Early Christian sites...sort of.

Today was a good day, although my efforts at seeing a couple important early Christian churches were thwarted by masses and weddings.  But, even though things didn't go according to plan, I still got to explore Rome (and familiarize myself with the public transit system).

I started off by going on the Via Appia Antica, aka the Appian Way.  The road was first used in the 4th century BC, and it connects Rome to southeast Italy.  Parts of it are the original Roman road, and shockingly, you are allowed to drive on it (a testament to Roman building techniques, I suppose).  There are some pretty interesting ruins and beautiful views along the way, too:

I walked along for a bit, until I came to the Basilica di San Lorenzo, originally built by Constantine in the 4th century, although heavily modified over the years.  The church itself is nice...

...but I was really there for what's underneath.  Some of the oldest Christian catacombs in Rome are beneath this basilica.  There are three levels, with the highest being the oldest, but you can really only explore level 2; the others are too dangerous, although there are a couple areas that you're allowed to go into.  You are also required to go with a guide; normally this would bug me (I'd much prefer to just do it on my own.  Go figure, from the guy who's on a month-long trip by himself), but I could easily see how you could get lost down there, or potentially hurt yourself, particularly if you happen to be prone to claustrophobia.  There are a variety of fairly average grave sites (at one time over 100,000 people were buried here), as well as a few special ones, such as the tombs of St. Lawrence, St. Peter, and St Paul (all of whom have been moved), and 3 pagan mausoleums which are believed to have been the original burials in the area.  I wasn't allowed to take pictures, but above ground they had a few of the Christian sarcophagi on display, all from the 4th century:

Even if these catacombs are a bit out of the way, they should be at the top of the list for visitors to Rome.  Not impressive in the same way that the Coliseum is, but fantastic nonetheless.

Afterwards, I started walking up the Appian Way back towards Rome, and went to the Chiesa di Domine Quo Vadis.  According to tradition, Peter was fleeing Rome ahead of his imminent execution when he saw a vision of Jesus, walking towards Rome.  He asked Him "Domine, quo vadis?" meaning "Lord, where are you going?"  Jesus responded that he was going to Rome to be crucified again.  Peter got the message and turned around to face his death, by upside-down crucifixion (at his own request; he felt unworthy of dying in the same manner as Jesus, so he had the Romans turn his cross upside-down).  The church marks the spot where this event was believed to have taken place, complete with a piece of marble with the supposed footprints of Jesus embedded:

After this, I tried to go to the Basilica di San Lorenzo Fuori le Mura.  I say tried, because the attempt was a pretty spectacular failure.  First I couldn't figure out the buses to get there, then when I finally did there was Mass going on, and then I couldn't figure out the buses going back.  All in all I probably wasted about 2 hours.  I plan on trying again (now that I have a better idea of where I'm going), but in the meantime here's a picture of the outside:

Next up was the Basilica di San Paolo Fuori le Mura, in a totally different part of town ("fuori le mura" just means "outside the walls").  The original church dates back to the 4th century, but there was a massive fire in the early 19th century and much was destroyed (although not the apse mosaics; I'll get to those in a minute).  No expense was spared in the reconstruction, and you can tell:

This place is BIG.  Like fit-most-other-churches-inside-of-it big

Triumphal arch mosaics

The apse

The mosaics are one of the few things to survive the fire, although to call them original is a stretch (various "restorations" have been performed over the years).  There is a much higher level of detail in these mosaics than the Byzantine ones I've seen thus far (mostly noticeable in facial features), and I think that this is a result of restorations made over the years as well as the sheer scale.  I thought that San Giovanni in Laterano must have been the second largest church in Rome after St. Peter's, but now I think the distinction probably has to go to St. Paul's

To finish out my day, I tried to go to Santi Giovanni e Paolo, fairly close to the Circus Maximus and Coliseum.  Once again I say tried, because when I got there I ran into a wedding.  Like San Lorenzo this is a pretty important stop for me, so I'll be trying again (presumably there won't be weddings on Mondays, but I'm afraid I'm setting myself up for an incredibly hectic day).  Here's a shot of the outside for now:

Feeling rather defeated, I called it a day after this.  Tomorrow I'll be attending Mass in the morning (I think at  SS. Cosma e Damiano, near the forum), and then trying to get into as many churches as possible that are left on my list.  I'm hoping that the Masses will be mainly in the morning (they usually are), so that after lunch I should be able to see quite a few.  At least I hope so, because if not Monday will be busy, busy, busy.  Wish me luck!

La Citta Eterna

There's something about standing in a city that's existed for over 2500 years.  You can't exactly put your finger on it, but it's hard not to be in a good mood (even in sweltering heat).  I've been to Rome before, just under 4 years ago when my parents came to visit me in Alba, but I won't be seeing much of any of the same sites.  They say that you can't see all of Rome in a lifetime, so why do the same things twice?  Conspicuously absent from the next four days will be the Coliseum, Vatican Museums, Capitoline Hill, etc.  If you're interested in those things, check out my Facebook page; I've got plenty of pictures from the last time I was here.

Instead, my focus is going to be on churches (surprise, surprise), preferably as old as possible.  I didn't get to Rome until 1 PM local time today, but I tried to hit the ground running since there's so much to do.  First up the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, atop the Esquiline Hill.

From the front...

...and the back.

The church was originally built in the 5th century, although obviously heavily modified over the years.  It's one of the four Papal Basilicas in Rome, meaning that it technically is owned by the Vatican rather than Italy (think like an embassy on foreign soil).  Being one of the most important churches in Rome, it was rather splendid inside:

Detail of the apse

Triumphal arch mosaics

These mosaics date from to the fifth century, making them older than just about everything I saw in Ravenna. I really wish I had a pair of binoculars with me; there are also mosaics lining the nave, but they were too high up to either get a decent picture of or even see well in person.  Quite the impressive church, all in all.

Next up was the Basilica di San Clemente.  While the church itself if quite beautiful...

These mosaics are significantly more recent, dating to the twelfth or thirteenth century.  If you compare them with some of the other shots I've taken, they do look quite a bit different.

 ..the real draw of this church is the fact that beneath it lies a 4th century Christian basilica, and beneath that is a 1st century AD Mithraeum (a temple to Mithras) and a Roman house, complete with running water (still functioning).  Unfortunately we weren't supposed to take pictures, but I managed to snap one before a mysterious voice told me to stop in 4 or 5 different languages:

The Mithraeum

Sorry for the quality, it was extremely dark down there.  Anyway, this church should be on any visitor to Rome's list.  It really gives you an impression of just how old the city is.

Not too far away from San Clemente is San Giovanni in Laterano, the official cathedral of Rome.  While the pope is usually associated with St. Peter's in the Vatican, his actual "home church" is San Giovanni.  Next  to the St. Peter's it is probably the most magnificent in Rome:

These massive statues line the nave

The bishop's throne or cathedra (hence the term cathedral)

There were some nice mosaics here as well, but once again they date from the 12th or 13th century.  In the interest of time I'm going to leave them out, but as I've mentioned before I'll be putting up a photobucket where you can see everything I saw (the internet in these hostels isn't the best; this might not happen until I get home, since we're talking about thousands of pictures).

I also saw the Scala Sancta, believed to be the steps from Pontius Pilate's palace in Jerusalem, which Jesus ascended before he was condemned to death.

You are only allowed to climb it on your knees, saying a prayer on each step (there are other staircases to the sides for those who don't want to do this), and as a result the penitent are granted a partial indulgence (or a plenary indulgence, if you climb on Good Friday).  I decided to go for it--though I still need to go to confession and attend mass some time in the next couple weeks for the indulgence to count--and it is definitely a grueling experience.  Quite moving, though; there were various people crying as they climbed, and it didn't seem to be because of the pain.  At the top is the Sancta Sanctorum, a chapel housing some extremely ancient relics.  Photos are forbidden, and you can't even go inside--you can only look from 3 grated windows.

Although completely exhausted after this experience, it was too early to call it a day, so I went to the Basilica dei Santi Quattro Coronati.  An ancient church (4th-5th century), it is now operated by the Little Sisters of the Lamb.

Very unassuming exterior.  You'd never find this place if you weren't looking for it.

Decoration in the apse is much more recent (I'm guessing 16th-17th century)

The cloisters

A chapel with some crumbling frescoes

Finally, I finished the day by going to Santo Stefano Rotondo, a round church fairly close to Quattro Coronati.  But, I happened to catch it on a day when there was a wedding going on.  The wedding itself was over, and I managed to get inside, but pretty quickly I was told I had to leave because they were closing for the day.  I'm going to try to go back, so I'm not going to include any information on that church now.

Tomorrow, I'm planning on doing the Appian Way and the early Christian catacombs, as well as some of the more out of the way sites (such as St. Paul's Outside the Walls).  As usual, leave me your questions and comments!

Earthquakes ruin everything

As I mentioned yesterday, my plan was to spend today in Modena, a town in Emilia-Romagna (less than 2 hours from Ravenna by train), famous for balsamic vinegar, as well as Ferraris and Maseratis.  What I hadn't considered was that a massive earthquake struck Italy not too long ago.  There wasn't any visible damage or anything (I have no idea how badly Modena got it), but just about every church I saw was closed, as was the museum I was hoping to go to (it houses numerous illuminated manuscripts.  So, I got there and had very little to do.  On the plus side, I had a FABULOUS lunch, at this place:

Trattoria Aldina, on the second floor

I had Tortellini in a Ragu sauce, thin sliced roast beef with some sort of delicious dressing, a salad, and fresh fruit with a scoop of vanilla gelato on top, as well as some Sangiovese and an espresso.  Absolutely wonderful!  Had I known everything else in the city would be closed I would have just gone out to a nice restaurant here in Ravenna, but oh well.  The town itself was nice anyway.  Here are a couple pictures I snapped as well:

So, all in all, very little to report today.  But tomorrow it's off to Rome, so it's probably for the best that I didn't walk for hours and hours today, because I certainly will from tomorrow until Monday.

More mosaics, a tomb, and a palace

For my second day in Ravenna, I saw the remaining UNESCO sites, as well as the recently (well, within the past 20 years) discovered ruins of a Byzantine palace.

I began by going to the Basilica di Sant'Apollinare in Classe.  As the name suggests, this was located in a place called Classe, known as Classis in Roman times.  Back then, Ravenna was much closer to the water, and the nearby suburb of Classis acted as its port.  It's all silted up since then, but Classe is still a little ways from the center of the city, about 5km or so.  The basilica is the only thing that has survived from the ancient period, but if only one thing could survive I'm glad it was this.

The basilica.  It's been heavily modified over the years, but I'm not here for the outside anyway

Statue of Augustus

The church was built using an actual basilica plan, as opposed to every other ancient site I've visited on the trip so far.  In the Roman period, "basilica" didn't denote a church, but rather a particular style of building, namely one with a large center aisle and two (or more) side aisles.  By comparison, most of the churches I've seen thus far are octagonal, or follow a Greek cross plan.  Most Catholic churches in America are basilica style, if you cut off the side transepts at least.  As you can probably guess, the church is famous for the mosaics in the apse:

The imperial court

The hand of God, peeking through the clouds

Note the writing above and below the cross.  Translated, it reads "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior," and  "Refuge of the World."  There is also and Alpha and an Omega, on either side of the cross.

I actually did a report on this mosaic for Art History last year, and it was pretty awesome to get to see in person.  This is still a functioning church, and so I couldn't get way up close to the apse, but I think these shots give a pretty good idea of how impressive this is.

After a short bus ride I was back in the city center, and visiting a different church dedicated to Sant'Apollinare, the Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo (UNESCO site 7, if you're counting).

Also a traditional basilica-plan building

Why are there two churches dedicated to Sant'Apollinare?  He was the first bishop of Ravenna, traditionally believed to have been a disciple of St. Peter but now believed to have lived in the 3rd century.  Sant'Apollinare Nuovo is actually older than the other Sant'Apollinare, and I don't know why there is this disparity in the names (presumably there was a different Sant'Apollinare already within the city that is no longer extant).  Nuovo was built by the Ostrogothic king Theoderic, and later converted to an Orthodox church when Justinian took the city.  Most likely very little of the Arian interior remains, although there are a few little details that hint at it.

Procession of saints lining the nave.  Women on the left, men on the right

Imperial Palace (Palatium)

See those disembodied hands on the columns?  When this church was built, the original decoration included this palace, but instead of banners there were people in between the columns (most likely Arian saints).  Rather than destroy the original mosaic, the Orthodox just knocked out the figures and replaced them with fabric.  The columns (and hands) are Arian, but what lies between in Orthodox.  Some more shots:

Procession of male saints

Christ, flanked by angels

Hard to make out, but the very top level of mosaics is a series of scenes from the Bible.  This one (in the middle) is the sick man being lowered through the roof.

Notice how all the angels and saints are dressed as Roman senators, the main difference between them (other than the wings...) being the color of the stripe on their togas.  The saints have a purple stripe, as a senator would, while the angels have gold.

Next, I went to the Mausoleum of Theoderic (the king who built the previous church).  This was a bit removed from the city as well, although I didn't have to take a bus to get there.  This is the final UNESCO site in Ravenna.

The mausoleum.  The top is made from a single slab of marble, weighing over 300 tons.

A view from the top

A hint of some of the mausoleum's former decoration

Porphyry sarcophagus, which once held Theoderic's body

Originally the tomb would have been lavishly decorated, but the past 1500 years have seen it all stripped away.

Finally, I ended my day by looking at the ruins of a Byzantine palace or, more specifically, its floor.  When a local church was digging to expand its parking lot, they stumbled onto an ancient palace with stunning mosaics on the floor:

"The Good Shepherd"

"The 4 Seasons"

There had been a building here as far back as the Roman Republic, but these mosaics are thought to date from the 4th-6th centuries.

That's it for today!  I'm planning a day trip to Modena (accent on the "o") tomorrow.  It's the home of balsamic vinegar (apparently extremely different from what we get in the States) as well as Ferraris and Maseratis.  The region I'm currently in, Emilia-Romagna, is the food capital of Italy and so far all I've had are sandwiches; seems like it would be a crime not to have a proper meal, and I've decided Modena's the place to do it.  Questions in the comments!