Rome Art

In 1508, despite strong advice to the contrary, the powerful Pope Julius II commissioned Michelangelo Buonarroti to paint the ceiling of the newly restored Sistine Chapel in Rome. During the four extraordinary years that Michelangelo spent laboring over the ceiling, power politics and personal rivalries swirled around him. He battled ill health, financial and family difficulties, inadequate knowledge of the art of fresco, and the Pope's impatience - a history that is more compelling than most novels.

Hannibal is often considered the finest general the world has ever known. Setting out from Carthaginian-dominated Spain with a small army of select troops, he fought his way over the Pyrenees and crossed the Alps with elephants and a full baggage train. Descending into Italy, he destroyed the main Roman army at Lake Trasimeno and came close to conquering Rome itself.

What does the face of power look like? Who gets commemorated in art and why? And how do we react to statues of politicians we deplore? In this book - against a background of today’s “sculpture wars” - Mary Beard tells the story of how for more than two millennia portraits of the rich, powerful, and famous in the Western world have been shaped by the image of Roman emperors, especially the “Twelve Caesars”, from the ruthless Julius Caesar to the fly-torturing Domitian.

Written between A.D. 413 and 426, The City of God is one of the great cornerstones in the history of Christian thought, a book which is vital to the understanding of modern Western society. Augustine originally intended it to be an apology for Christianity against the accusation that the Church was responsible for the decline of the Roman Empire, which had occurred just three years earlier. Indeed, Augustine produced a great amount of evidence to prove that paganism was responsible for this event. However, by the time the work was finished, the book had taken on a larger theme.

When Pliny the Elder perished at Stabiae during the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79, he left behind an enormous compendium of knowledge, his 37-volume Natural History, and a teenaged nephew who revered him as a father. Grieving his loss, Pliny the Younger inherited the Elder's notebooks - filled with pearls of wisdom - and his legacy. At its heart, The Shadow of Vesuvius is a literary biography of the younger man, who would grow up to become a lawyer, senator, poet, collector of villas, and chronicler of the Roman Empire.

AD 69. The year of the four emperors. Three emperors have ruled in Rome this year and a fourth, Vespasian, has been named in the East. As the legions march toward civil war, Sebastos Pantera, the spy whose name means leopard, returns to Rome intent on bribery, blackmail and persuasion: whatever it takes to bring the commanders and their men to Vespasian's side. But in Rome, as he uses every skill he has ever learned of subterfuge, codes and camouflage, it becomes clear that one of those closest to him is a traitor who will let Rome fall to destroy him.

Power, tragedy and hubris are played out in this quartet, all of which are set in the febrile political atmosphere of ancient Rome. Performed by an incredible array of the 20th century’s greatest actors, Marlowe alumni including Ian McKellen, Prunella Scales, Patrick Wymark and William Devlin can be heard in these recordings.

From the ashes of World War II, Rome was reborn as the epicenter of film, fashion, creative energy, tabloid media, and bold-faced libertinism that made "Italian" a global synonym for taste, style, and flair. A confluence of cultural contributions created a bright, burning moment in history: it was the heyday of fashion icons such as Pucci and Brioni. Rome's huge movie studio, Cinecitta, attracted a dizzying array of stars, like Charlton Heston, Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, Ava Gardner, and Frank Sinatra.

In recent decades, Americans in Rome have revived an ancient Christian custom: the daily pilgrimage to dozens of Rome's most striking churches during Lent and Easter Week. Along this historical and spiritual pathway, pilgrims encounter hidden artistic wonders and treasured Christian commentaries while also confronting the great mysteries of the Christian faith through a program of biblical and early Christian readings. The itinerary of the Roman station church pilgrimage offers Christians an opportunity to reflect on their religion and ponder the quality of their discipleship.

A Storytellers' reworking of Caesar's Commentaries as a new version. This follows the original line-by-line to create a modern voice that is faithful to Caesar's exacting text.

Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel ceiling is one of the most iconic masterpieces of the Renaissance. Here, in Raphael, Painter in Rome, Storey tells of its creation as never before: through the eyes of Michelangelo's fiercest rival - the young, beautiful, brilliant painter of perfection, Raphael. Orphaned at age 11, Raphael is determined to keep the deathbed promise he made to his father: become the greatest artist in history. But to be the best, he must beat the best, the legendary sculptor of the David, Michelangelo Buonarroti.

Born to one of Verona's leading families, Catullus spent most of his young adulthood in Rome, mingling with the likes of Caesar and Cicero and chronicling his life through his poetry. Famed for his lyrical and subversive voice, his poems about his friends were jocular, often obscenely funny, while those who crossed him found themselves skewered in raunchy verse, sudden objects of hilarity and ridicule. These bawdy poems were disseminated widely throughout Rome.

Emilie Kip Baker was a woman ahead of her time. Born in San Francisco in 1857, she grew up in a wealthy family and received a private education, which was uncommon for women then. Baker was a natural adventurer and a writer from a young age. She embarked on her first solo trip at the age of 20, traveling across the United States by train and writing about her experiences for various publications.

The audioguide tells the story, describes the architecture and reports interesting facts about the triumphal arch of Constantine, in Rome, between the Colosseum and the Palatine, and was made by the founder of Constantinople. The three-hole arc was built in the years 312-315 to celebrate Constantine's victory over Massenzio, in the battle fought at Milvio bridge.

The audioguide tells the story, describes the architecture and reports interesting facts about the triumphal arch of Constantine, in Rome, between the Colosseum and the Palatine, and was made by the founder of Constantinople. The three-hole arc was built in the years 312-315 to celebrate Constantine's victory over Massenzio, in the battle fought at Milvio bridge.

The audioguide tells the story, describes architecture and reports interesting facts about the mausoleum of Santa Costanza, the daughter of the founder of Constantinople, which is one of the main examples of late-ancient architecture among Roman monuments. At the base of the Mausoleum's architecture, there are exceptional Roman models such as the Pantheon, but its structure is innovative with its concentric circular spaces.

The audioguide tells the story, describes architecture and reports interesting facts about the mausoleum of Santa Costanza, the daughter of the founder of Constantinople, which is one of the main examples of late-ancient architecture among Roman monuments. At the base of the Mausoleum's architecture, there are exceptional Roman models such as the Pantheon, but its structure is innovative with its concentric circular spaces.

The audioguide tells the story, describes architecture and reports interesting facts about the largest Roman church dedicated to the Mother of God and founded between 432 and 440. In front of the Sistine Chapel is the tomb of Bernini. In the Borghese Chapel, there are the funerary monuments of the popes Paolo V and Clement VIII. At the center of the chapel stands the icon of the "Salus Populi Romani" attributed to San Luca's hand brought from Byzantium.

The audioguide tells the story, describes architecture and reports interesting facts about the largest Roman church dedicated to the Mother of God and founded between 432 and 440. In front of the Sistine Chapel is the tomb of Bernini. In the Borghese Chapel, there are the funerary monuments of the popes Paolo V and Clement VIII. At the center of the chapel stands the icon of the "Salus Populi Romani" attributed to San Luca's hand brought from Byzantium.

The audioguide tells the story, describes architecture and reports interesting facts about the basilica of Santa Maria in Domnica, located in Rome, on the summit of Monte Celio. Particular attention is paid to the decoration of the central apse. They lively colors are striking, especially since many of the mosaics, of the apse, date back to the 9th century and represent work from the Byzantine school.