The Vatican Splendors

The United States is hosting The Vatican Splendors: A Journey Through Faith and Art, which is a religious and historical display, containing objects thousands of years old. This exhibit is touring the United States, stopping in only three cities: St. Louis, Missouri; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, before returning home to the Vatican. Penn Bullock writes in the , "next year marks the 500th anniversary of Michelangelo's ascent to the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, where he painted the world's most celebrated fresco.It's also the anniversary of the Catholic Church's Swiss Guard, the Vatican museums, and St. Peter's Basilica. To commemorate the occasion of its total institutional domination of Europe's art and culture, the Vatican will display many of its relics and valuables in a traveling exhibition."
Vatican Splendors
The Vatican Splendors contain armor, art from master artists, sculptures, relics of the saints, and papal belongings to name a few. As explained on their website, the Vatican Splendors allows one to experience two thousand years of Vatican art and history through two hundred featured items. The exhibit is divided into ten galleries, taking viewers on a visual and auditory journey "through the ages of artistic expression and religious iconography." These galleries consist of Early Christian Dialogue Between Faith and Art; The rise of Christian Rome; The Early Renaissance; Michelangelo; The Renaissance Basilica; Art in the Service of Faith; The Art of the Liturgy; Dialogue with the World; The successors of Peter—Papal Portraiture; and Art and the Contemporary Papacy. The Vatican Splendors' website recognizes this exhibit as "one of the largest collections to ever tour North America." Many of these artifacts were donated by the Vatican Museums and have never been viewed by the public in or outside the Vatican.
Viewers traverse the Vatican Splendors on a self-guided tour beginning with an introductory video before entering the first gallery, which holds some historical pieces from Saint Peter's tomb. Moving onwards, viewers will encounter many historical artifacts including paintings from the masters, and the tools that they actually used during their life. In the Miami New Times, Bullock describes the display as follows. "hree institutions that will be graced with the church's 700-year-old Giotto paintings and Gian Lorenzo Bernini baroque sculptures. The only thing better than this collection would be a tour of the Vatican vaults. Among the 200-plus priceless artifacts -- many never exhibited before -- are papal jewels; bone fragments belonging to Saint Peter and Saint Paul; personal effects of Pope John Paul II; and swords, armor, and uniforms of the papal Swiss Guard. Most stunningly, however, is the inclusion of the compass and tools Michelangelo used at the Sistine Chapel." He received his wish. Upon completion, the intricate masterpiece possessed over three hundred figures and nine stories from the Book of Genesis at its center. Complimenting this is Guercino's 1622 Portrait of Christ with Crown of Thorns, a painting that has never been shown outside or inside the Vatican. Amidst these paintings are numerous sculptures highlighted by a life size replica of the Pietà, also completed by Michelangelo at age twenty-four. Moreover, the exhibit displays Michelangelo's original architectural drawings, journal entries, and sketches.
Papal history
Further into the exhibit viewers see the personal belongings of popes, including Pope John Paul II's chalice and patten. Upon nearing this presentation, viewers can stand close enough to see his thumb print on the artifacts. Along with these are John Paul II's staff, which he was often seen on television with, and Benedict XVI's fisherman's ring, Furthermore, several of the artifacts arranged in the Vatican Splendors would not be shown in Rome. According to Peter Radestsky, "'Even if you go to Rome, you won't see some of these things. They're just not displayed."<ref name=McCartney /> This statement is reiterated in Kaleem's article. "'There are many objects that have not been on tour before,' says Mark Greenberg, president of Evergreen Exhibitions, a San Antonio company that also put together the prior Vatian exhibit in Fort Lauderdale. 'If you had a chance to go to Rome, you would not see the reliquary with the bones of Sts. Peter and Paul because it is kept in a private chapel in the College of St. Urban,' he says. 'The statues of Sts. Peter, Paul, John and Andrew are new, as is the Guercino painting.'"<ref name=Kaleem />
Return to Rome
Although this exhibit has been popular it will be short-lived due to the Italian law which requires, "that historic art pieces may not leave the state for more than 12 months at a time."<ref nameKaleem /> This knowledge may have led to the positive reception the exhibition received in the United States. Many people came to view the Vatican Splendors and in Pittsburgh the exhibit broke attendance records at the Senator John Heinz History Center.<ref nameKaleem /> The Vatican Splendors currently resides in Fort Lauderdale, Florida before it departs back to Rome, April 24, 2011.

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