Friday, January 26
In Santa Maria Via Lata we had visited the excavations where St Paul had been imprisoned. Many of the frescos that had been found there had been moved to the Balbi Crypt Museum. Today, we planned to go see those frescos.
Along the way to the Museum we discovered that Santa Maria della Consolazione was open so we had a peek inside. The church is named for an icon of Virgin Mary which was placed on this site to console criminals who were tossed off the nearby cliff. This cliff is said to be the Tarpeian Rock from ancient Rome. A church was built on this site in 1480 but the present day structure dates from around 1600. It was rebuilt in the renaissance style.
The Museum that is built on the ruins of the Theater of Balbus and focuses on the archeological aspects of the area. Only the lower levels of the theater remain. You can still see the cisterns, pathways and plumbing from ancient times. We also saw the frescos from below Santa Maria in Via Lata. They depicted stories from the bible and still retained much of their original color.
(Fresco from St Paul’s House)
After the museum we went over to Palazzo Spada. This is a private residence that contains an extensive art collection and is open to the public. On the second floor there were four rooms chocked full of paintings, precious furniture, frescos and sculptures. The artists included Bruegel, Titian and Guido Reni. To our surprise we also found a Bernini sculpture that wasn’t on our list. It was a magnificent piece.
(Head of Laocoon by Bernini)
This Palazzo is also the home of the famous Boromini forced perspective. It can be found in the garden on the ground floor. Borormini consulted a famous mathematician of his day to help with the design. The piece creates the illusion that the subject is larger and father away that it really is. We found it fascinating.
(Borromini’s Forced Perspective)
We wound up sitting through another mass in order to see the last church of the day: Chiesa dei Santi Domenico e Sisto. There we saw a large scale sculpture that was designed by Bernini but was executed by his student Raggi.
Distance walked: 10.5 miles and 15 flights
Saturday, January 27
In the morning we dropped by an Irish Pub that doubles as a sports bar. We wanted to see the Women’s final of the Australian Open. After that we enjoyed lunch at one of our favorite restaurants. The owner was happy to see us again and gave us a discount. We’ll miss him.
Our next stop, on the other side of Town, was the Museo dell’Ara Pacis. This is a temple that was commissioned by the Roman Senate in 13 BC to honor Augustus’ military triumphs. The temple is dedicated to the Roman Goddess of Peace.
The temple, originally made of marble, fell into disuse in the third century and eventually was buried by the flooding of the Tiber. In the early Renaissance period parts of it were found and sold off to locations far and wide. The temple’s current exterior is made mostly from paster molds of the original marble carvings that have been found in museums and private collections all over the world. Originally the outside of the temple would have been painted in bright, polychromatic colors. It must have been an impressive sight.
On the way home we visited Parrocchia Sacro Cuore Di Gesu in Prati. This church, built in the early 20th century, is in the French Gothic style. The interior gives the impression of being much older. As is typical of the style the church has beautiful stained glass windows along the sides. In the back is a small museum with relics attesting to visits from dead relations.
As we passed Castel Sant’Angelo we saw an ice skating rink. This rink was supposed to have been opened and operating during Christmas. As with all schedules in Rome – it was just a suggestion.
Distance walked: 8.0 miles and 16 flights
Sunday, January 28
Our last day in Rome. This morning we again visited the pub to watch the Australian Open Men’s final. This time we had lunch there before taking a walking tour of central Rome.
We did manage to find one last church to add to our collection: Chiesa della Natività di Gesù. It was sad to see that it was badly in need of restoration.
Distance walked: 5.9 miles and 3 flights
Total churches visited so far: 113 and one Synagogue