Italy Photos 25

We now pass to the time of the Etruscans. This vase shows Achilles and Ajax playing dice. No really, that's not a joke.
A bust of Pope Gregory XVI, or as he was called behind his back, Pope Big Nose.
It's odd, but I never got down to wherever this plaza was.
Now to the rooms with Etruscan stuff, like this wooden chariot from around 550 B.C.E.
A bronze statue of a warrior from the late 5th century B.C.E. Not only does he have those creepy ivory eyes, but he's missing the back of his head.
An anagram of LEO P P XIII is I LIP OX PIE.
Okay, now the story of the penises. Church leaders decided back in the 16th century or so that genitalia was bad for some reason, so they covered the junk of statues with fig leaves.
It seems silly, particularly in this case. The platform the statue stands on looks like it has balls hanging from the bottom.
But given a choice I think I'd rather be covered with a fig leaf than to have it broken off. There are a lot of those around too.
The walls of this hall are covered with tapestries showing scenes from the life of Jesus.
Personally I think The Life of Brian was funnier.
The map gallery with the fancy ceiling.
The walls are painted with maps of different regions of Italy.
The maps even have insets of certain cities just like you would find in an atlas.
I tried Googling these cities but came up blank. Maybe they don't exist anymore.
A giant painting of Polish King Jan III Sobieski liberating Vienna. After that they enjoyed tiny sausages.
The Immaculate Conception Room and the next several rooms were once part of the living quarters of the Renaissance popes.
The Streets of Vatican City, a Quinn-Martin Production.
I've looked and looked, but I do not see the Popemobile down there anywhere. Maybe they took it out for a wash.
The paintings on the walls in the Constantine Room were done by Raphael. Until he died, that is. Others finished for him. This room tells a story of Constantine. Here the general sees a vision of a cross with the words "You will conquer in this sign".
Well that was good enough for Connie, because he won a great battle and decided from then on to be a Christian.
Here he is being baptized by the pope. Then as emperor he changed the empire from pagan to Christian.
And on the ceiling this painting of the cross standing over a broken Roman statue, symbolizing the power of the Christianity over pagan Rome. And for the record, these were painted by Raphael the painter not Raphael the ninja turtle.
I'll give you a couple more of Raphael's walls. This is The School of Athens. Some of the notables are Plato, Aristotle, Socrates and Euclid. And the guy in the foreground with his head resting on his elbow is Michelangelo (again, the artist not the turtle).
The Battle of Ostia. Yeah, I guess it was the town I visited the day before. The troops of Pope Leo IV defeated the Saracen hordes. Okay, enough of the old stuff.
How about a little Gauguin?
Meet James Ensor, Belgium's famous painter. Dig him up and shake his hand. Appreciate the man. There's another song reference that almost no one will get except perhaps my nephew.
Okay, so they do not allow photography in the Sistine Chapel. There are guys walking around the crowd to make sure no one does it. So what do I do when told not to do something? Yep. As I sat on one of the benches lining the walls I put my iPhone down on my leg. With the camera facing up I snapped this photo. Granted it's not that great. I mean I couldn't really aim and the quality isn't great, but I got it. At the bottom you can see The Creation of Adam. Above that are scenes from the Garden of Eden, Temptation and Expulsion.

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