Vatican Treasures - T's Italy

Painted by the highly renowned artist Caravaggio in oils on canvas in 1604, and copied by many famous artists such as Ruben and Cézanne, The Entombment of Christ was created to reside in a chapel dedicated to the Pietà in Santa Maria in Vallicella, in Rome (called the Chiesa Nuova).

Showing the moment Christ’s followers carry his lifeless body to the tomb, the painting shows Mary of Cleophas (with her hands raised), Mary Magdalene (center), the Blessed Mother (in the back, staring at her son), with the young John the Evangelist holding Christ’s torso, and Nicodemus (painted with face of Caravaggio) holding Jesus’ legs, while they lay him onto a stone slab. The painting is reminiscent of Michelangelo’s Pieta, but is not one, since the composition and number of persons is different.

A copy of the painting is in the Chiesa Nuova, and the original is hung in Room XII in the Vatican Pinacoteca in Vatican City.

The Annunciation, an early work by painter Raphael in 1502, depicts the day when the Archangel Gabriel appeared to Mary and revealed God’s will that she become the Mother of the Son of God and her acceptance. The painting is part of the “predella” (lowest part of an altarpiece) showing three episodes from life of the Blessed Mother and Christ’s infancy in the painting “The Crowning of the Virgin.” It was painted in tempera grasso on wood for the altar of the Oddi family chapel in the church of San Francesco al Prato in Perugia, Umbria. It resides now in Room VIII (16th Century) in the Vatican Pinacoteca (Art Gallery).

“Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden” was painted in the early 19th Century by Austrian Johann Wenzel Peter, one of the foremost animalist painters of his day, was well-known for his knowledge and precision of animal form. This painting shows how Adam and Eve would have lived in harmony and peace with all of creation before the Fall from grace. In 1831, Pope Gregory XVI purchased over twenty of his works to furnish the Room of the Consistory for the Papal Apartments. The painting is now located in the Vatican Museums, in Room 16 of the Pinocoteca Vaticana. To learn more click here.

“The School of Athens” fresco, among others, was painted by Renaissance master Raphael between 1509-1511. It depicts famous ancient philosophers Aristotle and Plato, surrounded by other highly revered philosophers, scientists, and mathematicians. It was commissioned by Pope Julius II to decorate the papal apartments in the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City. Now the four “Raphael Rooms” are part of the Vatican Museums, and are considered one of the high points of the Renaissance. Some of the people depicted include Socrates, Pythagoras, and Archimedes. Raphael also included a self-portrait, Michelangelo as Greek philosopher Heraclitus, and Leonardo da Vinci as the great Plato himself. To learn more click here and here.

If you visit the Sistine Chapel, you walk through the 245 foot long Tapestry Gallery before your entrance to the Chapel. One of the stunning tapestries, commissioned by Pope Clement VII and designed by the School of the artist Raphael, is the Resurrection of Christ, created by the amazing Workshop of artist Pieter Van Aelst in Brussels from 1524 to 1531. It was subsequently hung in the Sistine Chapel, but eventually moved to the Tapestry Gallery in 1838. The expert weavers make Christ seem to come alive, and his piercing gaze “follows” you as you move down the hall!

Learn more about the Chair of St. Peter! Click here!

Laocoön, a Trojan priest, is depicted here with his two sons, Antiphantes and Thymbraeus as being attacked by giant serpents. It is the discovery of this sculpture that was the beginning of the Vatican Museums. The Greek, almost life-sized marble sculpture, discovered in 1506 in a vineyard in Rome, was purchased by Pope Julius II and put on display after Michelangelo and others who had seen it recommended he acquire it.

Photos: Public Domain, Vatican Museums, Shutterstock/AM113, Javen, Zoran Karapancev, Marek Poplawski, elen_studio