Vatican Museums: A Virtual Tour
The Vatican is not only a home for the followers of the Roman Catholic church, it is also home to several historical Italian Renaissance pieces. It is within the frescos and statues of this holy building where artists conceptualized the complex ideals of this time period. Despite its location, these works best represent the interest in humanism founded in the High Renaissance, an understanding and appreciation of the needs and achievements of humans rather than just a divine power. Artists were commissioned to create works and paint on the walls of the Vatican and Sistine Chapel, famously including Raphael and Michelangelo. Now these idealized, Greek-inspired forms are open to the public to see, but not everyone will have the opportunity to walk into a room and be consumed by the artist of some of the greatest Renaissance. However, the age of virtual reality and 360 degree cameras have solved this problem! Now with Musei Vaticani you can take a virtual tour of 14/26 museums within the Vatican in a 360 degree interactive tour and whatever you cannot see virtually, you can enjoy in a video from the same place!
What Can You See in These Virtual Museums?
- Raphael’s Rooms
- Visit the four rooms of Raphael, painted from floor to ceiling in his fresco paintings. Even take a look at one of his most better known pieces, The School of Athens. Get up close, without the risk of chipping the old pigment, and examine how Raphael is able to capture the complexity of the High Renaissance by depicting some of the greatest philosophers, mathematicians, historians, theologists, and writers of his time and the consideration of the living and the spiritual.
- The Sistine Chapel / Sistine Halls
- Engulf yourself in the ceiling high frescos of the Sistine Chapel. Several works by several artists commissioned by the Popes of the era. The work in the chapel is meant to commemorate significant religious figures and events.You can even view the famous Sistine ceiling painted by Michelangelo where he illustrated 9 stories of the Genesis including The Creation of Adam.
- New Wing
- The New Wing displayed sculptures that were originally taken by Napoleon and in an effort to honor the artists and historical significance of these pieces, the entire wing was decorated with traditional tiles, architecture, and reliefs similar to those of the time period when these works were created. A majority of the statues present in the wing are replicas of Greek statues, who were big inspirations to Italians of the era, and emperors.
- Pio Clementino Museum
- These halls are filled with ancient and classical collections of sculptures that were excavated, collected and or donated to the museum in an effort to restore and protect antique works of art of Italy. The halls are embellished with Neoclassical decorations overseen by several artists whose works are already displayed throughout the Vatican, including Michelangelo.
- Salone Sistino
- I could not find information on their website or much online about what is within the Salone Sistino, but to my understanding it is or was a library and possibly at one point the Pope’s private study that has been in and out of the public eye for several decades now. The virtual tour oddly did not load properly for me. Let me know if it worked for you in the comments below!
- Profane Museum
- A collection of several items whether their origins are unknown, are from before the Roman era, or are not about religious topics. Essentially, this museum is about anything other than religion that is found to be important enough to conserve,
- Pauline Halls
- Pauline Halls is a chapel where the last two painted ever created by Michelangelo stand. The Conversion of Saul and The Crucifixion of Saint Peter, two frescos on opposite walls from each other.
- Chiaramonti Museum
- This site is home to several Roman antiques like many of the other museums, but this museum is home to several busts used for funerals and as commissions of royalty, soldiers, and the wealthy.
- Hall of the Papyri
- Unlike other areas of the Vatican, this hall displayers terracotta works and decorations which suggest ancient Egyptian influence by artists from the 1700’s.
- Niccoline Chapel
- A hall full of several frescos of religious figures and murals with heavy depictions of the humanism philosophy.
- Gallery of Urban VIII
- This chapel within the Vatican includes frescoes that depict the Stories of the Passion of Chirst commissioned to be painted by Italian artist Alessandro Vaiani and possibly alongside him was his daughter. Also includes paintings where the bases of the walls were made with leather, not as common of a practice at this time.
- Alexandrine Hall
- Again I could not find much information on the works and decorations in this hall, but I assume they are extensions of other rooms within the Vatican and are covered with frescoes by some of the several artists that have laid their hands on the walls of the Vatican.
- Room of the Chiaroscuri
- Another room with Raphael’s touch, this room depicts several statues of Apostles and Saints whose appearances were clearly heavily Greek influenced, as expected. These paintings would be touched up by other artists in the 1500’s.
Overall, I think this is an amazing website and for the most part the virtual tours and videos are great quality and provide basic information about every collection that is viewable. You can even order tickets for guided virtual tools, so if that interests you make sure to click any of the links in this blog to get to the website and start your tour of the Vatican. I hope you will like it as much as I did!
Thank you for reading!
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Virtual Field Trip – I love it!
I was recently allowed to do something I have never done before… I went on a Virtual field trip. At first, I didn’t know what to expect. So stepping into this, I was excited.
I was greeted with a link that was provided. (Linked below)
https://sites.google.com/a/stockton.edu/gsdlc/virtual-field-trips
And from there, I was given many options. I found interest in many things that I was scrolling past, but two caught my eye.
A LIVE ZOO ANIMAL WEBSITE & A PLANETARIUM
I was so excited about the live zoo footage, just being able to glimpse the animals’ daily lives. The elephants immediately caught my eye because they are my favorite. There are 7 elephants, Spike, Bozie, Kamala, Swarna, Maharani, Trong Nhi, and Nhi Linh. Here, you can see an elephant (I’m not sure which one) simply chilling and gazing upon something.
If you’re interested in getting an inside look into the life of these animals, I wouldn’t be afraid to click the link. Sometimes we forget that we are not the only species on this Earth. And it’s interesting to see how another species operates. The range of animals that they show is Elephants, Pandas, Lions, Black-footed Ferrets, and Naked mole rats.
Onto the planetarium, it’s labeled “An online planetarium that allows users to explore stars and planets across a roving map. A very cool instrument to encourage students to learn more about outer space.” From the first glimpse, you get an open field, but when you scroll above you, the sight is beautiful.
By clicking whatever floating item you see above, you’ll get a rundown of precisely what it is.
Virtual field trips are agreeable because of multiple factors. Right off the bat, they offer openness that conventional field trips can’t coordinate. These virtual encounters permit people to investigate far-off and distant areas, far-off everyday marvels, or verifiable milestones. Virtual field trips open up a world of possibilities by removing the constraints of physical travel, allowing people to visit places they might not have been able to otherwise. Second, virtual field trips are intended to be interactive, actively involving and immersing participants in the experience. Clients frequently have command over the course and speed of their investigation, empowering them to tap on objects for more data or participate in virtual exercises and recreations. This hands-on approach enhances the trip’s excitement and fosters a sense of discovery.
With many virtual outings accessible, covering different subjects like nature, history, artistry, and science, there is something to enthrall everybody’s inclinations. This variety ensures that there is always something new and intriguing to discover, keeping the experience fresh. Ultimately, the adaptability and comfort of virtual field trips upgrade their pleasure. Members can leave on a virtual experience whenever suits them without stressing over movement-coordinated operations or time limitations. This freedom permits individualized exploration and revisitation of exciting locations. In conclusion, virtual field trips are a fun and engaging way to learn about and explore the world around us because they combine accessibility, interactivity, multimedia elements, novelty, variety, and convenience.
Smithsonian, the National Museum of Natural History
On my virtual tour I went to the Smithsonian. This museum is incredible. First, I went left to an area that housed a lot of information and exhibits on mammals. Seeing taxidermy animals that are the size they would be in the wild is very cool, most were set up in scenes that would be observe in the wild, like putting animals around a watering hole. I loved the facts about each exhibit and enjoyed that it showed mammals from all over the world.
Next, I went to the Human Origin exhibit and saw different things like symbols and tools that humans created, what humans ate in the past, the different species of human that existed, and how human evolved over the millions of years. The exhibits very interesting to look at in my opinion because it was looking at us but millions of years ago.
Next, I went to the Ocean Hall. The ocean is an amazing place but also terrifying to me because it’s so big and unexplored. I’ve also thought Jaws and the Kraken were super scary stories about powerful creatures that live in the ocean. The exhibit showed the different animals that live in the ocean and had information on migration habits, how the animals communicate, the communities they for and how they live, and more. Different habitats were shown like the coral reefs and shallow waters/shore. I think the diversity of the animals was my favorite part and how wild some of them can look.
Next, I went to the African Voices which showed different art and cultural aspects from Africa. The areas were broken up into time periods, showing the differences between the times, starting in 200 B.C.E. and going until the modern day. I liked this part of the museum because it showed how other cultures live and create and impact the world.
The last part I checked out was the Deep Time Exhibit. This exhibit went over the past of the world and seeing how the world is connected. The dinosaurs’ fossils at the start were awesome. Then it does it the evolution of land animals and early ocean life. This part of the tour has a new feature where you can click one the informational plaques or smaller display allowing for a better view. Earlier you just had to zoom in on what you wanted to see, which honestly was better than expected, but this feature makes it so much easier to see what you are trying to look at. The exhibit covers so much about the distant past and the events that impacted the world and the animal living in it. I would 100% check out this museum tour, it was so interesting and easy to navigate.
Virtual Field Trip
Reflect with me as I recall my virtual field trip to Neave Planetarium. I have had an obsession with the stars and the constellations since I was a little girl. When I was little there was once a meteor shower and my stepdad took up out in the middle of an open field in our 15-passenger van to try to catch a glimpse of it. We brought blankets and were allowed to sit on the hood of the van and even the roof! As a kid, this was exciting enough! I wasn’t sure what to expect with a meteor shower but I had seen a shooting star or two by this point and those fascinated me so I was expecting something even bigger than that. To my disappointment, we never saw the meteor shower but the memories I have under the stars with my family are something I’ll never forget. I’ve wished on shooting stars, always look for the north star while a passenger in the car at night, my husband and I taught our kids the constellations, and am a general star gazer. This trip was perfect for me.
If you have time check out the link above for yourself, you won’t be disappointed. You can spend as little or as much time as you want. I included my whole family on this trip. We searched around for a while. It’s very interactive. You start by putting in your location so you can see what stars and constellations are around you. Once you do that the map is interactive. It has a few symbols at the bottom for what you want to see on the map and what you don’t, constellations, constellation art, atmosphere, landscape, azimuthal grid, equatorial grid, deep sky objects, night mode and full screen.
This is what you see when you first open the website before you select any of the symbols. In the top left you see there is settings and planets tonight you can also select. In settings Milky Way and DSS were already checked and then there was an option to check the Meridian and Ecliptic Lines.
This is what it looks like when you click Planets Tonight. It shows you what time each planet will be visible.
The first thing I explored is what would happen when I clicked constellations. It’s really amazing because what it does is show you the constellation’s names and their shapes. You can zoom in and out and move around the map. If you click on a constellation what it’s also known as, the ascension and declination time and coordinates, the coordinates for the exact position in the sky, the visibility, and then a little bit about the constellation.
The next thing I clicked on was constellation art. I kept constellations clicked so I could see both the names and the outlines as well as the art. I’ll show you what it looked like below.
The next button you can click is the atmosphere button. What this does is if you are using the app during the day or even at night when the moon is shining bright, it removes the light and makes the stars more visible. This was pretty neat to see because I thought it was just removing the fog but turns out it has a real purpose.
The following tool available was landscape. Okay, I thought this was my landscape. I know, silly. Hear me out I’ve never heard of these before so I didn’t know it was generic! Well, apparently it doesn’t have to be! You can customize your own landscape. If you have something blocking your view in your yard or wherever you view the stars you can create your own landscape with a cell phone and a little editing skill. Good to know!
The next two things are the azimuthal grid and the equatorial grid. The azimuthal grid is used to tell wind direction and the equatorial grid is to keep track of the position of things in the sky. Both come up as grid lines.
After that, you can click to see deep-sky objects. These include galaxies, star clusters, and nebulae. Galaxies are huge collections of gas, dust, and billions of stars, and their solar systems are held together by gravity. Star clusters are large groups of stars held together by gravity. Nebulae are giant clouds of dust and gas in space.
The last option before choosing full-screen is night mode. Night mode makes your screen red. Red lights are essential for astronomers.
This virtual field trip was so informative. I hope you can learn something and explore for yourself!
Movies in a Foreign Language
Have you ever watched a movie in a language other than your own? I have but I don’t remember much about it. It was Amelie. I watched it years ago but have no idea who I was with or why we chose to watch it. Today I watched something I knew nothing about but was watching it merely for an assignment. I found myself not even realizing it wasn’t in English five minutes in and caught in the movie itself. It was On Body and Soul. Have you watched it? It took place in Hungary and was in Hungarian. The film was from 2017 and seems to take place present day.
I thought it was going to be a romantic comedy. It had parts of romance in it but not your typical kind. This was different. I loved the awkwardness the two main characters shared and that they fell in love. They were teased by the other characters, making them perfect for each other.
The setting took place primarily in a slaughterhouse. This was where the characters worked. The scenes in the film were shocking and not for a weak stomach. They show the animals getting skinned and butchered. I had to close my eyes during parts because it was raw! The rest of the film took place in the two main characters’ homes or their dream which they shared in a snowy forest.
The two main characters were very similar. Maria was a new hire to the slaughterhouse and therefore shy being new. As the film went on you could tell that she was lonely, never attempting to make friends, and paid a higher than usual attention to detail in checking the fat level of the animals, maybe a touch of Asperger’s. Endre is the manager and is disabled. He has a lame arm and is somewhat odd but very observant. He was drawn to Maria. He noticed her the second day she was there and noticed she was alone. He was drawn to her and she was a bit hesitant playing the conversation they had with salt and pepper shakers in her home alone later that night, over analyzing the situation.
These characters are similar to characters here in America. We have all types of people. The saying there’s a lid for every pot is fitting here. There was nothing out of the ordinary about the characters compared to Americans. They ate at work in a cafeteria and had typical food like soup. One thing unusual was Maria did not have a cell phone until later in the film, and Endre was shown watching an older-style tv. Their lives seemed much simpler. They seemed to form a relationship but once Endre put it on hold sleeping with another woman. Maria attempted to commit suicide but Endre called her and Maria bandaged herself up and they found their groove.
I think the characters both displayed some Asperger/Autistic characteristics. They were both a bit different from the other characters in the film but made for each other. Their social cues were a bit off and they had a hard time making friends but they were both excellent at their work.