Museo: Musei Vaticani

Welcome to the Vatican Museums

Welcome to the Vatican Museums, one of the most incredible places in the world for those who love history, art, and beauty. Here, among frescoed rooms, ancient statues, and world-famous masterpieces, we can embark on a true journey through time, discovering many different civilizations. The museums were founded in the 16th century by Pope Julius II, but were opened to the public only in 1771, thanks to Pope Clement XIV. Today, millions of people from all over the world visit every year to admire these marvels. During our tour, we will see Egyptian statues, sarcophagi, ancient maps, vibrant frescoes, and famous paintings. We will traverse ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptian and Etruscan, progressing to Roman art, the Italian Renaissance, and finally to modern art. The most thrilling point of our itinerary will be the visit to the Sistine Chapel, where one of the most famous masterpieces of all time awaits: the ceiling frescoed by Michelangelo, featuring the scene of the Creation of Adam and the grand Last Judgment. Prepare for an adventure through art and history, a journey through centuries of human creativity, where every room has a story to tell. The Vatican Museums are a special place, where both the young and the old can be amazed together.

Vatican Pinacoteca

The Vatican Pinacoteca is a renowned art gallery famous worldwide. It was opened in 1932 at the behest of Pope Pius XI, who commissioned a special building, surrounded by greenery, to house the paintings in the best possible manner, with the appropriate lighting and space. Before that, the paintings were often moved and did not have a permanent location. Already in 1790, Pope Pius VI had begun an initial collection of works, but it was only after the return of the works stolen by Napoleon in 1817 that a true gallery open to the public was established. Today, the collection includes approximately 460 paintings, displayed in 18 rooms. The works are organized by era and style, ranging from the Middle Ages to the nineteenth century. Visitors can admire masterpieces by artists such as Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Caravaggio, Giotto, Titian, and many others. Among the most famous works are Raphael's "Transfiguration," full of light and movement, and Leonardo da Vinci's "St. Jerome," an unfinished but highly expressive painting, and the "Madonna of Foligno" painted by the great Raphael Sanzio. The collection narrates eight centuries of sacred art, tied to Christian faith and spirituality.

Egyptian Museum

Let's jump back in time over 5000 years and arrive in ancient Egypt! Welcome to the Egyptian Museum of the Vatican Museums. In these nine halls, you can see ancient objects that come directly from Egypt or were crafted in Rome inspired by that culture. The museum was established in 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI and houses statues, decorated sarcophagi, mummies, papyri written in hieroglyphics, and many other testimonies of Egyptian civilization. Some works come from Hadrian's Villa in Tivoli, where Emperor Hadrian wanted to recreate a corner of Egypt. The exhibition also shows how fascinated the ancient Romans were with this culture. In one of the sections, you can see “Egyptianized” statues and objects, that is, those made in Rome but in Egyptian style, from the Temple of Isis, which was once located in the center of Rome. The last rooms also contain artifacts from ancient Mesopotamia and Assyria, helping us to better understand other great ancient civilizations. Among the most interesting things to observe are the "Book of the Dead," an ancient Egyptian text, and the "Grassi Collection," which tells us what the Egyptians thought about life after death.

Pio-Clementine Museum

The Pio Clementino Museum is one of the most renowned sections of the Vatican Museums. Here, one can find some of the most exquisite sculptures from ancient Greece and Rome. The museum was established in the 18th century by Popes Clement XIV and Pius VI, who wished to gather the most important sculptures in a single location. The visitor's journey traverses elegant rooms and decorated courtyards, such as the beautiful Octagonal Courtyard. It was here that Pope Julius II began displaying the first statues in the sixteenth century, to showcase the grandeur of ancient Rome. Among the masterpieces not to be missed is the Apollo Belvedere. It is such a stunning work that when Napoleon saw it, he decided to take it to Paris as a war trophy! The Apollo represents the classical ideal of beauty and aesthetic perfection. The museum also houses other famous statues, such as the Golden Hercules, the Apoxyomenos (an athlete cleaning himself with a strigil), and splendid Roman sarcophagi adorned with stories from mythology. And finally, there's the Laocoön Group! This is a somewhat fearsome but fascinating story: Laocoön was a priest of Troy who tried to warn his fellow citizens not to bring the infamous wooden horse within the city walls. The gods, who desired the downfall of Troy, sent two giant sea serpents that enveloped him and his sons. Why were the gods so angry with him? Because he was trying to expose the deceit of the Trojan horse! As you continue through the halls, you can also admire numerous animals sculpted in marble. The room features works connected to nature and hunting. The animals are protagonists, both in their curious interactions with one another and in relation to heroes or deities of the ancient world.

Pinecone Courtyard

And now let's enter one of the most curious courtyards of the Vatican Museums: the Octagonal Courtyard! But wait, have you noticed that enormous thing over there? Yes, that one! It's a bronze pine cone almost 4 meters high! It looks like it's come straight from a giant’s garden, doesn't it? This giant pine cone is over 1800 years old and was originally a fountain in ancient Rome. Water used to flow from small holes, creating a beautiful cascading effect. Imagine seeing this massive pine cone with water descending like magical rain! The ancient Romans loved fountains and built them everywhere because it gets very hot in Rome during the summer and fountains would cool the air. On each side of the pine cone are two beautiful bronze peacocks. In antiquity, the peacock was considered a symbol of immortality because it was believed that its flesh never decayed. What a strange idea, right? A fun fact: this pine cone was so famous that Dante Alighieri, a great Italian poet, mentioned it in his poem "The Divine Comedy," comparing it to the size of a giant’s face! Try to imagine a giant with a face as big as this pine cone! Look closely at the courtyard around you: it’s shaped like an octagon, which means it has eight sides. Why eight? The number eight was considered a perfect number and symbolized infinity. Can you count all eight sides of the courtyard? If you were Roman architects, what kind of fountain would you have created? Perhaps one in the shape of your favorite animal or your favorite food?

Gallery of Maps

Now let's step into one of the most astonishing rooms in the Vatican Museums: the Gallery of Maps. It is a long corridor measuring 120 meters that showcases Italy as it was perceived in the 1500s. The gallery was commissioned by Pope Gregory XIII, who tasked mathematician and geographer Ignazio Danti with creating these enormous maps between 1581 and 1583. The idea was to represent all the regions of Italy, from south to north, as if on a journey along the Apennines, with the Adriatic Sea on one side and the Tyrrhenian on the other. On the walls, we see mountains, rivers, cities, and landscapes, all painted with great attention to detail. The ceiling vault features religious and symbolic frescoes that make the setting even more rich and fascinating. The Gallery of Maps is not only beautiful to look at; it was also a means to demonstrate how important the entirety of Italy was to the Church, long before it became a united state. Walking through here is somewhat like traveling through time, between art, geography, and faith.

Tapestry Gallery

This long and refined hall is called the Gallery of Tapestries, and it is located right along the path leading to the Sistine Chapel. Here, you can admire magnificent tapestries – large decorated textiles – created between 1515 and 1521 in the city of Brussels, based on designs from Raphael's workshop. Do you know how long it took to create just one of these masterpieces? Some required up to 5 years of work, and the artisans who made them were so skilled that they could create color gradients using up to 15 different shades of the same color. The tapestries narrate stories taken from the Acts of the Apostles, such as the “Miraculous Catch of Fish” and the “Death of Ananias.” They were so precious and refined that they were considered true works of art, even more prestigious than paintings. These tapestries were so valuable that during important ceremonies, they were displayed only for a few hours. The rest of the time, they remained rolled up safely to protect them from light that could damage the colors. On the left side of the gallery are the Flemish tapestries depicting episodes from the life of Jesus, such as the “Nativity,” the “Presentation at the Temple,” the “Supper at Emmaus,” and the “Resurrection.” On the right side are those illustrating moments from the life of Pope Urban VIII, created later, in the seventeenth century, in Rome. This collection is part of the oldest history of the Vatican Museums, showcasing how popes have always cherished and supported the art of tapestry. Even today, experts and restorers take care of these delicate works to preserve them in the best condition.

Raphael Rooms

The Raphael Rooms are among the most beloved and visited halls of the Vatican Museums. These four rooms were decorated, starting in 1508, by the young Raphael Sanzio and his workshop. Here lie some of the greatest masterpieces of the Italian Renaissance. The first room, the most famous, is the Room of the Segnatura. In this hall, Raphael painted two truly spectacular frescoes: the “Disputation of the Holy Sacrament,” which speaks of faith, and the renowned “School of Athens,” depicting the greatest philosophers of antiquity, such as Plato and Aristotle. Plato points to the heavens because he believed that ideas were more important than reality, while Aristotle points to the earth as he studied nature and animals. Raphael endowed their faces with the features of figures from his own time, like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. In one corner, he even included a self-portrait! The other rooms recount historical episodes linked to the Church. The Room of the Fire in the Borgo depicts a miracle that took place in Rome and was completed by Raphael’s students. The last room, the Room of Constantine, was entirely executed after his death and celebrates the triumph of Christianity over the Roman Empire. These rooms are not only breathtakingly beautiful: they also demonstrate the significance of art as a means to tell the history and values of faith.

Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel is one of the most famous and visited places in the world. It is located within the Vatican Museums and is renowned not only for its beauty but also because it is the place where the new Pope is elected during the Conclave. The chapel was built between 1475 and 1481 by the order of Pope Sixtus IV. Its dimensions are not accidental: they follow those of Solomon's Temple, as described in the Bible. It is a very special space, conceived for the most important ceremonies of the Church. Originally, the walls of the chapel were frescoed by great painters of the 15th century, such as Botticelli, Perugino, Ghirlandaio, and Rosselli. Their frescoes narrate stories of the lives of Moses and Jesus, illustrating how the Old and New Testaments are interconnected. However, the most celebrated part of the chapel is the ceiling, painted by Michelangelo Buonarroti between 1508 and 1512. Michelangelo worked alone, in a very uncomfortable position, on a specially built scaffold. He painted nine grand scenes from Genesis, the first book of the Bible. Among these, the most famous scene stands out: The Creation of Adam. In this fresco, God, surrounded by angels, extends his arm towards Adam, the first man. Their fingers almost touch, in a gesture that has become one of the most recognized symbols in the world. This image represents the moment when God gives life to man. It is a scene full of energy and meaning, simple yet profoundly deep. Years later, between 1536 and 1541, Michelangelo returned to paint another great work: The Last Judgment, on the wall behind the altar. This fresco represents the final moment when Christ returns to judge all human beings. At the top is Jesus, surrounded by saints and angels; below are the souls: some ascend to Paradise, others descend toward damnation. Michelangelo used muscular and dynamic bodies to express all the force and drama of the moment. The work caused much discussion because it depicted many nude figures, which were later partially covered. But what still captivates today is the intensity of the entire composition: every expression, every gesture tells powerful emotions such as hope, fear, salvation, or despair. The Sistine Chapel is much more than a mere artistic masterpiece: it is a place where art, history, and faith converge. Viewing it in person is a breathtaking experience, and even the youngest visitors can be captivated by its powerful images and solemn silence.