VATICAN CITY MUSEUMS TOUR GUIDE - MUST SEE IN ROME ITALY

Rome, the eternal city, capital of the history and art, birthplace of western civilization. In the center of the city is the Basilica of Saint Peter, the true symbol of Christianity in every part of the globe. Close to the Basilica are the corridors of the Vatican Museum that attract four million visitors every year from all over the world. A marvelous journey that takes us through a constellation of 13 museums and see some of the greatest treasures of humanity. This museum all started as just a small collection of sculptures and over the centuries it transformed into a museum complex with one of the finest collections of art on the planet. As we enter the Pine Cone Courtyard the first thing that catches your eyes in the middle of the courtyard is a modern bronze sculpture named Sphere Within a Sphere that was placed here in the 1990s. The beautiful Pine Cone Courtyard is named after the huge bronze pine cone installed in a large exedra built by Priro Ligurio. The Pine Cone is an ancient fountain that was discovered near the Pantheon and came from the top of Hadrian's Mausoleum. Water used to flow out of the scales. The two bronze peacocks that flank the Pine Cone are replicas of ancient sculptures that were found in the Mausoleum of Hadrian which is Castel Sant'Angelo today. The originals are now in the new wing. This collection goes back to 1480 with the discovery of the Roman statue Apollo. It can still be seen in the museum's octagonal courtyard. It was placed there in 1503 by Julius II and as decades passed some popes added to the amazing collection. The God of the Tiber River The statue group was found in 1506 on the Esquiline Hill in Rome and immediately identified as the Liacolin described by Pliny the Elder as a masterpiece of the sculpture of Rhodes. During the Trojan War, Liacolin, priest of Apollo, warned his fellow Trojans against taking in the horse left by the Greeks outside the city gates. Athena and Poseidon who were favoring the Greeks sent two great sea serpents which have wrapped their coils around Liacolin and his two sons and are killing him. From the Roman point of view, the death of these innocents was crucial to the decision of Aeneas who listened to Liacolin's warning to flee Troy and this led to the eventual founding of Rome, at least that's what the legend says, entering the Hall of Animals. This room is full of animal sculptures found buried and hidden throughout the whole city of Rome for the last 500 to 1000 years. This is some amazing art. We are at the Hall of the Muses, Sala delle Muse, decorated with frescoes of Apollo and the muses created in the late 18th century. The centerpiece here is the Belvedere Torso. The statue was found in the Campo di Fiori and is signed by Apollonius of Athens, a Greek sculptor of the first century BC. Unfortunately, the legs and the arms are missing but the torso is considered a perfect example of the male anatomy. It inspired Michelangelo for his nudes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. The adjoining room, Sala Rotunda, with its circular room and domed ceiling was modeled after the Pantheon. The floor is paved with a Roman mosaic from the 2nd or early 3rd century AD that depicts various sea monsters and other mythological figures. The floor was discovered in Otrigoli, a small town in Umbria. In the middle of the room is a large porphyry basin, the so-called Bathtub of Nero. It was found in Nero's Golden House. The niches surrounding the rooms hold a variety of statues, the most impressive in the colossal statue of Hercules in bronze from the 2nd century AD. The statue with the eagle at its feet is Emperor Claudius, Juno, Queen of the Gods and the Protectress of Women. In the Sala Acrocegreca of Pope Pius Clement we have the sarcophaguses of Saint Constantina, daughter of Constantine, and Saint Helena, wife of Constantine the Great. The two sarcophaguses are made of porphyry, only found in Egypt. It is very rare and only used for imperial monuments. We are at the Egyptian Museum entrance in which we will skip. The Gallery of Tapestry, a collection of various 15th and 17th century Flemish tapestries. Notice while walking past the resurrection of Jesus, the eyes as well as the body turns towards you. The Ascension. Gallery of Maps, the final and longest gallery, 175 meters which is 600 feet, is the Galleria delle Carte Geografiche. The walls of this gallery are decorated with large paintings of maps created by Antoni Dante between 1580 and 1583. The maps show Italian cities, islands in the Mediterranean Sea and the Papal Territories. The ceiling frescoes reflect events that took place at the places on the wall. Okay, we're going to a map area that we are familiar with and see what it looked like centuries ago. This is like ancient Google Earth. Frascati, good wine here. Monte San Giovanni, this is where I was born. Strangola Galli, my mother's birthplace and my sister. On the bottom left hill is Frusinone, now called Frusinone, our province. On the top right is Liffola, today called Isola Liri, meaning Island of Liri. The Liri is the name of the river that surrounds the town. You got to see the great waterfall there as well. Top left at the fork of the river is Casamari, birthplace of Caius Marius who reformed the Roman army. Also a very famous place for its abbey. This is the area we came from, La Bella Ciorgeria. We now enter the Raphael rooms. The first one is Sala di Constantino, the Constantine room. These rooms were painted by Raphael between the year 1508 and 1524, commissioned by Pope Julius, dedicated to Emperor Constantine who legalized Christianity in Rome. Each of the four walls is an episode of his life. Here the vision of the cross depicts the incident before the battle against Maxentius, when Constantine saw a bright image of the cross in the sky with the word, in this sign, conquer. Well, we all know the outcome. Constantine defeats his opponent, as you see him thrown into the Tiber river, resulting not only in Constantine being the sole ruler of the Roman Empire, but also a victory of Christianity over paganism. St. Peter in chains, being freed by the angel. The room of the Segnatura. And there's Dante from La Divina Commedia. Now follow us to see how the inspiration, devotion, and persistence of a man called Michelangelo Buonarroti ended up accomplishing a masterpiece that created the most magnificent chapel in the world, the Sistine Chapel.