Vatican Museums - Short Tour

The Vatican Museums represent one of the most extensive and prestigious art collections in the world. Founded by Pope Julius II in the 16th century, they occupy a large part of the vast Belvedere Courtyard and display the enormous collection of artworks accumulated over the centuries by the popes. The Sistine Chapel and the papal apartments frescoed by Michelangelo and Raphael are among the works that visitors can admire on their tour. This itinerary is designed for those who have little time but still want to enjoy the most important collection of artworks in Rome.

Introduction to the Vatican Museums

The Vatican Museums are one of the most extraordinary museum complexes in the world, guardians of an artistic and cultural heritage that spans millennia of human history. Established in the 16th century by Pope Julius II and opened to the public in 1771 by the will of Pope Clement XIV, the museums today welcome approximately six and a half million visitors each year. Our journey will guide us through a selection of the most significant collections, from Egyptian antiquities to Renaissance masterpieces and contemporary art. We will walk along corridors adorned with breathtaking frescoes, pass through halls that have witnessed history unfolding within their walls, and come face to face with some of the most renowned artworks in the world. Chronologically, we will begin with the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Etruria, then progress through the Greek and Roman eras with their monumental sculptures, finally concluding with the Italian Renaissance and modernity. Our itinerary will culminate in the famous Sistine Chapel, the absolute masterpiece by Michelangelo and a universal symbol of Western art. Prepare yourself for a journey of discovery through a museum that encompasses the history of humanity and its eternal quest for beauty.

Art Gallery

The Vatican Pinacoteca is one of the most important art galleries in the world. It was inaugurated on October 27, 1932, at the behest of Pope Pius XI, who entrusted architect Luca Beltrami with designing a building specifically constructed within the 19th-century Quadrato Garden, an isolated area completely surrounded by pathways. This choice was driven by the desire to ensure the best natural light conditions, essential for both the proper preservation and the optimal aesthetic enhancement of the paintings. The establishment of the Vatican Pinacoteca finally resolved the long-standing issue of showcasing paintings, which until then had been continually moved within the Apostolic Palaces, lacking a suitable venue for them. The history of the collection dates back to the 18th century: an initial collection of 118 fine paintings was established around 1790 by Pope Pius VI, but it was short-lived. Indeed, following the Treaty of Tolentino in 1797, many masterpieces were transferred to Paris. The idea of a modern gallery, understood as a stable and public exhibition, took shape only in 1817, after Napoleon's fall and the return of many works to the Holy See, thanks to the decisions of the Congress of Vienna. Since then, the collection has progressively enriched through donations and acquisitions, reaching today a core of around 460 paintings, distributed in eighteen rooms organized according to chronological and artistic school criteria, ranging from the Primitives of the 12th and 13th centuries to the 19th century. Visiting the Pinacoteca, one can admire true masterpieces of Italian painting, such as the famous "Transfiguration" by Raphael, the artist's last work, renowned for its luminous intensity and compositional power. Also striking is Leonardo da Vinci's "Saint Jerome," an unfinished yet emblematic painting of the Leonardesque genius, with its anatomical study and expressive faces. The dramatic intensity of Caravaggio’s "Deposition of Christ," with its contrast between light and shadow, leaves an indelible impression. Alongside these, the collection includes works by pivotal artists such as Giotto, Fra Angelico, Melozzo da Forlì, Perugino, Titian, Veronese, Guido Reni, Poussin, Murillo, Sassoferrato, and many others. The Pinacoteca also houses altarpieces, polyptychs, and icons that represent eight centuries of sacred art, in a continuous dialogue with the Christian faith.

Gregorian Egyptian Museum

In the heart of the Vatican Museums, nine rooms host an extraordinary collection of Egyptian antiquities, originating from Rome and Hadrian's Villa in Tivoli. Upon entering this space, allow yourself to be instantly transported to the banks of the Nile, embarking on a journey through millennia of history. The Gregorian Egyptian Museum was established in 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI, and its rooms display votive objects, decorated sarcophagi, statues of deities such as Isis and Osiris, and papyri written in hieroglyphics. Particularly interesting are the reliefs from Theban tombs and the statues of pharaohs, bearing witness to a millennia-old civilization. The museum also includes a section dedicated to the influence of Egyptian culture in ancient Rome, featuring examples of "Egyptianizing" art and artifacts from the Sanctuary of Isis in the Campus Martius. As you stroll among carved sarcophagi, mummies wrapped in linen, and papyri inscribed with hieroglyphs, I must share a curious anecdote. Emperor Hadrian was so fascinated by Egyptian culture that in his villa in Tivoli, he had a canal built called "Canopus," in honor of the Egyptian city of the same name. He surrounded it with statues and Egyptian artifacts, some of which you can admire today in these rooms. The last three rooms, on the other hand, house works from ancient Mesopotamia and Assyria, thereby expanding our view of the great civilizations of the ancient world and their cultural exchanges. Pay close attention to the "Book of the Dead" and the Grassi Collection: they are invaluable testimonies that tell us how the ancient Egyptians conceived life after death, a central aspect of their culture that also profoundly influenced the Roman world.

Pio-Clementino Museum

The Pio Clementino Museum is one of the vibrant centers of classical art within the Vatican Museums. Founded in the second half of the 18th century by Popes Clement XIV and Pius VI, from whom it derives its name, it was designed to preserve and display the most important ancient and Renaissance sculptures. This section consists of twelve rooms and houses one of the most significant collections of Greek and Roman art in the world. The route winds through environments of great architectural refinement, such as the evocative Octagonal Courtyard, once known as the Courtyard of the Statues. It was here, at the beginning of the 16th century, that Pope Julius II della Rovere set up the first nucleus of the papal collections of ancient sculptures, with the ambition of reviving the grandeur of imperial Rome within the Rome of the popes. When, in the 18th century, Clement XIV and Pius VI decided to transform that collection into a true museum, the courtyard became the focal point of the new museum project. Among the most iconic works is the Apollo Belvedere, a Roman copy of a Greek original attributed to Leochares, symbolizing the ideal of classical beauty. Next to it, another undisputed masterpiece is the Laocoön Group, discovered on January 14, 1506, in a vineyard near the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. Pope Julius II, informed of the discovery, sent Michelangelo Buonarroti and Giuliano da Sangallo to examine it. It was on their recommendation that the sculpture was purchased and shortly thereafter displayed to the public in the Vatican. The work depicts Laocoön and his sons entwined by the coils of a sea serpent, in a scene of dramatic intensity that deeply struck Michelangelo, who deemed it "a miracle of art." This discovery had a huge impact on the Renaissance, profoundly influencing the art of the time, especially in the depiction of the human body and emotional expression. The museum also houses other extraordinary works, such as the gilded bronze Hercules from Campo de’ Fiori, the Apoxyomenos – the athlete cleansing himself with a strigil – and a refined selection of Roman sarcophagi decorated with mythological scenes.

Gallery of Maps

Continuing our journey, we enter the Gallery of Maps. This immense hall will leave you speechless: 120 meters in length and 6 meters in width. It's an incredible cartographic representation of Italy at the end of the sixteenth century. The Gallery of Maps is located along the path leading to the Sistine Chapel; it is an extraordinary cartographic depiction of the Regions of Italy, created between 1581 and 1583. Pope Gregory XIII Boncompagni ordered the construction of the gallery, and the work was executed by a team of artists led by the mathematician and geographer Ignazio Danti. Walking through the gallery is, according to Ignazio Danti's intentions, like traveling along the Apennine backbone from the south (starting from Sicily) to the north (up to the Alpine arc) and facing the Adriatic coast to the east and the Tyrrhenian coast to the west. The maps, based on geodetic surveys innovative for their time, display cities, rivers, mountains, and ports, accompanied by perspective views and astonishing topographical details. On the vault, frescoes with religious and allegorical subjects complete the visual narrative, celebrating the spiritual and political grandeur of sixteenth-century Catholic Italy. The gallery is not only an artistic masterpiece but also a tool of propaganda and cultural identity: an Italy united under the Church's gaze, more than two centuries before its political unification. Walking through this corridor is a journey into Renaissance Italy, amidst art, science, and faith.

Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel is one of the greatest masterpieces of Western art and one of the most symbolic places of the Catholic Church. Built between 1475 and 1481 under the commission of Pope Sixtus IV of the Rovere family, it was designed by Baccio Pontelli and executed by Giovannino de’ Dolci, expanding on an existing ancient medieval chapel. According to tradition, its dimensions—40.9 meters in length, 13.4 in width, and 20.7 in height—reflect those of Solomon's Temple as described in the Bible. The architecture is simple and solemn, conceived to host the most important papal ceremonies. The 15th-century decoration of the lateral walls, entrusted to a team of great masters of the Quattrocento such as Sandro Botticelli, Pietro Perugino, Domenico Ghirlandaio, Cosimo Rosselli, and their workshops, was completed between 1481 and 1482. It comprises two parallel cycles of frescoes: one dedicated to the Life of Moses (south walls, entrance side), and the other to the Life of Christ (north walls, entrance side), highlighting the unity between the Old and New Testaments. The lower band is adorned with painted damask curtains, while the upper part contains portraits of the Pontiffs. Completing the decoration, the original ceiling was painted with a starry sky by Pier Matteo d'Amelia. On August 15, 1483, Pope Sixtus IV consecrated the Chapel, dedicating it to the Assumption. However, it was Julius II della Rovere, his nephew, who profoundly transformed the Sistine Chapel: in 1508 he commissioned Michelangelo Buonarroti to fresco the ceiling, which until then retained the starry sky. Michelangelo worked alone, amid great difficulty, on a specially designed scaffold, creating a cycle of frescoes that covers approximately 500 square meters and depicts nine episodes from Genesis, grouped into three main themes: the Creation of the World, the Creation of Man and Woman, and the Fall including the Great Flood. Among the most famous scenes is the “Creation of Adam,” where the fingers of God and man touch in an iconic gesture. Between 1536 and 1541, at the behest of Pope Clement VII and later Paul III, Michelangelo painted the altar wall with the monumental Last Judgment. This extraordinary fresco represents the second coming of Christ and the final judgment, inspired by New Testament texts. The work, at the time, caused a scandal due to the presence of nude figures, which were later partially covered by Daniele da Volterra, nicknamed “Il Braghettone” (the Breeches Maker), after the Council of Trent. With this decoration, the Sistine Chapel is affirmed as "the sanctuary of the theology of the human body," according to the words of Pope John Paul II. During the latter half of the 16th century, the frescoes of the entrance wall were also redone, having been damaged by a collapse in 1522: Hendrik van den Broeck repainted Ghirlandaio's “Resurrection of Christ,” while Matteo da Lecce restored Signorelli's “Disputation over the Body of Moses.” Between 1979 and 1999, the Sistine Chapel underwent a complete restoration, which also included the marble elements such as the choir, the transenna, and the coat of arms of Sixtus IV. Today, the Sistine Chapel is not only an artistic masterpiece but remains the beating heart of the life of the Church: it is here that the Conclave, the secret election of the Supreme Pontiff, and other important papal ceremonies are held.