The Vatican Museum

In Rome everyday feels like a Saturday. So in spite of it being Monday and therefore a "school day," Meghan, Kelly and I ventured over to the Vatican Museum. The Museum itself is a bit daunting- spanning over about 4 miles, and taking about 4 hours to get through- but it is also an experience that I did not want to skimp on in the least. 

Ultimately the museum did not disappoint. In any way, at all. I usually have a difficult time with museums, much preferring to analyze a text than any kind of artwork, but the Vatican Museum was most definitely an exception. At times it would be so stimulating that I would start to glaze over. In most museums I think I would have let myself fade into my own head, but for this I made a genuine effort to keep absorbing, taking in the explanations, and appreciating everything that we passed. I could not possibly begin to delve into all of the things we saw- but a few things were particularly memorable.

The Egyptian Room was fascinating- in part because I was able to recall vague memories I had about learning about Egyptians in the sixth grade. One of the things I particularly liked were the amulets that were showcased- the accompanying text explained that the Egyptians would place these amulets over the hearts of the deceased as a request that the heart of this person or soul be protected as the individual went to Heaven. From walking around it becomes more and more evident how much the Egyptians believed that their afterlife was dependent on the way in which they were buried. It's fascinating- particularly for me because I've usually thought the actual burial of human beings to be mostly a waste of space, in the most compassionate way possible. Therefore reading and experiencing the traditions that the Egyptians practiced regarding burial and the afterlife challenged a lot of what I had previously believed about the importance of such things.

We were also wholly impressed by the court that Michaelangelo built the porticoes for. Which of course I can already not remember the name of nor find it on Google. The marble slabs were extremely detailed and we spent a lot of time walking around in there. But it looked like this. Have I mentioned enough that the weather is always beautiful here? I'm even considering giving up talking about the weather for Lent because I think I say about 5000 times per day how nice it is.

Next we wandered through the Georgio-Etrusco room of the museum which was literally fun for about ten minutes, until we found ourselves in a bunch of rooms that all looked the same and were filled with vases. This led to a very Alice In Wonderland type experience attempting to maze our way out of there.. Vases are great. I think I've seen enough of them to last me an entire lifetime. 

The Raphael Stanzes were incredible. So much so that I forgot to take any pictures of them. They were so gorgeous and we spent so much time reading, looking and analyzing them that I completely spaced out on taking pictures of any of them. However, right before them we went into the room of Mary and the Immaculate Conception. The room depicts the story of the Church essentially accepting that the conception was immaculate. The depictions each take up an entire wall. They're huge and so interesting to look at. I think I had the most interest in that room simply because of the shared name. Even though I much prefer that I was named for my Great-Grandma Mary Barry and not for the Virgin Mother, I can't help but give her a bit of acknowledgement for her influence in making the name a respectable one. I'd have to confirm it but I'd say that somewhere down the line, my namesake was named for her. So while I'll take the spirit of Great-Grandma Barry, I'll still explore rooms dedicated to the life of the Mother of God that shares my name. Here is a picture of one of the walls- the Proclamation of the Dogma.

Huge. Just utterly immense.

The Sistine Chapel was last although certainly not least. Although I do have to say that about two weeks before I was to leave for Rome, my Mom insisted- INSISTED that I go to the eye doctor and update my prescription and she had to say this with it, "I won't have you squinting up at the Sistine Chapel and not being able to really see it, Mary." She should have knocked on wood. Because I, in true Mary McNellis form, totally and completely forgot to bring my glasses. I blame not only her for actually probably cursing me by even bringing it up, but also my lifelong refusal to accept that I should have some kind of eyesight assistance at all times. So yes, I did forget my glasses. And no, I could not see possibly the greatest piece of artwork ever created by man as perfectly as I wanted to. But its magnificence was still not lost on me. And hopefully Emma will want to go back when she comes to visit. Especially because she is always dead-set on me wearing them everywhere- despite sometimes physical protests against it. 

The Last Judgement is something that I wish I could see a 1000 more times at a 1000 different times in my life. The thing about it is that the story truly unravels to you. With all the genius of Michaelangelo, he found a way to make the story move on the wall. It is as though you could see the deceased crawling out of their graves- gripping the sides of their coffins and stretching upwards to face Christ. It is as though you could see the muscles flex on the biceps of those who were pulling people into Heaven. On Christ's other side, you could almost feel the motion of people as they were hurled into hell. I don't want to say that it's indescribable, but perhaps unimaginable. It's hard to imagine a static picture communicate motion to the viewer, but that is exactly what Michaelangelo achieves. Unravels is the beset word I have for it.

The ceiling and walls.. There are so many things to say. Before I go back the next time I will definitely research what every inch of that ceiling is about. The depiction of a physical God has made me wholly confident that if anyone ever asks me again in my life who, if anyone, I would choose to have dinner with whether they be alive or deceased, I would wholeheartedly choose Michaelangelo. Seeing the Sistine Chapel one time taught me about as much about God as 8 years of catechism ever did. The depiction of God in the purple robe, and the creation of Adam from his fingertip to Adam's fingertip, these are indelible images. Suffice it to say, the Sistine Chapel is the most amazing thing I have ever seen in my entire life. In my life I do not think I have ever been more affected by something I've seen than something I've read, and the Sistine Chapel has truly changed that. I have never read a word about God that told me as much as the Sistine Chapel did. There is so much more to say about the 3D illusions and the stories of Moses and Christ along the walls, but I don't think I have even been able to process this enough. I am still so utterly taken aback by the sheer genius and talent of Michaelangelo to even begin to think about more than the middle of the ceiling and the Last Judgement. It is something that I wish I could revisit a thousand different times in my life just so I could encounter it differently every time and appreciate it that much more. 

After finally having deciphered as much as we could from guidebooks and our own eyes about the Sistine Chapel, we really needed to get back to campus. When the options are walk back the four miles you came to get to the Sistine or walk out the reserved for tours door- we took the reserved for tours door and didn't make eye contact with any of the people we passed who attempted to protest it. As it happened, we did not get out as fast as we were expecting to. But for an entirely better reason. As we were walking out, we see all these people taking pictures and videos. So immediately we begin to look around and try to figure out what's going on. And in fact, the procession into the Church is beginning. Which was amazing. So we snuck right into the Procession and pretended to know a single verse of the Italian song- all the while making our way into the family videos of all the bystanders taping it. Here is our view of the front of the Procession- which would be much more impressive if I had a picture of the actual front, but I do not as I was busy trying to keep from laughing and give away my lack of belonging in this line. You can even see a man recording the Procession from his phone.. Definitely in his video.

You can see why everyday in Rome truly feels like a Saturday. After a four hour trip through the Vatican Museum and after having absorbed more knowledge about beautiful artwork and God than I ever thought I would have learned in my entire life, I had to go to school. 

Such a remarkable day.