We emerged on this bright Friday morning with great expectations for the day ahead. After a brief overview of the plan for the day we trekked to Palazzo Barberini to hear an introduction to the Barberini family by Bennett, Daniel, Sydney, and Emilio. However, on the way to the Palazzo, we made an unexpected detour to visit Trevi Fountain!
Legend has it that one should toss three coins over the left shoulder to ensure a return to the Eternal City, two coins in order to secure a divorce, and one coin to get married. Needless to say, the majority of the group rummaged around for three coins and—after posing for a group picture—we tossed an avalanche of coinage into the fountain. It’s estimated that every day 3,000 euro litters the bottom of the fountain. However, each night the change is collected and donated to provide for the needy.
At Palazzo Barberini we heard about the influential Barberini family that rose to power in the 17th century. The family began in Florence, making their fortune from the trade of cloth. As the family amassed wealth, they invested in property and public works. Through shrewd maneuvering the Barberini were eventually able to propel one of their own to the papacy—Maffeo Barberini, who became Pope Urban VIII (1623-1644). Pope Urban VIII was an interesting character. He regarded himself as a poet, and deliberately tweaked his family’s public image to reflect his own ideals. For example, the Barberini symbol was originally a horsefly, which was not regarded very positively. Pope Urban VIII transformed the family crest to include bees, the laurel, and the image of the sun in order to create links with the Catholic Church. He also practiced nepotism in an unprecedented manner—not only did he act as a patron towards four members of his family, he also heaped great praises on his nephews to an extent that could be considered comical.
The contemporary space that the Barberini family left behind is the Barberini palace, which is now a museum, the Galleria Nazionale de Arte Antica. The gallery contains artwork by Caravaggio, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Perugino, Nicolas Poussin, Raphael, and many others.
After our tour of the Barberini palace we walked towards the Pantheon and indulged in coffee from one of the oldest cafes in Rome, the Taza d’ Oro. As we crowded into the quaint café lined with antique mirrors, the sight of twenty-five steaming cups of espresso, macchiato, and cappuccino provided instant rejuvenation. The hot and strong coffee was enjoyed by all.
Bennett was the next person to present on the topic of Galileo. Galileo was a genius, but he was persecuted by the Catholic Church for advocating the Copernican theory that the Earth revolves around the sun. The Church had traditionally taught that the Earth was the center of the universe—Galileo’s support of the Copernican theory posed a potential threat to the mandate of the church, and could possibly open up space for contention and criticism. In 1633 Galileo was brought before the Roman Inquisition. He agreed to plead guilty to heresy in order to obtain a lighter sentence. After his guilt was acknowledged, he retired to a villa near Florence where he lived out the rest of his days in peace.
Bennett’s presentation was marred by the appearance of the pigeon-feeding-woman. According to Lisa, this woman rides her bike around Rome with a large bag of birdseed which she distributes in order to ensure the survival of Rome’s bird population. The pigeons follow her on her bike around the city in a fluttering black cloud of stench, potential disease, and general disorder.
Following the conclusion of the day’s activities a group of us visited the Cartoleria near the Pantheon, a shop specializing in leather-bound journals and writing utensils that recently celebrated its one hundred year anniversary. We were motivated to visit the shop by Lisa’s coverage in her blog. The shop was absolutely beautiful.
Later that afternoon Nestor, Lisa’s Argentinean street vendor came to the Campo de Fiori in order to market his designed coin necklaces to a group of interested Honors students. However, Nestor only has a license for street vending in Trastevere. When he set up his cardboard display, a nearby business called the local police. After the police showed up, Lisa was able to talk them out of imposing a fine on Nestor for lacking the correct permit. Instead, Nestor moved his jewelry to the Rome Center hallway and we continued to peruse his collection of jewelry and make purchases.
For the rest of the night we worked on our respective projects in preparation for the following week. This concluded the day!
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