PICTURES FROM MY ROMAN WEEKEND

I’ve been away for a couple of days, in Rome. The big city is not a familiar environment to me, since I live among hills and mountains, woods and a beautiful river. But having such an enriching, exciting place at 1-hour- drive distance becomes a wonderful occasion for unforgettable trips. I can’t do this – meaning leave family duties and escape to freedom – too frequently but any time I manage to it is an invigorating , motivating experience.

So, let’s sum up what I did : Shakespeare’s Molto Rumore per Nulla ( Much Ado about Nothing) at Rome Globe Theatre  (on the right) on Thursday night; on Friday,  at the National Library in the morning,  leafing through useful and interesting books/articles,  and being a tourist,  shopping and sightseeing,  in the afternoon; on Saturday,  visit to a stunning museum and … back home in the afternoon.

I’ve already written something about the show at Rome Globe Theatre (HERE). I wanted to add something about the Museo Nazionale Romano dedicated. It is one of the World’s most complete exhibitions of ancient art kept in the 19th century Palazzo Massimo alle Terme – formerly a Jesuit college – near Termini Station.

The great bronze statues of the “Pugile”(The Boxer) and of the “Principe ellenistico” (The Hellenistic Prince) particularly stand out.

On the ground floor that surrounds the courtyard the halls exhibit Greek originals found in Rome and examples of iconography and portraits that range from the Republican to the Imperial age, such as the famous statue of Augusto Pontefice ( Augustus Pontifex) .

The next floor offers the ancient Salone dei Capolavori del Museo delle Terme with the Discobolo Lancillotti, the splendid Fanciulla d’Anzio (Maiden from Anzio) and the sensual Ermafrodito dormiente (sleeping hermaphrodite).

On the second floor , the complex frescoes, stuccos and mosaics are also particularly worthy. The marvellous paintings of Villa di Livia and the suggestively restructured painted rooms of the Farnesina constitute an effective testimony of the decoration of the rich Roman domus.