Rome, Italy (A Palace, a Church, and a Dali)

 14 May 2024 - Rome, Italy (A Palace, A Church, and a Dali)

We had a couple days before our next scheduled tour, so we checked out some of the buildings close to our hotel.  We visited the Palazzo Venezia, a Renaissance palace built by a cardinal who became Pope Paul II, which then became the Fascist seat of government when Mussolini came into power.  It is now a National museum with some interesting collections.  Next door, is the Church of Gesu, a beautiful Baroque church completed in 1580 which has become the model for Baroque and Jesuit churches over all the world. Finally, we visited the Church di San Marcello al Cordoso, where an exhibition of Salvador Dali’s Christ of Saint John of the Cross opened as part of the preparation for next year’s Jubilee.

The Palace had beautiful loggias overlooking the inside garden areas.  I can imagine these would be very cool and relaxing places to sit in the hot of the Roman summer days.

The entrance had a very dramatic feel.

Guests would walk up these steps to the reception areas.

The arches were added after the main building was built. 

For some unknown reason, the loggia was never finished.

In the Renaissance era, the gardens were well known for their beauty and exotic plants, including four kinds of palm trees.  Over the ages, the gardens were repurposed many times, including becoming a parking lot.  They are now restored back to what is understood to be their original state.

The inside rooms have been restored (at least the floors, walls and ceilings.  Furniture is gone.

Some rooms have more ornate features than others.  This was a reception room where the Pope would receive visitors.

Beautiful, original mosaic floors in every room. Many had a rug-like pattern in the center.  I couldn’t believe that people were allowed to walk over these 700+ year tiles.

The palace rooms are arranged in a box like pattern around the central gardens.

The family crest of the Pope.

Back in those days, Popes weren’t just religious figures, they were also government rulers and commanded armies.

We walked on the exact spot this picture is showing.  The painting depicts some honor being conferred by the pope.  The background is exactly as it is today, showing part of the palace’s facade.

Pope Paul II himself.

This room was commandeered by Mussolini as his office.  His desk was placed to the left of the fireplace.  The floor is a beautiful mosaic, the individual pieces weren’t bigger than a third of an inch.

No marble columns here, it was all painted.

A Renaissance coffered roof with gilded wood shields.

One of the smaller rooms looked like it was reserved for fortune telling.  The roof was painted blue with gold astrological symbols.  

There were several collections on display in some of the rooms.  This is porcelain from the Holland area.  Porcelain was much prized because there were only a few places who could make it.  Until the Renaissance period, only China had the skills.

Russ got enthused about these rooms.  Lots of helmets, armor and weapons.

Some helmets were elaborately engraved.

I don’t think these were made for accuracy.  The handles were porcelain.

Outside, on part of the loggia, were antiquities probably from the Colosseum and the Roman Forum.

The facade of the Church of the Gesu was revolutionary in its time and very counter to the Renaissance geometric forms.

St. Ignatius’ coffin lies below the chapel’s altar.

St. Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, chapel and tomb. Very ornate and a bit counter to the life he lived, one of austerity. But that’s the Baroque way, over the top ornateness.

Unlike the Pallazo Venezia, these columns are made of beautiful stone.

The church set the standard for Baroque churches in its grandeur.

Beautiful side chapels were dedicated to various saints and to the Madonna.

The amazing ceiling fresco.  There is an illusion that figures are floating out of the painting, but the fresco was painted in one plane. The artist, Gaulli, a protege of Bernini, started it when he was 22 and it wasn’t finished until he was in his 40s. It isn’t a very happy painting, the figures (the Protestants) descending into the dark clouds are headed to hell.

The metal chest in the front holds the relics of the church.

Sculptures were incredible. This one depicts the church about to whip the miserable Protestants.

Almost every window was filled with cherubs and other figures all angling up to the ceiling.

The Church di San Marcello al Cordoso is hosting a Jubilee art event featuring Salvador Dali’s, Christ of St. John of the Cross. The ancient drawing which was the inspiration for Dali is also included in the exhibit.  Dali saw this drawing at a monastery and was struck by the view from the top down perspective. In Dali’s painting, you can’t see if Christ is alive or has died and you don’t see his face.  There are also no nails nor a crown of thorns. In typical Dali style, the mountains in the background are a profile of Dali lying prone.

This was drawn by a Castilian saint, John of the Cross in the 1500s.  Dali saw it on a pilgrimage he made to the Monastery of the Incarnation. It gave him the inspiration for the perspective of his painting.

The church, while a bit worn, had some wonderful paintings and artwork.  This wood Pieta was made by Bernini’s school.

Beautiful marble and stone columns and sculptures. The church was dedicated in AD 309. Several versions have been built on the site after repeated sackings, fires and floods.  This version was completed in the 1690s and reflects the Baroque style.

The church has been owned and administered by the Servites since 1369.