​The feast of Corpus Domini dates back from the middle ages.

It was instituted by Pope Urban IV in 1264 after the famous Miracle of Bolsena.
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In papal Rome every year on Corpus Domini day a solemn procession was led by the pope from the Sistine chapel along the Borgo neighborhood. The pope holding the sacrament was carried on his chair and followed by cortege of about 3.000 people among cardinals, prelates, clergy, Swiss guards and noblemen.

​On May 1st traditionally named ’Calendimaggio’a great feast occurred in Rome.

A main happening was the ‘Cuccagna’ a tree planted in the Capitol square full of delicious foods but covered with a slippery substance. The romans were rivalling to climb the Cuccagna tree and get the prize. It was not easy and it was one of the occasions of rivalry between the bullies.

The tradition continued until the middle of the seventeen century.
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The painting of the Cuccagna tree is by Agostino Tassi (1631-16329 and can be found in the ‘Museo di Roma’

​This wonderful ebony piece of furniture can be seen in the ‘Museo di Roma’ located just at one end of the splendid piazza Navona.
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I love this piece  because it’s ornate by 18 views of Rome. The main places of pilgrimage are depicted in many cases when the crowd attends religious celebrations. Therefore it is particularly interesting for Rome history lovers.

​Two imperial ships of Caligola were found under the lake of Nemi and the bronze fittings are the most important set of objects left.
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The first group of objects was acquired by the Museo Nazionale Romano in 1906, following the explorations undertaken in the lake by the antiquarian Eliseo Borghi on behalf of the Orsini family, while the second group of art works was found in excavations done between 1929 and 1932.

Tapestry art developed mainly in northern Europe since its main function was to help with the warming of the rooms within the residences of kings and noblemen.

The technique was applied to create ornaments for chairs, bed, and other furnitures aside from the walls decoration. Nowadays the wall tapestries are the only ones preserved in museums.

The habit of transferring the ‘tapestry room’ and sets from one residence to the other was practical but damaged  many manufactures. Cut were done to large tapesties to adjust them to the new locations.
 Arazzi Room, Capitoline Museum, Rome

apestry has ancient origins; findings of weaven trheads were foud in ancient egypt and hellenistic greece.
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In the odissey is remarked the endless weawing work of Penelope, ulysses wife.
The copto tapestries dating from the first centuries of christianity are considered the finest exemple from the past due to tecnhical skills and complexity.
 
The technique was introduced back in Europe by the Flemish after the crusade that placed  Baldovino di Fiandra on Jerusalem’s throne in the 12th hundred.

COPTO TAPESTRY, Museo Alto Medioevo, Roma

This extraordinary sarcophagus was found in 1931 near the Tiburtina road, just outside the ancient city of Rome. It can be dated to 180AD.
It  shows the scene of a battle, staged on two levels rendered in a very vivid way.
The winning Romans can be seen in the upper level while the defeated barbarians are humiliated and defeated below them.

A roman horseman, in the centre- surely the owner of the tomb, is depicted in the guise of universal victor.

The top part of the coffin also celebrates the dead man and his wife: The woman exercises her virtues in the house, weaving and educating the children; while the man, after his warlike activities, receives the submission of the enemies.

This is a late Hellenistic artwork  made in pentelic marble, the one of Athens.  
It was found in 1886 on via Labicana, not far away from the coliseum on the slopes of the esquiline  hill.
 
The ancient regional catalogues –lists of sites within an Augustan region- dating back to 2000 years ago, reported the presence of an  Iseum, or temple of Isis. The head was in the temple, I believe.

It’s exquisite and very charming. Now it’s location is the Centrale Montemartini museum in Rome.


​Centrale Montemartini museum

I can understand, looking at this sculpture, the fascination the minotaur’s had in the past and over the centuries.
This splendid sculpture displayed in Rome in the Palazzo Massimo museum, shows the great contrast between beauty and the wild, intellect and nature. 

The torso is really astounding while the head is so brutal!
It also depicts the inner essence of human beings, where  both  intellect or passions and violence coexist.
It was done on purpose back then, over 2000 years ago.

This is an ancient  roman copy of a sculpture by the famous Miron. The minotaur bust was part of a sculptural group depicting  Theseus fighting and eventually winning over the beast. 

The inclination of the minotaur’s head suggests he’s going to be hit by Theseus.

The mythological story is aimed to assert Athens independence over the Cretan influence.

The king of Crete’s wife got this love affair with a bull (this story deserves another blog) and gave birth to the minotaur: half man half bull.

Since the Athenians had lost a war with Crete (or had killed the son of Crete’s king Minos –there are different version of the myth),  together with the minotaur  heating only humans, the Athenians had to send 7 boys and 7 maidens to Crete to fed the beast.

Theseus, the son of Athens’s king Aegeus, went to Crete to kill the minotaur and eventually succeeded.

Palazzo Massimo Museum

It was found in 1886 in Rome, in what is nowadays piazza Sciarra.

It’s a splendid copy of a classical Greek bronze work dating from the Vth century bc, same period as the Parthenon in Athens. 

There are similarities in style with the work of Phidias, that we’re still dreaming about…

The head is a plaster cast of another  similar statue, now in the Louvre, found in Velletri – a village on the roman hills south of Rome.

The statue was made with marble from Thassus, in Greece.




​Centrale Montemartini Museum

Via di San Gregorio is a modern (1930s) road known by everyone being the main connection between the Circus Maximus and the triumphal Arch of Constantine and Coliseum. During the works to open the road the remains of a temple were unearthed and can be found now in the Capitoline museum. 
It’s the temple of ‘Fortuna Respicens’ and let’s see the meaning it had.

It’s hard to imagine but this route was used since the extreme past. The triumphal processions were passing here. 
Since the age of the roman republic the winning generals were awarded to enter the city together with the army, their booty and prisoners and to be welcomed and praised by all the roman citizens.
It was the only time when the army was welcomed in town and the most important happenings in the past.

A detail of a fascinating canvas painted by Antonio Canova, renewed neoclassical sculptor and leading personality of the neoclassical artistic movement.
This little cherub attract me for it's freshness, tenderness and curious attitude.
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Palazzo Braschi Museum

This is an Ippolito Caffi painting dating to 1845, depicting bengala fireworks inside the coliseum.
There was a party!!!

​Palazzo Braschi Museum

In florentine Renaissance 'tondo' indicates works of art executed for private buildings.

Blaise was a bishop leaving in the IV century; he had miraculously saved a boy from suffocating, and thus became protector from throat diseases.

The painter, who certainly was a florentine artist active about 1450, had been identified with Neri di Bicci.

Pinacoteca Capitoline Museum

The ancient Romans pretended to control the unpredictable aspects of their lives by praising the Gods and Goddess and making offerings.
Thus marble slab, dating to the 3rd century AD, was found in 1939 in Rome, in the area between via della Consolazione and via del mare below the Capitoline hill.

It's a dedication to the Goddess Caelestis for a safe journey going (itus) and returning (reditus). Caelestis temple was located on the Capitoline hill.

The inscription says: " to triumphal Caelestis, Jovinus donates this in fulfillment of a vow."
There is a dove represented in the centre of the panel and a relief bearing four footprints on the side of the inscription.

Capitoline Museum, Epigraphic Gallery

The tomb of the warrior found in Lanuvium and dating from 475BC remains an exception within the general picture of Latium tombs from the 6th and 5th century BC. 

Lanuvium was an ancient independent town in the vicinity of Rome, some 32 km south.  In the 6th century BC it was part of Latin League and made several wars against Rome at the battle of Aricia (504 BC) and Lake Regillus (496 BC) and again in 383 and 341 BC. In 338 BC it was finally conquered by Rome. 


​Terme di Diocleziano Museum

This is a lead course tablet ( tabella defixionis), in which Pluto ( Dis Pater), the god of the underworld, is invoked to put an end to the love between Rhodine and Faustus.

“ Just as the corpse buried here can neither speak nor converse, so let Rhodine be death for Marcus Licinius Faustus”…

This object dates back to the 1st century BC: who knows if it worked..

Terme di Diocleziano Museum

One of the sculptures decorating the Italian style garden behind the wonderful Borghese villa. Certainly not the more beautiful !!

​Borghese park

This beautiful tomb with paintings returned to light in1951 during some street works in Quirino Maiorana road. 
It was excavated inside the tufa stone and was part of a vast necropolis area dating from the end of the first century A.D. until the third century A.D.