Michelangelo and Fra Angelico were Italian Renaissance artists who died on the same day (many years apart).
Only 37 when he died in 1520, Raphael was one of the most influential artists of his day.
Leonardo da Vinci created many paintings, sketches, and engineering projects in his lifetime. Here’s where to find them in Italy.
Before Christianity became the dominant religion of Rome, many people worshipped Mithras, the pagan God depicted here.
Last week, I finally had a chance to revisit the Vatican Museums. It had been more than a decade since I had gone. And I had been reluctant to visit because of the crowds, which wrapped around the block. But my mother was in town, so I had a good excuse to go.
Getting in was easy enough, as we had reserved tickets through the Vatican Museums online ticketing system. Rain poured down on us as we got off the tram and walked uphill to the entrance. Most everyone there at 9:30 a.m. were part of a group or had reserved online so we were all kind of in the same line (scrum) to get in. Getting through the main doors, queueing up at the ticket window to get our “real” tickets (our printed reservations were just that), and walking through security took about 10-15 minutes. No big deal.
But honestly, the Vatican Museums left me wanting this time. Or rather they left me with the feeling that I never want to visit again.
Each day, as many as 20,000 visitors pay up to €16 per person to enter the Vatican Museums, the highlight of which is the Sistine Chapel. This coming weekend, reports Crux, approximately 40 fans of German automaker Porsche will get to pay up to €5,000 each to take a private tour of the Vatican, which includes dinner … Read more
