Sts. NEREUS AND ACHILLEUS

SS. NEREO E ACHÌLLEO
Viale delle Terme di Caracalla 28

595 on the Titulus Fasciolae mentioned in the sources since the year 377
The fasciola was the bandage fallen from the wounded foot of St. Peter while being led to martyrdom

The church was moved to the present site in 814 for Leo III (795/816)

Reduced in size in 1475 for Pope Sixtus IV Della Rovere (1471/84)

Restoration with frescoes and altar raised on the occasion of the Jubilee of the year 1600 for Cardinal Cesare Baronio
It was dedicated on that year to Nereus and Achilleus servants of Flavia Domitilla and martyrs, according to tradition, with her in Terracina under Trajan (98/117)

NAVES
Frescoes “Stories of martyrs” maybe by Niccolò Circignani aka Pomarancio (about 1520/98)

PRESBYTERY
On the right “Candelabra” of the fifteenth century from the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls and “Ambo” with a base made out of porphyry from the Baths of Caracalla

Enclosure of the choir of the twelfth century with Cosmatesque pieces
Ciborium of the sixteenth century
Episcopal chair of Vassallettos’ workshop

SIDE OF THE ARCH OF THE APSE FACING THE NAVE
Mosaic “Annunciation”, “Theotokos” and “Transfiguration” about 815 the only section left of the mosaic of the time of Leo III (795/816)

St. STEPHEN IN THE ROUND ON THE CELIUM HILL

S. STEFANO ROTONDO
Via di S. Stefano Rotondo 7

About 470/480 for Pope Simplicius (468/483) on the area of the barracks of the provincial auxiliary soldiers known as CASTRA PEREGRINA built in about 160 AD

It is the oldest circular church in Rome

Innocent II Papareschi (1130/1143) added the five-arched portico and the interior triple arch

1453 restoration for Pope Nicholas V Parentucelli (1447/55) by Bernardo Rossellino (1409/64) who consolidated the roof and removed the external ambulatory and three of the four arms of the original plan

It has the same dimensions of the rotunda of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem

It was the seat of the Collegium Hungaricum, founded in 1579, joined in 1580 with the Collegium Germanicum, which had been founded in 1552

So in 1580 the GERMANIC-HUNGARIAN COLLEGE was founded, to form priests who would contribute to the Catholic Counter-Reformation. Even today the church is the property of the College

It is the Hungarian National Church

Thirty-four ancient columns taken from Roman buildings

“The latest research has shown that the original building was built as a succession of open and covered spaces, creating a play of light and shadow as well as tall and lower structures which culminated in the central drum. Once the Renaissance floor of the areas in the northeast and southwest was removed, the remains of the ancient floor of the fifth century were found, consisting of sheets of cipollino (onion-like) marble, 90 cm. wide, flanked by smaller sheets: this has allowed us to reconstruct the original design of the floor probably made out of squares intersected diagonally. (...) Within the building were also found remains of opus sectile (inlaid marble) of fine marbles and, in the walls, rows of holes for pins and hooks which used to hold the marble slabs on the walls, confirming the drawings of the interior the church made ​​by Baldassare Peruzzi at the beginning of the sixteenth century” (Romena Brugnerotto - www.nuovipanorami.it)

PERIMETER WALLS
Thirty painted panels with “Martyrology” 1582/83 by Niccolò Circignani aka Pomarancio (about 1520/98), who painted twenty-four panels, Antonio Tempesta (about 1555/1630) and assistants
Some panels were repainted in the nineteenth century
They were useful to psychologically prepare young Jesuits who were about to go with a false identity in Protestant countries to secretly regain Christians to the Catholic Church

“This is the richest and best moment of Circignani's career. To the generic influence of Michelangelo, an easy and eclectic capacity of assimilation of the most important trends of the late Roman Mannerism was gradually added: from Muziano to the Zuccari's, even Barocci albeit only in part. One can detect the trend towards a clearer simplification of the artificial and fragmented representation of the Mannerist style and the search for a more unified and monumental compositional vision” (Michele Cordaro - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Treccani)

On the left against a pillar “Episcopal Seat of St. Gregory the Great” marble chair of the imperial period of ancient Rome

MAIN ALTAR
Dedicated, among others, to the Hungarian saints of the Árpád royal family: St. Stephen the first King of Hungary (about 1001/38), St. Emeric (XI century), crown prince and son of St. Stephen, and King Ladislaus (1077/95)

CHAPEL OF Sts. PRIMUS AND FELICIAN
The relics of St. Felician were transferred here in about 647 at the behest of Theodore I (642/649)
In the apse mosaic “Christ on a jeweled cross, not crucified, between Sts. Primus and Felician” of the seventh century
It strikes a contrast, in not representing the crucifixion, with the cruelty of the frescoes on the walls

CHAPEL OF St. STEPHEN OF HUNGARY
Sepulcher of the beginning of the sixteenth century

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXPLORATIONS
Mithraeum of the second or third century with decorative faux marble inlay decorations. It was part of the Castra Peregrina

St. MARY OF CONSOLATION

S. MARIA DELLA CONSOLAZIONE

Piazza della Consolazione 94

1470 simultaneously with the Ospedale della Consolazione (Consolation Hospital) built behind the church and abolished in 1936

It was rebuilt in the years 1583/1600 by Martino Longhi the Elder (1534/91)

FAÇADE

Completed 1827 by Pasquale Belli (1752/1833), the architect of the plan for the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls

The origin of the name of the church dates back to 1385, when a nobleman condemned to death, Giordanello degli Alberini, paid two florins of gold, so that an image of the Virgin Mary was placed here to “console” the last moments of people condemned to death

This was in fact a place for executions until 1550

1^st RIGHT - MATTEI CHAPEL

“Stories of the Passion of the Christ”

Above the altar “Crucifixion”

On the walls “Flagellation” and “Ecce homo”

On the ceiling “Washing of the Feet”, “Last Supper”, “Christ in the Garden” and “Capture of Christ”

On the lunettes “Moments of Christ's Passion”

In the corners “Evangelists” 1556 masterpiece by Taddeo Zuccari (1529/66)

With the work in this chapel the painter from the Marche region was so successful that he was highly regarded and received a number of job's offers

“Not only the painting technique and the colors but also the composition reveal how Taddeo was deeply fascinated by Correggio. The group on the right in the foreground in the Capture of Christ, for example, refers to a Correggio's composition. The figure of the young man clearly reveals his model, both in his movement and in the compositional intentions. Similarly to Correggio here also the diagonal slant of the figure in the foreground is replicated by the main group in the background. But this diagonal on the right by Zuccari corresponds to a similar diagonal on the left side. Just like his Florentine contemporaries, a crossing of diagonals is generated, which makes the central group stand out dramatically. Except that this solution, in contrast to the hustle and bustle of figures by Bronzino and Vasari, so hard to take in with our eyes, carries with it a clear separation of the individual scenes” (Hermann Voss)

2^nd CHAPEL ON THE RIGHT

Above the altar “Pellucchi Altar Piece: Madonna and Child with Saints and Patron” 1575 masterpiece by Livio Agresti (about 1508/79)

3^rd CHAPEL ON THE RIGHT

Remarkable gate and “Stories of Jesus and the Virgin Mary” by Giovanni Baglione (1566/1643)

MAIN ALTAR

Designed by Martino Longhi the Elder

Medieval fresco “Madonna of Consolation” repainted by Antonio Aquili aka Antoniozzo Romano (about 1435-40/1508)

On the sides “Nativity of the Virgin Mary” and “Assumption of the Virgin Mary” by Cristoforo Roncalli aka Pomarancio (1552/1626)

Choir and organ 1674

5^th CHAPEL ON THE LEFT

“Scenes of Mary and Jesus” by Antonio Circignani aka Pomarancio (about 1568/1629), son of Niccolò Circignani who was the master for Cristoforo Roncalli

All of the three artists had the same Pomarancio nickname as they all came from Pomarance, near Pisa

4^th CHAPEL ON THE LEFT

Frescoes “Stories of St. Andrew” by Marzio Colantonio Ganassini (active in Rome in the early seventeenth century)

3^rd CHAPEL ON THE LEFT

Frescoes “Life of the Virgin Mary” by Francesco Nappi (about 1565/1630)

2^nd CHAPEL ON THE LEFT

Above the altar “St. Francis Receiving the Stigmata” by an anonymous seventeenth-century artist

1^st CHAPEL ON THE LEFT

Marble relief “Mystic Marriage of St. Catherine” 1530 by Raffaello da Montelupo (about 1505/57)

SACRISTY

Bas-relief with “Crucifixion in between the Virgin Mary and St. John” by Luigi Capponi (active at the end of the fifteenth century/beginning of the sixteenth century)

Fragments of frescoes on the walls by Antonio Aquili aka Antoniozzo Romano

St. EGIDIO

S. EGIDIO

Piazza S. Egidio 3a

1630 for Filippo Colonna who also wanted to dedicate it to Our Lady of Mount Carmel

It was built in the area of the older church S. Lorenzo in Janiculo or De Curtibus

TO THE LEFT OF THE ENTRANCE

“Funeral Monument of Veronica Rondinini Origo” by Carlo Fontana (1634/1714)

MAIN ALTAR

“Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St. Simon Stock” about 1630 by Andrea Camassei (1602/49)

In the chancel “Virgin and Sts. Teresa and Joseph” by Andrea Pozzo (1642/1709)

CHAPEL ON THE LEFT

“St. Egidio” by Cristoforo Roncalli aka Pomarancio (1552/1626)

In the monastery, since 1968, there are the headquarters of the Comunità di S. Egidio (Community of St. Egidio) a “public association of lay people of the Catholic Church” formed by about 50,000 members living in more than 70 countries around the world, dedicated to communicating the Gospel and its implementation in practice, helping the poor, the sick and those in need of help

In the MONASTERY there is also the

Museo di Roma in Trastevere

Museum of Rome in the Trastevere District

Section of the Museo di Roma (Museum of Rome) opened in 1977 in the wing renovated by Attilio Spaccarelli (1890/1975)

It show aspects of everyday Roman life from the late 1700s to the end of 1800s

Six “Roman Scenes” depicting life-size aspects of everyday Roman life in the nineteenth century:

A pharmacy, the depot of a wine wagon, the courtyard of an inn where one could dance the saltarello (a Roman folk dance), the interior of an inn, a public square with a public scribe and two pipers in front of a shrine

“Nativity scene” set in Rome in the nineteenth century

Materials belonging to the Roman poet Trilussa (1871/1950) donated after his death to the City of Rome, shown in part in the so-called TRILUSSA ROOM including a “Vase of the deers” in bronze 1903/06 by Duilio Cambellotti (1876/1960)

Terracotta sculpture by Achille Pinelli (1809/41)

PAINTINGS

Series of paintings of “Vanished Rome” of the end of the nineteenth century by Roesler Franz (1845/1907)

“Night View of Rome” by Amedeo Simonetti (1874/1922)

“Fantastic view of the Palatine Hill” by Carl Friederch Seiffert (1809/91)

Watercolor “The fishmonger in Portico d'Ottavia” about 1824 by the Englishman Samuel Prout (1783/1852)

“Piazza Colonna at night” by Pasquale Ruggero (1851/1915)

“Lunch in the country” in 1858 by Vincenzo Morani (1809/70)

Small views by Diego Angeli (1869/1937)

“The seller of hot chestnuts in Via Sistina” 1867 by Arnoldo Corrodi (1846/74)

RUGGERI PALACE

PALAZZO RUGGERI

Corso Vittorio Emanuele II 24

1588/91 Giacomo Della Porta (1533/1602) for the Ruggeri family

The stretch of Corso Vittorio Emanuele II in front of the palace corresponds to a stretch of the Via Papalis, the way the popes used to get from the Vatican to their palace near the Basilica of St. John Lateran or during important occasions and processions

When, from 1420 onwards, the popes went to live in the Vatican, the Via Papalis was tread by them in the days after the election to take symbolically possession as bishops of Rome of the throne in the Lateran Cathedral

HALLS OF HONOR and LOGGIA

“Fake painted tapestries with scenes of the Roman consul Gnaeus Pompey taken from Plutarch” and “Allegorical figures” painted at the end of 1500s by the brothers Giovanni Alberti (1558/1601) and Cherubino Alberti (1553/1615) for Pompeo Ruggeri

TWO ROOMS ON THE SECOND FLOOR

Frescoed frieze “Cycle with alternate stories of the Old Testament with allegorical figures” also by the Alberti brothers and Cristoforo Roncalli aka Pomarancio (1552/1626)

MATTEI DI GIOVE PALACE

PALAZZO MATTEI DI GIOVE

Via Michelangelo Caetani 32

Begun in 1598 by Carlo Maderno (1556/1629) and completed in 1618 for Asdrubale Mattei Duke of Giove on the site of some demolished houses of the family

The poet Giacomo Leopardi lived here for five months in 1823 being a relative of the Antici Mattei family, who had inherited the palace

Since 1938 it belongs to the Italian State

In the entrance hall, courtyard and loggia ANCIENT RELIEFS, STATUES and BUSTS from the Mattei collection including “Sarcophagus with stories of the origins of Rome” known as Mattei Sarcophagus on the stairs

The busts of Roman emperors date back to the sixteenth century

The coat of arms of the Mattei family is associated with the eagle of the Gonzaga family: Asdrubale was, in fact, married to Constanza Gonzaga, related to the powerful Habsburg family

IN THE ROOMS

“Jacob and Rachel at the source” by Domenico Zampieri aka Domenichino (1581/1641)

“Stories of Joseph Jew” by Cristoforo Roncalli aka Pomarancio (1552/1626)

“Stories of Joseph and Potiphar's Wife” by Giovanni Lanfranco (1582/1647)

“Four stories of Solomon” 1622/23 by Pietro Berrettini aka Pietro da Cortona (1597/1669)

“They show his sense of drama, his distinctive compositional style, his attention to archaeological detail, and his strength and clarity in the design of the main protagonists. Individual figures as well as entire scenes seem to foreshadow his later work and the panel with the death of Joab seems an anticipation of the Iron Age painted in the Palazzo Pitti in 1637. Yet, although the style is formed or in the process of training, it does lack vigor and self-confidence as well as the energy of his mature style” (Rudolf Wittkower)

MUSIC LIBRARY OF THE ITALIAN STATE

LIBRARY OF MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY HISTORY

CENTER FOR AMERICAN STUDIES

Opened by Harry Nelson Gay, professor of history, a native of Massachusetts who had settled in Italy in the early 1900s to teach at the University of Rome. He collected in his library all publications of interest to the U.S. he could find

The Library is now with over 50,000 books an important record of American culture

In addition, a service of international borrowing offers the possibility to consult the catalog of the most important libraries in the U.S. and ask them to send books and photocopies, with a choice of over sixty million publications

MASSIMO AT THE COLUMNS PALACE

PALAZZO MASSIMO ALLE COLONNE

Corso Vittorio Emanuele II 145

1159, formerly known as Palazzo del Portico (Palace of the Portico) and part of the houses of the Massimo family

It was built over the ruins of the auditorium of the ODEON OF DOMITIAN (81/96), theater with 10,000 seats south of the Stadium of Domitian (Piazza Navona) used for music competitions that were part of the Certamen Capitolinum

1532/36 rebuilt by Baldassarre Peruzzi (1481/1536) of whom is the architectural masterpiece

The building is still owned by the Massimo family one of the oldest in Rome, legendarily connected to Quintus Fabius Maximus the delayer, but historically documented “only” from the year 999

PORTICO

Beautiful ceiling with wonderful portal that leads into the VESTIBULE with stuccos

Two narrow courtyards that allow light to reach even the lower floors, with sculptures and archaeological finds, including a “Venus Anadyomene”

LOGGIA

Wooden ceiling with stuccos maybe by Baldassarre Peruzzi or Pietro Bonaccorsi aka Perin del Vaga (1501/47)

ENTRANCE HALL

Frieze “Stories of Fabius Maximus” by Daniele da Volterra (1509/66)

TAPESTRY ROOM

Flemish tapestries and frieze of Baldassarre Peruzzi

RED SALON

Frieze painted with scenes of the “Foundation of Rome” by Giulio Pippi aka Giulio Romano (1499/1546)

In addition heavenly hall and reception room

CHAPEL OF St. PHILIP NERI

On the second floor

Here St. Philip Neri (1515/95) on the 16^th of March 1583 resurrected for a short time the fourteen year old Paolo son of Fabrizio Massimo. After he confessed, he asked to die to join her sister who had died a few days before, so St. Philip Neri blessed him and Paul died again

Every March 16^th a religious ceremony takes place here and the building is open to all

“Miracle of St. Philip” by Cristoforo Roncalli aka Pomarancio (1552/1626)

BARBERINI PALACE - NATIONAL ART GALLERY (fourteenth part)

Room XVI B - Chapel

1632 Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598/1680) for the baptism of a daughter of Taddeo Barberini and Anna Colonna who used to live in this wing of the palace

The floor tiles date back to the eighteenth century

Creator and supervisor of the decoration was Pietro Berrettini aka Pietro da Cortona (1597/1669) who painted himself the splendid “Crucifixion” on the altar

“It is the only scene entirely attributable to the master. It is possible to recognize here an innovative language, able to evoke the classic models of antiquity, giving them the vitality and energy of the present time” (Official website of the Barberini Gallery - www. galleriabarberini.beniculturali.it)

RIGHT WALL

“Ascension” by Pietro Paolo Ubaldini (about 1614/about 1684) and lunette “Rest on the Flight into Egypt” by Giacinto Gimignani (1606/81)

LEFT WALL

“Adoration of the Shepherds” by Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (1610/62) a from Viterbo and lunette “Holy Family” by Pietro Paolo Ubaldini

ENTRANCE WALL

“Annunciation” by Giacinto Gimignani and lunette “St. Francis of Paola crossing the sea” by Pietro Paolo Ubaldini

DOME

“Holy Spirit and cherubs with the symbols of the Passion” by Pietro Paolo Ubaldini and Giovanni Francesco Romanelli

Stuccos by Simone Lagi who was often working for the Barberini family

Room XVII - Mannerist Painters

Vault: “Stories of Joseph son of Jacob” 1583 Cristoforo Roncalli aka Pomarancio (1552/1626) and Baldassare Croce (about 1553/1628)

“Adoration of the Shepherds” and “Baptism of Christ” about 1600 by El Greco (1541/1614)

These are wonderful and visionary sketches by the Cretan artist whose real name was Domenikos Theotokopoulos

“When El Greco arrived in Rome, in 1570, was guest of one of the most influential patrons of the time, Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, around whom there was a lively circle of intellectuals and artists who were a challenging company for the young painter. In Rome, the comparison with the great painters of the Renaissance and Mannerist pushed the artist to process further his style, which became more sculptural with the use of chiaroscuro. (...) The figures became elongated and slender in an unnatural manner and proportions between characters were often not respected: reconnecting to the Byzantine tradition, he painted the scene so that the audience immediately would grasp the central elements. He used strong colors and unusual hues (red blood, yellow gold), useful to characterize the most important figures, dramatically illuminated by light blows to impressive effect” (Eugenia Querci - Enciclopedia Treccani)

“Deposition of Christ” by Jacopino del Conte (about 1515/98)

“Pietà” by an anonymous follower of Michelangelo, perhaps the mysterious Master of the Manchester Madonna

“The bath of Bathsheba” about 1573 by Jacopo Zucchi (about 1542/96), formerly believed lost after the bombing of the Italian embassy in Berlin

“Beheading of St. Paul” by Rutilio Manetti (1571/1639)

“Crucifixion of St. Peter” by Ventura Salimbeni (1568/1613)

“Venus mourning the death of Adonis” by Luca Cambiaso (1527/85)

“Aware of the art of Perin del Vaga and Pordenone, but also of Beccafumi, Cambiaso softened later his forms marked by gigantic proportions and unusual foreshortening of his early works with a personal version of the experiences of Venetian painters in regard to color and lighting effects. (...) In 1583 he was summoned by Philip II for the decoration of the Escorial” (Enciclopedia Treccani)

“Symposium on the shore of a lake” maybe by the Bolognese Giovanni Andrea Danducci aka Mastelletta (1575/1655)

“Judith with the Head of Holofernes” by Jan Metsys or Massys (about 1510/75) son and pupil of Quentin Massys

He was accused of heresy and banished from Antwerp, the city where he was born

“Agony of Christ in the Garden” by Marcello Venusti (about 1512/79) with Christ represented twice

“St. Jerome Penitent” by Girolamo Muziano (1532/92)

“The art of Muziano, derived mainly to the Brescian school and in which there are influences from Veneto, is characteristic for the fusion of various elements from Michelangelo and Sebastiano del Piombo, all of which contribute measurably to an eclectic style, very typical of the Roman culture of the late sixteenth century” (Enciclopedia Treccani)

“Dead Christ supported by an angel” about 1560 by the Flemish artist Jacob de Backer (about 1555/85) who lived in Rome from 1557 to 1560

ALTEMPS PALACE - NATIONAL ROMAN MUSEUM (fourth part)

ANTECHAMBER OF THE FOUR SEASONS

Frieze with “Landscapes” maybe by Antonio Viviani aka il Sordo (1560/1620) pupil of Federico Fiori aka Barocci

“Head of Hera” second or first century BC

Beautiful “Head of Heracles” first century AD

“Fragment of a sarcophagus with the myth of Phaedra” third century AD

BEDROOM OF THE CARDINAL

Frieze “Battle scenes” painted in tempera in the seventeenth century by Francesco Allegrini (1587/1663) designed by Antonio Tempesta (about 1555/1630)

“Dionysian mask” in ancient red marble, probably part of a fountain

Heads “Igea” and “Attis”. “Sarcophagus with Judgement of Paris”, all statues of the Hadrian's period (117/138)

The head of Attis originally represented Athena and the Phrygian cap was added by the restorer

STUDIO OF THE CLEMENCY

In the vault “Life of the Virgin Mary” 1590 Vitruvio Alberi (active 1575/died after 1590)

“Base with winged dancers” of the Augustan period

PAINTED LOGGIA OR GALLERY

In the vault “Pergola with animals and fruits some of which exotic” 1595 Vitruvio Alberi, Pasquale Cati and Antonio Viviani aka il Sordo (1560/1620)

The fountain dates back to 1594

“Twelve portraits of Caesars” including Nerva, Antoninus Pius and Tiberius

PARTY ROOM OR FIREPLACE ROOM

Martino Longhi the Elder (1534/91) who also designed the fireplace

“Galatian's suicide with his wife” copy from a bronze original of the period of Julius Caesar found in the Villa Ludovisi gardens formerly Gardens of Sallust

It is part of the sculptural group that was in turn part of the votive offering dedicated by Attalus I (240/197 BC) in the sanctuary of Athena Nikephoros at Pergamon to mark the victory of 228 BC on Galatians

According to Filippo Coarelli the group included also the Dying Gaul in the Capitoline Museums, whose base fits perfectly in the one of the Galatian Suicide. The group was completed by another statue of Dead Galatian Woman with Child

The arm that holds the sword is restored but the original had the opposite direction and also the original left arm of the woman had to be more realistically lower

“The whole figure is crossed by a dynamic twist drill which starts from the right foot, spread through the legs, very wide apart in a direction oblique to the axis represented by the torso and ends with the head turned in the opposite direction of the upwards torsional movement. The elegant execution of the bodies and the intense expression of suffering make this a sculptural group one the dramatic masterpieces of the Hellenistic age” (Lucio Fiorini - TMG)

“Large Ludovisi Sarcophagus” about 250, with battle between Romans and barbarians

“The all classical attention for the analysis of individual figures and the refinement of their specific articulation, surely connected with Attic experiences, oversees the composition to give maximum relief to the figure of the deceased in arms, but at the same time results in a vibrant and exciting overall effect that denies any spatial naturalistic space” (Gian Luca Grassigli - TMG)

“Bust of Mars” second century AD with bust added in 1500s

“Ludovisi Fury” maybe fragment of Dead Galatian Woman with Child belonging to the group of Attalus I

Chiesa di S. Aniceto

St. Anicet's Church

Begun in 1603 at the behest of Giovanni Angelo Altemps son of poor Roberto, the only church with a tomb of a pope in a private home

S. Aniceto (155/166) was the eleventh pope and his body was found in 1602 in the Catacomb of St. Sebastian

On the walls

“Stories of St. Anicet” with inspiration from the martyrdom by beheading of Roberto Altemps by Antonio Circignani aka Pomarancio (about 1568/1629), son of Niccolò Circignani

Vault

“Glory of St. Anicet” and “Angels bearing palms on the left and instruments of torture on the right” by Polidoro Mariottini

Reliquary of 1612 with the relics of Sts Anicet, Zosimus and Famianus in an “Ancient yellow Urn” which, according to tradition, contained the bones of Alexander Severus (222/235)

Behind “Cycle of oil paintings about St. Anicet” 1612 Ottavio Leoni (1578/1630)

OCTAGONAL CHAPEL AND SACRISTY

Wooden door with incredible security lock

CHAPEL OF St. CHARLES BORROMEO

Fragment of St. Charles Borromeo's vestment, musical scores late 1500 and early 1600 written for the Church of St. Anicet

VATICAN MUSEUMS - GREGORIAN ETRUSCAN MUSEUM (second part)

Room III - Bronze statues, votive or funerary and everyday life objects

In the FRIEZE “Prophecies of Daniel to Nebuchadnezzar” 1564 by Santi di Tito (1536/1603) and Niccolò Circignani aka Pomarancio (about 1520/98)

In the center of the room very important and beautiful bronze statue “Mars of Todi” about 400/390 BC found in 1835 at the Convent of Montesanto in Todi buried between four slabs of travertine, perhaps ritually and after being hit by lightning

It was merged from seven parts (head, arms, legs and trunk in two parts) and was fixed to a base with bronze parts visible beneath the feet

This Mars lost his helmet, but the remains of the spear and patera, or saucer with which he was making a libation, are kept in a showcase of the room

On the shield there is an inscription “Ahal Trututis Dunum Dede” (Ahal Trutitis gave as an offer) in the Umbrian language

The statue is associated with the cult of Mars that was practiced in Todi and is considered to be a work by Etruscan bronze sculptors influenced by the great Greek masters of the fifth century BC

SHOWCASE A

“Tripod from Vulci” late sixth century BC

“Series of eleven studs with busts of a lion or Achelous” from Tarquinia late sixth century BC

SHOWCASE B

“Carrara Putto” fourth or late third century BC in bronze

“The statue falls into the category of votive offering depicting children, squatting or sitting, in the act of making an offering to the gods, as they are known from the ancient Etruscan sanctuaries of Lake Trasimeno, Vulci, Cerveteri. The appearance of our child with a mature face, has suggested that he could represent the mythical Tages, the visionary child with the wisdom of a senior who, in Tarquinia, miraculously appeared up from the ground during too deep a plowing. He first dictated to the principes Etruriae (princes of Etruria) the Etruscan discipline, or the foundations of Etruscan religion, later codified in the sacred books” (Web site of the Vatican Museums - mv.vatican.va)

“Graziani Putto” first half of the second century BC in bronze

“Statuette of Haruspex” fourth century BC in solid cast bronze from the right shore of the Tiber River

The Haruspices were priests who predicted the future by examining the livers of sacrificed animals

The hat was always tied under the chin because, if the hat had fallen, it would have been a very bad omen

“Mirror engraved with Calchas” about 410 BC in bronze

“An Etruscan inscription qualifies this haruspex as Chalchas, or the mythical Greek soothsayer represented here in the Etruscan version of his iconography with the attribute of the wings, clear connotation that emphasizes his function as intermediary between the earthly and the transcendent. Note the foot resting on a rock, a fundamental action in the process of divination by a haruspex, that in so doing was establishing a contact with the ground as the site of the natural realm and of the underworld” (Web site of the Vatican Museums - mv.vatican.va)

SHOWCASE C

“Panoply of a warrior” (helmet, shield, greaves) late sixth or early fifth century BC from a tomb in Bomarzo

Curious “Trumpet” from Vulci

“Horses' harness” found in 1864 in the Pozzuolo Necropolis of Veii

“Anatomical Armor” about 350 BC from Bomarzo

“Helmet as Silenus' head” fourth century BC from Atella

SHOWCASE D

“Mirror with Eos and Kephalos” about 470 BC from Vulci

“Oval cist decorated with Amazons” late fourth century BC from Vulci

SHOWCASE E

“Collection of candelabra” about 375 BC from Vulci and Orte

SHOWCASE F

“Funerary set of Laris Harenies” mid fourth century BC from Bolsena

Room IV - Objects of various kinds of stone

In the frieze “Allegorical figures and musical challenge between Apollo and Marsyas” about 1559/65 maybe by Orlando Parentini

“Pair of lions” in nenfro late sixth century BC

Nenfro is a variety of tuff dark gray and compact but not so resistant typical of the Latium region

“These lions have been found in a chamber tomb, where they had been guarding the entrance. The menacing aspect, with open jaws, agrees with the functions assigned to them that reveals the belief in survival of the deceased limited to borders of the tomb. The modeling of the sculpture follows the patterns of archaic art” (Web site of the Vatican Museums - mv.vatican.va)

“Sarcophagus known as of the Magistrate” third century BC in nenfro from Tuscania with relief representing Etruscan magistrate the dead in 36 years on a chariot preceded by three men carrying the fasces, symbols of power

“Sarcophagus known as of the Poet” third century BC in nenfro from Tarquinia with cover not relevant and reliefs with stories about the Trojan War

“Sarcophagus with a polychrome relief” about 360 BC in marble from the Banditaccia Necropolis of Cerveteri with musicians and priest provided with lituus, a curved stick similar to the Christian bishops' pastoral

“Female Figurine” from Chiusi

Bilingual “Stele” from Todi