" Better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times"- A travel quote
For any traveler with the slightest of inclination for history, Vatican City will always remain one of the most cherished destinations.
Vatican City is a city-state, surrounded by Rome, Italy. It is the smallest country in the world by both area as well as population and is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church. It became independent from Italy in 1929. It has an area of 121 acres and a population of about 805 people.
It is a city state with clearly defined borders and is presided over by holy see (The catholic church's jurisdiction) with Pope as its leader. It has its own, currency, security forces (Swiss guards), post office etc. The unique economy of Vatican City is supported financially by sale of postage stamps, entry fees, souvenirs and publications. The city has a part which is walled and a part which is outside the walls.
The walled city has a side entry which leads to the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. The museums are home to a vast collection of art works with contributions from a large number of renowned painters, sculptors and artists. The collections are amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy through the centuries..
Sistine chapel : The famous chapel forms the last leg of the Vatican Museum tour, before you enter the Basilica. Famous for its artworks, the chapel has frescoes by Michelangelo on the ceiling and west wall. The ceiling, painted in four years [1508-1512) depicts the incidents from Old Testament. The "creation of Adam" is a fresco painting which forms part of the ceiling. It illustrates the biblical creation in which god gives life to Adam the first man. The other famous painting " The last judgment" on the west wall was painted by him from 1534-1541.
Outside the walled city lie the St. Peter's Basilica and St Peter's square. The Basilica is the world's largest church. Built in Renaissance style It is a church, but not the cathedral. A Cathedral is meant to be the seat of Bishop, which is at the basilica of St john Lateran in Rome. The St. Peter's basilica is supposedly the burial site of St Peter, chief among Jesus' apostles. A church has stood on this site since the time of Roman emperor Constantine the great from 4th century AD. Construction of present site took place between 1506-1626.
The entire interior of St. Peter's is lavishly decorated with marble, reliefs, architectural sculpture and gilding. It contains a large number of tombs of popes. Also are a number of niches and chapels. The most famous piece of sculpture is Michelangelo's Pieta. The central feature of the basilica is Baldacchino, a canopy over papal altar, designed by Lorenzo Bernini. Made of bronze it is claimed to be largest piece of bronze in world. The dome of the basilica rises to a height of 448 ft and is the tallest dome of the world. The diameter [136 ft], though is not the largest.
St.Peters square with Obelisk : Located to the east of basilica, constructed between 1656-1667 is the baroque inspiration of Bernini who inherited a location already occupied by an Egyptian obelisk, which was centrally placed. The obelisk [130ft] is the second highest standing obelisk. Initially the obelisk was erected at circus of Nero in 37 AD and was shifted here in 1586.
The square is probably one of the world's most famous squares and can house 3 lakh people. The most impressive part of the square are its 284 columns and 88 pilasters that flank the square in a colonnade of four rows. Above the columns are 140 statues of saints, created in 1670, by the disciples of Bernini. Besides there are two fountains in the middle of square.
The famous novel by Dan Brown " Angels and Demons", made into a movie featuring Tom Hanks was picturised with the Basilica and square in the backdrop in a number of scenes. A word of caution for every traveller is to be careful with one's belongings and the square has an infamous reputation for being the favourite spot for pickpockets especially during rush hours.
Well written update on the Vatican. The artwork of Sistine Chapel is the most distinguished human adventure.
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