“The Vatican takes your breath away.” – Joe Elliott
The Vatican Museums display over 20,000 works of art collected over the centuries by several popes. These are made up of a number of different museums, rooms, and galleries. It’s easy to get overwhelmed here as there’s so much to see and explore, but don’t let that deter you from your visit as you are in for an experience of your life. Each of the areas features a vast collection of world-renowned sculptures and paintings.
Want to know what those are? Read on…
1. MUSEO CHIARAMONTI
Named after Pope Pius VII (founder of the gallery in the early 19th century), the Museo Chiaramonti contains over 1,000 ancient sculptures. This area is not only important because of the striking statues and portrait busts you’ll get to see here, but also because many of these sculptures’ returned home, which is represented by this gallery. Having been taken to France in the late 1700s after being seized by Napoleon, it wasn’t until many decades passed that these pieces were finally recovered. After this, they were brought to be displayed back in this gallery.
2. THE GALLERY OF MAPS
One of the most visually stunning rooms you’ll find within the Vatican Museums is the Gallery of Maps. It stretches down a long hallway. It usually is a contest to see what grabs people’s attention first – the 40 geographical frescoes that depict Italy and the provinces that line its walls, or the highly decorative ceiling. You can take your time walking through here in order to fully check out the intricate detailing in the maps. These are painted by Ignazio Danti who was a famous geographer in the 16th century.
3. CORTILE DELLA PIGNA
The Cortile Della Pigna is also known as the Pinecone Courtyard. It gets its name from the gigantic bronze pinecone that is seen sitting at one end of the square. However, the Pinecone Courtyard’s most interesting thing is not the pinecone so much, but the unusual gold sphere that is found opposite it. This sphere is called the Sfera con Sfera or the Sphere within a Sphere. The Sfera con Sfera looks slightly out of place as it is surrounded by its much older counterparts and is actually just one piece of a series created by Arnaldo Pomodoro. It is found in many locations all around the world.
4. SALA ROTONDA
The Round Hall or the Sala Rotonda is also located in the Museo Pio-Clementino. The Sala Rotonda was designed with the Pantheon in mind and makes quite an impression from top to bottom. You won’t be able to miss the similarities between the Pantheon (for e.g., the round Oculus placed in the center and the square notches that surround it) and the ceiling of the Sala Rotunda, although both of them are smaller in size. On the other hand, there are some differences too, such as the small rosettes’ addition that give a much more delicate look to the ceiling of Sala Rotonda.
5. THE OCTAGONAL COURTYARD
The Octagonal Courtyard is located in the Museo Pio-Clementino. It is a beautiful open-air space which features several of the most famous sculptures of the museum. The Laocoön is one of my favorites here. It is a sculpture that depicts Laocoön and his sons being killed by the sea serpents in the Trojan War and dates all the way back to 40 BC. This was an event that eventually led to Rome’s foundation. The Apollo Belvedere is another one which is famous for representing the perfect male form (a notion made by the ancient Romans).
6. THE SISTINE CHAPEL
Hardly needing an introduction, the Sistine Chapel (just so anyone of you doesn’t know) is where you’ll find one of the most famous works of art ever found in the entire world. This piece of extravagant art is the nine scenes from the book of Genesis which are painted onto the ceiling. The great painter of it is none other than Michelangelo himself. The Creation of Adam is the most iconic of these scenes, but they all work together in order to create a pièce de résistance. You’re probably going to need some time to soak in and completely appreciate this beauty. If you are planning to visit Rome buy Colosseum tickets in advance.
7. THE PAPAL APARTMENTS
The Papal Apartments are named so because the popes once used this area as their private residences. Today, you’ll find here a large collection of rooms which feature some of the most famous frescoes ever seen in the Vatican Museums. The Raphael Rooms are the most well-known of these rooms, which are four separate rooms collectively known as the Stanze di Raffaello. These are painted by Raphael in his early school days of the 1500s. The School of Athens is the most famous piece here. It is found in the Room of Segnatura.
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