Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

Our last Wednesday in Rome was an eventful one which started at the Portone in Piazza del Biscione sharply at nine o'clock in the morning.  Tuesday night had been a late one as students had been up late preparing for their Islam and Italian Cities presentations, so this morning we were all a little bit tired as we headed out for our Art History class.

After a brief preview of the Chigi family, the group headed out to the church of Santa Maria della Pace where Sarah presented.  Originally, the goal was to have a presentation on the Chigi Chapel (Santa Maria del Poplo) which was designed by Raphael for Agostino Chigi in the 16th century and completed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini nearly a century after Raphael's death.  Unfortunately, the Chigi Chapel was closed for renovations (a not terribly uncommon occurrence at sites of historical significance in Rome).  Fortunately, we knew this ahead of time and Sarah had time to work around this closure.

Santa Maria della Pace is also an interesting and historic church closely related to the Chigi family.  It was originally built in 1482 by Pope Sixtus IV Della Rovere and was subsequently renovated by Pope Alexander VII  (aka "Fabio Chigi") in the mid-17th century.  Nestled in its own beautiful little corner near Piazza Navona, Santa Maria della Pace is an architectural gem and historically relevant treasure that is often overlooked.

After our visit at Santa Maria della Pace, the group took the short walk over to the Piazza Pasquino where Sydney gave her presentation on "talking statues."

Part of an important historical tradition in Rome, talking statues have been used throughout the centuries to anonymously display political or social messages.  These messages were traditionally painted on statues...thus, they were "talking" because they were the source of gossip.  One of the most famous of such statues, Pasquino, was originally from the 3rd century BC but was unearthed centuries later and re-erected in celebration of a holy day in 1501.  Shortly thereafter, the statue became vandalized and satirical attacks against the papacy and other figures of power in Rome were posted there.  This became a tradition and Pasquino remains one of the most important talking statues in Rome (although now, Romans prefer to post their messages on a board next to the original statue so as to avoid damaging the important monument).

Immediately after presentations, the group rushed over to the Rome Center 1st Floor Conference Room to meet Professor Kasaba and give final presentations for Islam and Italian Cities.

 I.  Ultramarine Blue in Art - David, Zinnia, Sarah, Melissa, Kate
II.  Cross Mediterranean Cuisine - Shurui, Brandon, Daniel, Roman, Christine
III.  Coffee in the Mediterranean - Kristin, Erik, Bryan, Katie, Mauna
IV.  Islam and Medicine - Bennett, Molly, Yuting, Sydney, Maggie
V.  Murano Glass - Catherine, Carmen, Rebecca, Emily, Emilio

These presentations began a little after 10am and went late until about 1:30pm.  After we all grabbed a quick lunch.  Emilio, Roman, and I went and had some good ole American breakfast (for lunch) and Café del Biscione.

After a relatively short break, we were back in action.  We met at the Portone at 3pm for our Pamphili Art History presentation series.

First, we heard from the whole Pamphili group (Bryan, Molly, and Rebecca) in the Piazza Navona for a brief introduction to this influential Roman family.  Notably, we heard about Pope Innocent X and his very interesting relationship with Olimpia Maidalchini (his brother's ex-wife) who exercised an inordinate amount of control over him.

We then heard individual presentations.  First, Rebecca talked about the Pamphili in Piazza Navona and specifically the Pamphilli Palace, the work of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, and the Church of Sant'Agnese in Agone.

Next, we heard from Brian about Bernini's Four Rivers Fountain in Piazza Navona and its interesting historical  interpretation of Christianity and the Church amongst different parts of the world.  We also had to move after a very interesting interruption by some break dancers who decided to blast their music right next to Bryan.

Finally, we heard from Kate on obelisks in Rome and their unique historical role.  Unusual to traditional Roman architecture, obelisks were imitated and used by Romans to add an interesting and foreign artistic element.  In particular, we visited Bernini's Elelphant Obelisk in front of the Church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva.

After, we went out for our last gelato with Prof. Schultz near the Pantheon.

Our second to last night in Rome, we also created our own art in an imitation of the Last Supper in the guys' apartment.

We also packed up and hit the gift shops and made sure to buy post cards for those last minute send offs to family members!  Yikes, we only have one full day left in Rome!