19, 1908, the Vatican Pinakothek was opened in one of the wings of the Belvedere Palace, for which a new building was built in 1932 by order of Pope Pius XI.

The Pope's own apartments and the audience hall are located around the courtyard of St. Damaz, from the side of the church of St. Peter.

Belvedere Palace

Niche of the Belvedere and a bronze Roman fountain in the form of a cone.

Garden della Pigna (Cones)

The Belvedere Palace is occupied by the Pius Clementine Museum. Two vestibules lead to the museum: a quadrangular one, with the famous Belvedere torso of Hercules, and a round one, from where a view of the panorama of the city of Rome opens. Next to the round vestibule is the hall of Meleager, where a statue of this mythical hunter is exhibited. From the circular vestibule one enters an octagonal courtyard surrounded by a portico supported by 16 granite columns. Sarcophagi, altars, fonts, bas-reliefs are placed under the portico - all of almost remarkable ancient work. World-famous statues flaunt in the quadrangular niches: Apollo Belvedere, Laocoön and sons, Mercury or Antinous Belvedere and Perseus of Canova.

From this courtyard one enters the gallery of statues, where among other works are Apollo of Saurokton and Cupid of Praxiteles, Sleeping Ariadne. From here, through the Hall of the Beasts (the so-called collection of wonderfully executed sculptural figures of animals), one enters the Hall of the Muses, octagonal, supported by 16 Carrara marble columns, with antique statues of Apollo of Massageta and the Muses found in Tivoli. The Hall of the Muses leads to the Round Hall, with a dome on 10 marble columns, with a floor made of antique mosaics found in Otricoli. In this hall there is a pool of red porphyry, one of a kind in size and beauty, statues of Antinous, Ceres, Juno, Hercules, etc. To the south of this hall is the hall of the Greek Cross, so called by its form; Here are the red porphyry sarcophagi of St. Helena and Constance.

From here one goes to the internal main staircase of the museum, built by Simoneti and decorated with 30 columns of red granite and two of black porphyry. The same staircase leads to the Egyptian Museum, founded by Pius VII, and to the 2nd floor, where the Candelabra Gallery and the Etruscan Museum, founded by Gregory XVI and occupying room 13, are located, with a rich collection of ancient Italian antiquities.

The staircase of the museum leads to the garden della Pigna. In the end wall of the palace there is a semicircular niche (architect Pirro Ligorio, 1560) with a bronze Roman fountain in the shape of a cone (Italian Pigna) of the 1st century, which gave the name to the whole garden.

Galleries Bramante and Braccio Nuovo

The northern end of the Bramante East Gallery and the Braccio Nuovo Gallery are occupied by the Chiaramonti Museum. Each side of the first gallery is divided into 30 compartments, furnished with a wonderful collection of statues, busts and bas-reliefs (Tiberius, Julius Caesar, Son, Silenus, etc.; busts: Cicero, Marius, Scipio Africanus, etc.). In the gallery of Braccio Nuovo there are statues of: Augustus, Claudius, Titus, Euripides, Demosthenes, Minerva and others; busts: Mark Antony, Lepidus, Adrian, Trajan, etc. From the gallery of Chiaramonte to the south, separated by one lattice, there is a museum of Inscriptions (more than 3000 monuments), founded by Pope Pius VII.

The following museums and halls are located in the Bramante Western Gallery: 1) The Museum of Secular Objects - a collection of antique utensils from various metals, bronze statuettes of idols, precious stones and ivory carvings. 2) Museum of sacred objects - a collection of ancient church utensils found in the catacombs, etc. 3) Papyri cabinet. 4) Hall of the Aldobrandine wedding. 5) The Hall of Byzantine Artists, in which Gregory XVI placed a collection of paintings from the 13th and 14th centuries. 6) Numismatic cabinet.

The Arazzi Gallery on the 2nd floor of the Bramante Western Gallery contains a precious collection of carpets made after Raphael's cardboards and depicting the deeds of the holy apostles.

see also

Notes

Links

The audience halls are located on the third floor of the palace, among them the Clementine Hall, the Consistory Hall, the Large and Small throne rooms, the papal library (the Pope's office and a room for private audiences). On the fourth floor are the premises of the papal secretariat. The palace has more than 1000 rooms that are world famous for the greatest works of art they contain: the Sistine Chapel and its famous ceiling frescoes by Michelangelo (restored in 1980-1990) and Raphael's Stanzas.

Before the transfer of the capital of Italy to Rome, the Quirinal Palace served as the pope's summer residence. Another papal residence is located in the Lateran Palace, and in the town of Castel Gandolfo there is a country summer residence.

Construction history

There is no exact information about the beginning of the construction of the Vatican Palace: some attribute it to Constantine the Great, others attribute the original construction to the time of Pope Symmachus (VI century). It is only certain that during the arrival of Charlemagne to Rome for the coronation, the residence of Pope Leo III was the palace on the Vatican Hill; but then the palace was neglected and the pope's residence was moved to the Lateran Palace. Only since the return of the popes from Avignon (1377) has the Vatican become a permanent papal residence and expanded with a number of grandiose outbuildings.

Southern (oldest) part of the palace

The main entrance is located on the right wing of the colonnade of St. Petra, near the equestrian statue of Constantine the Great. The main staircase (scala Regia) with a magnificent Ionic colonnade (built under Urban VIII) leads to the Royal Hall (Sala Regia), which serves as a vestibule for the Sistine and Pauline chapels. The Sala Regia is decorated with beautiful frescoes by Vasari, Sammacini, the Zucchero brothers, Salviati and Sicchiolante.

The Pauline Chapel is remarkable for two frescoes by Michelangelo: "The Conversion of the Apostle Paul" and "The Crucifixion of St. Peter", significantly affected by the soot of wax candles. During Easter, a service is held here. On the second floor there are the famous lodges of Raphael and 4 rooms, the so-called Stanzas of Raphael, which Raphael and his students painted on behalf of Popes Julius II and Leo X (1508-20). The Hall of Constantine leads to the Sala de Chiroscuri (hall of chiaroscuro), from where they go on one side to the chapel of San Lorenzo, with frescoes by Fra Angelico, and on the other to the gallery of the Lodges. But the main route to the Lodge is from the courtyard of St. Damaz along the magnificent staircase of 118 steps, built under Pope Pius IX.

In the 19th century, in the 5 rooms of the third floor, behind Raphael's lodges, the Vatican Art Gallery was located, which contained a small number of paintings that are the best works of great masters. Then, on March 19, 1908, the Vatican Pinakothek was opened in one of the wings of the Belvedere Palace, for which a new building was built in 1932 by order of Pope Pius XI.

The Pope's own apartments and the audience hall are located around the courtyard of St. Damaz, from the side of the church of St. Peter.

Belvedere Palace

The Belvedere Palace is occupied by the Pius Clementine Museum. Two vestibules lead to the museum: a quadrangular one, with the famous Belvedere torso of Hercules, and a round one, from where a view of the panorama of the city of Rome opens. Next to the round vestibule is the hall of Meleager, where a statue of this mythical hunter is exhibited. From the circular vestibule one enters an octagonal courtyard surrounded by a portico supported by 16 granite columns. Sarcophagi, altars, fonts, bas-reliefs are placed under the portico - all of almost remarkable ancient work. World-famous statues flaunt in the quadrangular niches: Apollo Belvedere, Laocoön and his sons, Hermes Belvedere and Canova's Perseus.

From this courtyard one enters the gallery of statues, where among other works are Apollo of Saurokton and Cupid of Praxiteles, Sleeping Ariadne. From here, through the Hall of the Beasts (the so-called collection of wonderfully executed sculptural figures of animals), one enters the Hall of the Muses, octagonal, supported by 16 Carrara marble columns, with antique statues of Apollo of Massageta and the Muses found in Tivoli. The Hall of the Muses leads to the Round Hall, with a dome on 10 marble columns, with a floor made of antique mosaics found in Otricoli. In this hall there is a pool of red porphyry, one of a kind in size and beauty, statues of Antinous, Ceres, Juno, Hercules, etc. To the south of this hall is the hall of the Greek Cross, so called by its form; Here are the red porphyry sarcophagi of St. Helena and Constance.

From here one goes to the internal main staircase of the museum, built by Simoneti and decorated with 30 columns of red granite and two of black porphyry. The same staircase leads to the Egyptian Museum, founded by Pius VII, and to the 2nd floor, where the Candelabra Gallery and the Etruscan Museum, founded by Gregory XVI and occupying room 13, are located, with a rich collection of ancient Italian antiquities.

The staircase of the museum leads to the garden della Pigna. A semicircular niche is arranged in the end wall of the palace (architect Pirro Ligorio, 1560) with a bronze Roman fountain in the shape of a cone (Italian Pigna) of the 1st century, which gave the name to the whole garden.

Galleries Bramante and Braccio Nuovo

The northern end of the Bramante East Gallery and the Braccio Nuovo Gallery is occupied by the Chiaramonti Museum. Each side of the first gallery is divided into 30 compartments, furnished with a wonderful collection of statues, busts and bas-reliefs (Tiberius, Julius Caesar, Son, Silenus, etc.; busts: Cicero, Marius, Scipio Africanus, etc.). In the gallery of Braccio Nuovo there are statues of: Augustus, Claudius, Titus, Euripides, Demosthenes, Minerva and others; busts: Mark Antony, Lepidus, Adrian, Trajan, etc. From the gallery of Chiaramonte to the south, separated by one lattice, there is a museum of Inscriptions (more than 3000 monuments), founded by Pope Pius VII.

The following museums and halls are located in the Bramante Western Gallery: 1) The Museum of Secular Objects - a collection of antique utensils from various metals, bronze statuettes of idols, precious stones and carvings on ivory. 2) Museum of sacred objects - a collection of ancient church utensils found in the catacombs, etc. 3) Papyri cabinet. 4) Hall of the Aldobrandine wedding. 5) The Hall of Byzantine Artists, in which Gregory XVI placed a collection of paintings from the 13th and 14th centuries. 6) Numismatic cabinet.

The Arazzi Gallery on the second floor of the Bramante Western Gallery contains a precious collection of carpets made from Raphael's cardboards and depicting the deeds of the holy apostles.

see also

Write a review on the article "Apostolic Palace"

Notes

Links

• // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron: in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - St. Petersburg. , 1890-1907.
• Vladimir Sedov. , 2006.

An excerpt characterizing the Apostolic Palace

In the booth, which Pierre entered and in which he stayed for four weeks, there were twenty-three captured soldiers, three officers and two officials.
All of them then seemed to Pierre as if in a fog, but Platon Karataev remained forever in Pierre's soul the strongest and most dear memory and the personification of everything Russian, kind and round. When the next day, at dawn, Pierre saw his neighbor, the first impression of something round was completely confirmed: the whole figure of Plato in his French overcoat belted with a rope, in a cap and bast shoes, was round, his head was completely round, back, chest, shoulders, even the arms that he wore, as if always about to embrace something, were round; a pleasant smile and large brown gentle eyes were round.
Platon Karataev must have been over fifty years old, judging by his stories about the campaigns in which he participated as a longtime soldier. He himself did not know and could not in any way determine how old he was; but his teeth, bright white and strong, which kept rolling out in their two semicircles when he laughed (as he often did), were all good and whole; not a single gray hair was in his beard and hair, and his whole body had the appearance of flexibility and especially hardness and endurance.
His face, despite the small round wrinkles, had an expression of innocence and youth; his voice was pleasant and melodious. But main feature his speech was immediacy and argumentative. He apparently never thought about what he said and what he would say; and from this there was a special irresistible persuasiveness in the speed and fidelity of his intonations.
His physical strength and agility were such during the first time of captivity that he did not seem to understand what fatigue and illness were. Every day in the morning and in the evening, lying down, he said: “Lord, put it down with a pebble, raise it up with a ball”; in the morning, getting up, always shrugging his shoulders in the same way, he would say: "Lie down - curled up, get up - shake yourself." And indeed, as soon as he lay down to immediately fall asleep like a stone, and as soon as he shook himself, in order to immediately, without a second of delay, take up some business, the children, having risen, take up toys. He knew how to do everything, not very well, but not badly either. He baked, steamed, sewed, planed, made boots. He was always busy and only at night allowed himself to talk, which he loved, and songs. He sang songs, not like songwriters sing, knowing that they are being listened to, but he sang like birds sing, obviously because it was just as necessary for him to make these sounds, as it is necessary to stretch or disperse; and these sounds were always subtle, tender, almost feminine, mournful, and his face was very serious at the same time.
Having been captured and overgrown with a beard, he, apparently, threw away everything that was put on him, alien, soldierly, and involuntarily returned to the former, peasant, people's warehouse.
“A soldier on leave is a shirt made of trousers,” he used to say. He reluctantly spoke about his time as a soldier, although he did not complain, and often repeated that he had never been beaten during his entire service. When he told, he mainly told from his old and, apparently, dear memories of the "Christian", as he pronounced, peasant life. The sayings that filled his speech were not those for the most part indecent and glib sayings that soldiers say, but these were those popular sayings that seem so insignificant, taken separately, and which suddenly acquire the meaning of deep wisdom when they are said by the way.
Often he said the exact opposite of what he had said before, but both were true. He loved to talk and spoke well, embellishing his speech with endearing and proverbs, which, it seemed to Pierre, he himself invented; but the main charm of his stories was that in his speech the simplest events, sometimes the very ones that, without noticing them, Pierre saw, took on the character of solemn decorum. He liked to listen to the tales that one soldier told in the evenings (all the same), but most of all he liked to listen to stories about real life. He smiled joyfully as he listened to such stories, inserting words and asking questions that tended to make clear to himself the beauty of what was being told to him. Attachments, friendship, love, as Pierre understood them, Karataev did not have any; but he loved and lived lovingly with everything that life brought him, and especially with a person - not with some famous person, but with those people who were before his eyes. He loved his mutt, loved his comrades, the French, loved Pierre, who was his neighbor; but Pierre felt that Karataev, in spite of all his affectionate tenderness for him (with which he involuntarily paid tribute to Pierre's spiritual life), would not have been upset for a minute by parting from him. And Pierre began to experience the same feeling for Karataev.

• Address: 00120, Vatican
• Telephone: +39 06 6988 3860
• Purpose: Palazzo
• Vatican Museums website: http://www.museivaticani.va

Apostolic Palace in the Vatican- this is the official "place of residence" of the Pope. It is also called the Papal Palace, and its official name is the Palace of Sixtus V. In fact, this is not one building, but a whole “collection” of palaces, chapels, chapels, museums and galleries built in different time, V different style. All of them are located around Cortile di Sisto V.

The Apostolic Palace is located to the northeast. Next to it are two more famous ones - the palace of Gregorio XIII and the Bastion of Nicholas V.

It is not known exactly when the Apostolic Palace was built, the data differ quite seriously: some historians believe that some parts of the southern, oldest part of it were erected at the end of the 3rd - beginning of the 4th centuries during the reign of Constantine the Great, others that it is much " younger” and was built already in the VI century. The colonnade dates back to the 8th century, and in 1447, under Pope Nicholas V, the old buildings were mostly demolished, and a new palace was erected in their place (with the "participation" of some old elements). It was completed and rebuilt many times, until the end of the 16th century - quite actively, but in the 20th century it was also completed (for example, under Pope Pius XI, a separate monumental entrance to the museum was erected).

Stanza Raphael

4 small rooms, painted by Raphael and his students, were called Stanze di Rafaello - (the word "stanza" is translated as a room). These rooms were decorated at the direction of Pope Julius II - he chose them as his private chambers, not wanting to live in the rooms in which Alexander VI lived before him. There is a legend that some wall paintings already existed, but Julius, amazed by the skill of Raphael, ordered all the other paintings to be knocked down and instructed the artist to completely decorate the room - although Raphael was only 25 years old at that time.

The first room is called the Stanza dela Senyatura; it is the only one of the four that retained its original name - the rest are now named after the main theme of the frescoes decorating them. Signature in translation means “to sign”, “put a seal” - the room served as an office, in which dad read the papers sent to him, signed them and sealed his signature with a seal.

The artist painted the room in the period from 1508 to 1511, it is dedicated to human self-improvement, and 4 frescoes reflect 4 areas of such activity: philosophy, justice, theology and poetry.

The painting of the Stanza d "Eliodoro was completed from 1511 to 1514; the theme of the paintings is the divine protection provided to the Church and its ministers.

The third stanza bears the name of Incendio di Borgo, based on one of the frescoes depicting a fire in the Borgo quarter adjoining the papal palace. All the frescoes here are dedicated to the deeds of the popes (including the fresco dedicated to the fire - according to legend, Pope Leo managed to stop not only panic, but also fire with the sign of the cross). Work on its painting was carried out from 1514 to 1517.

The last stanza - Sala di Konstantino - was already completed by Raphael's students, since the artist died in 1520. The composition is dedicated to the struggle of the first Roman Christian emperor Constantine with the pagans.

Belvedere Palace

It is named after the sculpture of Apollo Belvedere stored in it. Today it is located in the palace. In addition to the world-famous statue of Apollo, there are many other masterpieces here, including the statue of Laocoon, Aphrodite of Cnidus, Antinous of Belvedere, Perseus by Antonio Canova, Hercules, and other equally famous sculptures.

In total, the museum contains more than 8 hundred exhibits: the Hall of Animals contains about 150 statues depicting various scenes with animals (some of them are copies of famous antique statues, some are originals restored by the Italian sculptor Francesco Franzoni); Here, among others, there is an original Greek statue depicting the torso of the Minotaur. In the Hall of the Muses there are statues depicting Apollo and the 9 Muses. The statues are copies of ancient Greek originals dating back to the 3rd century BC. There is also a cast from the Belvedere torso and statues of famous ancient Greek figures, including Pericles. The Hall of the Muses is octagonal in shape, surrounded by Corinthian columns. No less attention than the sculptures themselves, the ceiling painting by Tomasso Conca attracts, it continues the plot theme created by the sculptures and depicts the Muses and Apollo, as well as the famous poets of antiquity - Greek and Roman.

The walls of the gallery of statues were painted by Pinturicchio and his students. There are statues of gods and goddesses, Roman emperors (Augustus, Marcus Aurelius, Nero, Caracalla, etc.), patricians and ordinary citizens, as well as copies ancient Greek sculptures. The opposite ends of the gallery are decorated with two famous sculptures: Jupiter on the throne and the sleeping Ariadne, and besides them you can see such statues as the Drunken Satyr, the Lament of Penelope and others. The Hall of Busts contains busts of famous Roman citizens and ancient gods, including a funerary high relief of Cato and Porcia. In total, the hall contains about 100 busts and Renaissance frescoes.

Also noteworthy are the Hall of the Greek Cross (named after the figure it represents in plan), the Cabinet of Masks, the Rotunda with a giant monolithic porphyry bowl installed in it, and the Cabinet of Apoxymenes.

In front of the Belvedere Palace there is a fountain in the form of a cone - the work of Pirro Ligorio, and the place where it is located is called. Until the beginning of the 17th century, the cone adorned the Champ de Mars in Paris, but in 1608 it was transported to the Vatican and installed in front of the entrance to the Belvedere Palace. It is an allegory of the creation of the world.

In addition to the bump, the square is decorated with an absolutely modern sculpture Sfera con Sfera - "Sphere in the Sphere" by Arnaldo Pomodoro, installed in the early 90s of the last century. The four-meter outer bronze sphere contains an inner rotating sphere, on which a pattern is applied, visible through the "holes" and "holes" in the outer sphere. She personifies the Earth in the Universe and calls to reflect on the truth that everything, that all the destruction that causes their planet, resonates in the outside world.

It was built during the reign of Pope Sixtus IV (construction began in 1473 and was completed in 1481) and named after him, and on the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary on August 15, 1483, it was consecrated. Before her, another chapel stood in this place, in which the papal court gathered. The idea of ​​​​creating a new chapel, more fortified and capable of withstanding a siege if necessary, arose from Sixtus IV in connection with the constant threats of attacks on East Coast Italy from the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, as well as due to the presence of a military threat from the Signoria Medici.

However, the fortification was fortified, and the decoration of the chapel was also not forgotten: the wall frescoes were made by Sandro Botticelli, Penturicchio and other famous artists of that time. Later, already under Pope Julius II, Michelangelo painted the vault (it depicts the creation of the world), lunettes and formwork. Four demouldings depict the biblical scenes "The Bronze Serpent", "David and Goliath", "Kara Haman" and "Judith and Holofernes". Michelangelo completed the work in a fairly short time, despite the fact that he positioned himself as a sculptor, and not as a painter, in addition, various difficulties arose during work (some frescoes had to be knocked down due to the fact that they were covered with mold - damp plaster, on which they were applied, turned out to be susceptible to mold, later a different solution was used, and the frescoes were painted anew).

Upon completion of the vault painting, on October 31, 1512, a solemn Vespers was served in the new chapel (on the same day and at the same hour 500 years later, in 2012, Vespers was repeated by Pope Benedict XVI). It is not surprising that it was Michelangelo who was entrusted with the painting of the altar wall. The work was carried out by the master from 1536 to 1541; The scene of the Last Judgment is depicted on the wall.

Beginning in 1492, with the conclave at which Rodrigo Borgia, who became Pope Alexander VI, was elected pope, Sistine Chapel Conclaves are regularly held.

papal apartments

The apartment where the Pope lives and works is at the very top; some of the windows face . They consist of several rooms - an office, a secretary's room, a reception room, a bedroom, a living room, a dining room, a kitchen. There is also a large library, a chapel and a medical office, which is important given the age at which cardinals are usually elected popes. However, the pontiff Francis abandoned the papal chambers and lives in the residence of Santa Marta, in a two-room apartment.

In the Apostolic Palace there is another "papal chambers" - apartments that belonged to the infamous Pope Alexander VI - Borgia. Today they are part of, open to tourists, they attract Special attention murals by Pinturicchio.

How to visit the Apostolic Palace?

You can visit the Apostolic Palace in weekdays and Saturday from 9:00 to 18:00. An adult ticket costs 16 euros, you can buy it at the box office until 16-00. On the last Sunday of the month, the museum can be visited from 9-00 to 12-30 absolutely free.