Rambles in Rome / An Archæological and Historical Guide to the Museums, Galleries, Villas, Churches, and Antiquities of Rome and the Campagna

by S. Russell Forbes

THE VATICAN MUSEUM.

Open every day from 9 till 3, except on Thursday and Saturday, when it is closed. Permission must be obtained of Monsignor Macchi, at his office in the Vatican, from 10 till 1. Each permit admits a party of five, and can only be used once.

Entrance is obtained by going round to the back of S. Peter's, thus enabling us on our way to admire the vast proportions of the latter. The Vatican Museum was founded by Julius II., and consists of those objects of art that have been discovered, and which once graced the principal buildings of ancient Rome. At the entrance the new official English catalogue by Signor Massi, the conservator of the galleries, can be purchased; it gives a full account of the objects of art. In so vast a collection, we call attention to the principal works only.

Entering on the left by the iron gates, filled in with glass, and ascending the marble stairs, we enter

THE HALL OF THE GREEK CROSS.

In the centre of the floor is a splendid mosaic, found at the Villa of Cicero. A bust of Minerva forms the centre, around which are twelve planets and various phases of the moon. The outer circle (modern) is composed of masks and figures. The principal statues are 559 and 597, Augustus; 564, Lucius Verus; 565, Hercules; 574, Venus of Cnidos; 566, left, red porphyry Sarcophagus, which contained the remains of Constantia, the daughter of Constantine the Great; 589, opposite, generally attributed to Helena, the mother of the Christian emperor. (See [page 327] .) Before the door is a fine mosaic representing a faun watering a flower. At the foot of the stairs, by two sphinxes, is a beautiful basket of flowers in mosaic. We now enter

THE ROTUNDA.

Erected by Simonetti, by order of Pius VI. In the centre is a magnificent vase of red porphyry, 46 feet in circumference, found in the House of Nero. The large mosaic represents combats between Centaurs and Lapithæ, and nymphs carried on the backs of monsters; in the centre, under the vase, is the head of Medusa. The border represents the adventures of Ulysses, Neptune, and monsters. The principal statues are 537, 538, Tragedy and Comedy; 539, Bust of Jupiter; 540, Colossal statue of Antinoüs; 546, Statue of Ceres; 545, Bust of Antinoüs; 544, Hercules, in gilt bronze, found in 1864 during the restoration of the foundations of the Biscioni Palace, which occupies the site of the Theatre of Pompey, in the middle of which stood the Temple of Venus Victrix, which this statue adorned; 542, Colossal Juno; 547, Bust of Ocean; 548, Nerva, a seated statue crowned with bronze oak wreath; 550, The Emperor Claudius; 552, Juno; 553, The Genius of Augustus. We now pass into

THE HALL OF THE MUSES.

It contains statues of muses, busts of Greek philosophers, poets, and statesmen, all of which deserve special attention. Left. 525, Bust of Pericles; 524, Seated Statue of Sappho; 523, Bust of Aspasia. Right. 535, Mnemosyne, the mother of the muses; 511, Erato, muse of love song; 514, Bust of Socrates; 515, Calliope, muse of epic poetry; 516, Apollo, as leader of the muses; 517, Terpsichore, muse of dancing; 520, Euterpe, muse of melody. Left. 508, Polyhymnia, muse of sacred poetry; 505, Clio, muse of history; 506, Bust of Demosthenes; 504, Urania, muse of astronomy; 503, Thalia, comic and pastoral muse; 499, Melpomene, muse of tragedy. Beyond, left. 492, Sophocles; 491, Silenus; 490, Diogenes. Right. 498, Epicurus; 496, Homer. Now pass into

THE HALL OF THE ANIMALS.

The principal objects of interest are—124, Mithraic Sacrifice found at Ostia, in the temple dedicated to the worship of the Persian deity; 139, Commodus on Horseback; 143, Sleeping Shepherd; 228, Triton carrying off a Nereid. We next enter

THE GALLERY OF STATUES.

In the centre of the gallery is a magnificent bath of the finest Oriental alabaster. Right-hand side on entering. 248, Clodius Albinus, governor of Britain under Commodus; 250, Cupid, by Praxiteles, the "Genius of the Vatican;" 255, Paris; 259, Minerva as the Peace-bearer; 261, Penelope; 262, Caligula; 264, Apollo with the Lizard; 267, Drunken Faun; 270, Urania; 271, Posidippus, the master of Greek comedy. Entrance to Hall of Busts (see below). 390, Menander; 391, Nero as Apollo; 392, Septimius Severus; 393, Dido; 394, Neptune; 396, Narcissus; 398, Macrinus; 399, Æsculapius and Hygeia; 401, Fragment of Hæmon and Antigone; 402, Seneca; 405, One of the fifty daughters of Danaus drawing water from Lethe; 406, Faun, repetition of Praxiteles. Entrance on left to Cabinet of Masks. 414, Sleeping Ariadne; 417, Mercury, by Ingenui; 420, Lucius Verus.

THE HALL OF BUSTS.

280, Augustus; 282, Cæsar; 285, Caracalla; 307, Saturn, colossal veiled head; 311, Menelaus; 326, Jupiter seated; 333, Crispina; 352, Livia as Piety, or Diana, or Surprise; 366, Scipio.

CABINET OF MASKS.

So called from the mosaic pavement found in Hadrian's Villa. The ceiling is by Domenico de Angelis, representing the marriage of Bacchus and Ariadne, Diana contemplating Endymion, Paris refusing Minerva the apple, Adonis and Venus. 427, Replica of the Venus of Cos, by Praxiteles. The head does not belong to this statue. 428, the Crouching Venus, a copy after Heliodorus, by Bupalus; 429, the Empress Sabina, Hadrian's wife, as Venus Genetrix, after Arcesilaus. The head and arms have been inserted in an older statue; 432, Faun in rosso antico; 433, Venus rising from the Sea, after Alcamenes; 436, Venus anointing herself, after Polycharmes; 441, Ganymedes; 442, Adonis.

We now proceed to the Court of the Belvedere, which is supported by sixteen columns, having a fountain in the centre. The court is adorned with baths, urns, sarcophagi, statues, columns, bas-reliefs, and medallions. The four corners of the court are occupied by cabinets in the following order, commencing on the left:—

MERCURY OF THE BELVEDERE.

A most valuable piece of antique Greek sculpture, found near the Baths of Titus in 1779. On the walls are bas-reliefs representing a combat between Amazons and Athenians, and a sacred procession; 56, Priapus, the god of orchards; 57, Hercules.

CANOVA'S CABINET.

It contains three splendid works by this great modern master: Perseus with the Head of Medusa; the Two Boxers, Kreugas (defence), Damoxenus (attack).

APOLLO BELVEDERE.

One of the finest masterpieces of ancient Greek sculpture, discovered at Porto d'Anzio towards the close of the fifteenth century—Apollo in the attitude of turning the army of the Gauls into stone, with the head of Medusa, B.C. 278, as we are informed by the inscription in bronze; it was restored erroneously. It is beautifully described by Byron in "Childe Harold."

CABINET OF THE LAOCOON.

Found in the Baths of Titus in 1506. Pliny (xxxvi. 4) thus describes it:—"A work which may be considered superior to all others both in painting and statuary. The whole group—the father, the boys, and the awful folds of the serpents—were formed out of a single block by Agesander, Polydorus, and Athenodorus, natives of Rhodes. Michael Angelo said, however, and it has since been proved, that it is in three pieces."

"Two serpents ... their destined way they take,

And to Laocoön and his children make:

And first around the tender boys they wind,

Then with their sharpened fangs their limbs and bodies grind.

The wretched father, running to their aid

With pious haste, but vain, they next invade;

Twice round his waist their winding volumes rolled,

And twice about his gasping throat they fold.

The priest thus doubly choked, their crests divide,

And towering o'er his head in triumph ride."

Virgil, "Æn.," ii. 209: Dryden.

We now enter the

ROOM OF THE MELEAGER,

the hero sung of by Greek and Latin poets. Found in the year 1500 outside the Porta Portese. 20, The Loves of Æneas and Dido; 17, Inscription relating to the foundation of the temple of Hercules Victor by the consul Mummius.

THE ROUND VESTIBULE.

In the centre is a basin of pavonazzetto; on the balcony a very rare ancient sun-dial, found in 1770 near the Colosseum. The view from here has given to this balcony the name

BELVEDERE.

It commands a beautiful panoramic scene of Rome and the Campagna, bounded by the distant Alban and Sabine Hills.

VESTIBULE.

The gray peperino sarcophagus was discovered in the tomb of the Scipios on the Via Appia in 1780. It contained the remains of Scipio Barbatus. When it was opened, two thousand years after his death, the skeleton was found entire, with a ring upon one of the fingers. The ring passed into the hands of the Earl of Beverley, and the bones were removed to Padua by the Venetian senator, Angelo Quirini. On the wall are inscriptions found in the tomb. A bust of the poet Ennius surmounts the sarcophagus.

THE TORSO

of Hercules. The work of Apollonius, son of Nestor of Athens. Found near the Theatre of Pompey. It is considered to be the most perfect resemblance to human flesh, and was greatly admired by Raphael and Michael Angelo, the latter declaring that he was its pupil. Descending the stairs we reach

THE CHIARAMONTI CORRIDOR,

containing numerous monuments of Greek and Roman art. On the left going down. 733, Recumbent Statue of Hercules; 683, Hygeia; 682, Antoninus Pius; 681, Minerva; 635, Hercules with Ajax, found near Pompey's Theatre; 589, Mercury; 588, Group of Bacchus and Ampelus; 544, Silenus; 495, A Cupid, by Praxiteles; 494, Tiberius; 493, Diadumenianus; 450, Mercury; 422, Bust of Demosthenes; 419–417, Busts of Caius and Lucius, nephews of Augustus; 418, Julia, his daughter; 416, Augustus as a Youth; 401, Colossal Head of Augustus; 400, Tiberius; 399, Head of Tiberius; 353, Nymph on a Rock; 294, Hercules Resting; 262, A Smiling Child; 242, Apollo Citharœdus; 241, Juno suckling Mars; 240, Britannicus; 197, Minerva, with modern helmet and enamelled eyes; 177, Polyhymnia; 175, Niobe in Flight from Diana; 122, Diana; 121, Clio, the historical muse and guardian of truth; 120, Priestess of Vesta; 85, The God of Sleep; 62, Hygeia, the goddess of health; 61, Urania; 15, A consular statue; 6, Autumn.—Gates to Corridor of Inscriptions.—Returning. 13, Winter; 19, Paris; 18, Apollo; 17, A Faun. Entrance to the Nuovo Braccio. 112, Venus of Cnidos; 124, Drusus; 181, Hecate; 179, Myth of Alcestis; 245, Polyhymnia; 244, Ocean; 287, Sleeping Fisher Boy; 298, Bacchus; 297, Athlete; 343^a, Brutus who stabbed Cæsar; 355–357, Figures found at Tusculum; 358, Captive; 453, Meleager; 498, Clotho; 497, Sarcophagus, with Corn-mills; 484, Diana; 547, Isis; 548, a Vestal; 580, Præfica; 591, Claudius; 627, Venus and Mars; 639, Julia Lœmia; 686, Tuccia, the vestal virgin, carrying water in a sieve from the Tiber to the Forum. (See Dionysius, ii. 69.) On the border is S. K. Pello, "By this proof a sepulchre and a calumny are removed from me." 685, Sarcophagus, representing the manufacture of oil; 684, Æsculapius.

THE NUOVO BRACCIO.

Built by Pius VII., in 1817, from the designs of Stern. The floor is composed of ancient mosaics, and is worthy of notice. The chief objects of interest are—5, Caryatide, supposed to be one of those which supported the portico of the Pandrosium at Athens, by Phidias; 8, Commodus; 9, Captive Dacian King; 11, Silenus; 14, Augustus, found in 1863 in the ruins of the Villa of Livia at Prima Porta; 17, Æsculapius; 20, Nerva; 23, Pudicitia, the goddess of modesty; 26, Titus; 92, Ganymedes, the cup-bearer of Jupiter; 44, Wounded Amazon; 47, Caryatide; 50, Diana; 53, Euripides; 56, Julia, daughter of Titus; 59, Plenty; 62, Demosthenes; 67, Athlete in the act of cleaning his arm with a strigil—the die, which he holds in his other hand, is an erroneous modern addition; 71, Amazon; 74, Clemency; 77, Antonia, the wife of Drusus the elder; 80, Plotina, wife of Trajan; 83, Ceres; 86, Fortune; 96, A. Marcus Antonius; 109, The Nile—the sixteen children are allegorical of the sixteen cubits at which the rise of the river begins to irrigate the land—one of the finest works of art in the Vatican, found near the Church of Minerva; 111, Julia, daughter of Titus; 114, Minerva; 117, Claudius; 120, Faun; 123, Lucius Verus; 126, Athlete; 129, Domitian; 132, Mercury. Passing through the iron gates, we enter

THE CORRIDOR OF INSCRIPTIONS,

the walls of which are adorned with three thousand pagan and eleven hundred Christian inscriptions brought from various catacombs and cemeteries. Retracing our way through the Museum, a glass door on the right at the entrance of the Museum conducts us to