The Vatican Museums-
Rome
Rambling, disorganized, and poorly labeled
they might be, but these buildings are packed
to the rafters with treasures accumulated over
the centuries by the popes. Among them are the
incomparable Sistine Chapel, such priceless
ancient Greek and Roman sculptures as Laocoon
and the Belvedere Apollo, buildings whose walls
were almost completely executed by Raphael (including
his majestic School of Athens), and endless
collections of art ranging from (very pagan)
Greco-Roman antiquities to Christian art by
famous European masters.
More
informations
Galleria Borghese-
Rome
The original sculptures and paintings in the
Borghese Gallery date back to Cardinal Scipione's
collection, the son of Ortensia Borghese - Paolo
V's sister - and of Francesco Caffarelli, though
subsequent events over the next three centuries
entailing both losses and acquisition have left
their mark.
Cardinal Scipion was drawn to any works of ancient,
Renaissance and contemporary art which might
re-evoke a new golden age. He was not particularly
interested in medieval art, but passionately
sought to acquire antique sculpture. But Cardinal
Scipione was so ambitious that he promoted
More
informations
Uffizi Gallery-
Florence
This 16th-century Renaissance palace was the
administrative headquarters, or uffizi (offices),
for the Duchy of Tuscany when the Medicis controlled
Florence. It's estimated that up to 90% of Italy's
artistic patrimony is stored in this building,
the crown jewel of Italy's museums. This is
the world's greatest collection of Renaissance
paintings.
More
informations
Academy Gallery-
Venice
One of Europe's great museums, this is an incomparable
collection of Venetian painting, exhibited chronologically
from the 13th to the 18th century. It's one
of the most richly stocked art museums in Italy,
boasting hundreds of works by Bellini, Carpaccio,
Giorgione, Titian, and Tintoretto.
More
informations
Brera Picture
Gallery - Milan
Milan is usually associated with wealth and
corporate power, and those two things can buy
a city its fair share of art and culture. The
foremost place to see Milan's artistic treasures
is the Brera Picture Gallery, whose collection
-- shown in a 17th-century palace -- is especially
rich in paintings from the schools of Lombardy
and Venice. Three of the most important prizes
are Mantegna's Dead Christ, Giovanni Bellini's
La Pietà, and Carpaccio's St. Stephen
Debating
More
informations
National Archaeological
Museum - Naples
Naples and the region around it have yielded
a wealth of sculptural treasures from the Roman
Empire. Many of these riches have been accumulated
in a rambling building designed as a barracks
for the Neapolitan cavalry in the 1500s. Much
of the loot excavated from Pompeii and Herculaneum,
as well as the Renaissance collections of the
Farnese family, is in this museum, which boasts
a trove of Greco-Roman antiquities.
More
informations
