Reminders
of Mortality
This ghostly white marble statue watches over visitors
to the Vatican.
A
Ticket to the Bizarre
The treasury houses a broad collection of unusual
items, including pontiff's robes, hats, and jewelry, but
it's the reliquaries that steal the show. (mouse over to
see the other side of the ticket)
In this detail from the great bronze doors, crows pick out
the eyes of a twisted figure nailed hand and foot.
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As
grand and glorious as St. Peter's undoubtedly is,
it does have its gruesome side. After all, this was the site
where St. Peter was crucified, and the basilica serves as
tomb to many a former Pope.
If that's not enough ghosts for you, the
treasury is chock-full of bits and pieces of a legion of saints.
In objects called reliquaries, the blood, bones, or miscellaneous
mummified body parts (including whole arms or heads) are artfully
encased with crystal, gold and precious stones.
The golden figure
of Death, as a winged skeleton, reaches up with an hourglass
in Bernini's monument to Pope Alexander VII. (note the sumptuous
marble "fabric")
More from the bronze
doors: bound bodies hang by the neck or feet. Do they depict
the tortured deaths of martyred saints?:
Next:
Dome Sweet Dome
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