Rome draws me back time and again. There is no way to learn what this city has to teach and to offer in just a few days as a tourist. Lifetimes can be spent here and it would still be impossible to uncover the myriad stories, hopes, dreams and anguish of those who over millennia have made this region their home. Every inch of the city is covered in blood, tears and prayers of those who have gone before us. It is The City that created Western history. The Greeks founded the ideas and set the tone for our artistic sensibilities, but it was the Romans who adopted and adapted those ideas and through conquest and trade established the framework many of the structures our Western governments, societies, and Christian-based religions live by. The stories that helped form these structures are marvelous as fiction, but are often highly flawed as actual accounts.
The idea of creating ‘fake news’ is not new; certainly Cato the Elder did so to gain support to start the Third Punic War and wipe out the trade competition from Carthage, and Julius Caesar did so a couple of centuries later in his description of the Gauls in order to build up his reputation as a leader. Roman propaganda was not solely used by its secular politicians, but also by its ecclesiastical ones; Rome was, after all, a theocracy for well over a thousand years. The Popes owned Rome and used it as their personal fiefdoms. While walking up the Spanish Steps to the Chiesa di Tri Monte with the grandiose Borgia Villa behind, it was difficult not to think of a comparison between Trump and Alexander VI. Trump might not be as astute as the Borgia, but he certainly wants to have D.C. and the American people serve his narcissism and greed. He uses his daughter and his sons in a manner not unlike the Italian family, and of course, both were/are masters of ‘fake news’. The Roman Empire collapsed, the Pope’s dominion over geographical space was reduced from large tracts of Europe to .17 square miles in Vatican City, and it is inevitable that the Trump Empire will crumble too; I just hope it doesn’t take what is good about the country with it.
The Romans provide an example here as well. They are resilient. They rise above power structures again and again. After spending most of my previous time in this city investigating the Ancient Romans, this time, I decided to wander among the city's vast Baroque structures. The Museo di Roma on Piazza Navona has an absolutely glorious staircase leading up to the permanent collection on the second floor. This small museum has select artifacts that display Roman history from its earliest days to WWII. The collection is interesting, but the building it is housed in is alone worth the visit. There is a great view of Piazza Navona from the window on the second floor, and from there it is easier to imagine how at one time the square was flooded to create a lake on which a boat race was held. The older Romans did this in the Coliseum, so there was a local precedent for such grand spectacles.
As Piazza Navona was the center of activity for a few centuries there are a number of outstanding Baroque buildings surrounding the square. The main one is the Chiesa di Sant’Agnese in Agone. It is built on the site where Domitian is supposed to have murdered, and thereby martyred, Agnes for her Christian faith. There were a number of architects involved in the project for Pope Innocent X, whose Pamphili family palazzo is adjacent to the church, the most notable of which was Boromini, who left after a disagreement with the heirs. The church was completed by Carlo Rinaldi, the son of the first architect, who as a young boy had worked on it with his father. Resilience includes patience and may take generations. Inside, the church offers a spectacular display of multicolored marble off-set by six inlets with large stone sculptures depicting various scenes pertinent to the message of the church, including one dedicated to Agnes’ sister who was also murdered for not denouncing her sibling. The main altar’s vibrant waves of white marble are carved into a scene depicting “The Holy Family” with baby St. John offering a scroll to baby Jesus. Off to the side of the main narthex is a chapel with the relic of the head of St. Agnes. It is incredibly small, & if one weren’t of the faithful might believe that this head is not actually that of an adolescent human girl. The church with the most relics in Rome, however, is the oldest basilica, Santa Maria Maggiore, which is said to house a splinter from Jesus' cradle. Rome is also home to the Sancta Scala, the 28 marble steps Jesus climbed to face his trial with Pontius Pilate. According to tradition, the steps were brought to Rome by St. Helena, Constantine’s mother. They are now covered with wood and pilgrims climb up on their knees to the Holy of Holies, the chamber at the top that was supposed to contain incredible treasures including an image of the Virgin Mother ‘that was not made by human hands’. Strong beliefs create powerful impressions, and the faithful daily flock to the stairs near San Giovanni in Laterano to pray their way upward .
A few steps away from Piazza Navona is the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica in Palazzo Barracco. This palace isn’t as ornate as that of the Pamphili, but the Barracco collection is impressive. While small, the artifacts from Ancient Egypt, include a few from Nefer’s mastaba tomb, ca. 2600BCE, also in the collection are a couple from Sumer and Ancient Cyprus followed by rooms devoted to the Ancient Greeks and Romans ending with two stone reliefs from the medieval period in Italy.
Many of the national museums are now housed in family palaces, though some like the Museo di Roma in Travestere are in former churches. This museum has a special photography exhibit at the moment highlighting works from Italo Insolvera and Vivian Maier. Maier’s work offers a glimpse into creating impressions. She plays with reflections. Insolvera’s displays the region’s people’s challenges, struggles and fortitude after WWII. Together the exhibit looks at individual spirit and collective strength.
The last museum I had time for was the Casa di Goethe, which also featured a photography exhibit from Kerstin Schomberg who visited the sites Goethe’s friend, Jakob Hackert, portrays in his landscapes. Rome was part of the Grand Tour and Goethe spent two years sharing the apartment on Via del Corso with three to four other artists and friends. At that time, Rome was known for its proximity to nature and a walk up into the hills would provide welcome peace from the hectic of the city environment. It was here that Goethe came upon the idea of looking for the Urpflanze, the original plant from which he believed all others must derive. The Roman Campagna was the idea blend of urban-rural living. The photographs provide a fascinating view of the changes over the past two and a half centuries. Some of the sites are amazingly not all that different, which gives testament to the inherent integrity of the region beyond propagandistic fake news and purposely created false impressions.
As I made my way back to the Residenza Adriana, a wonderful small b&b behind Castel Sant’Angelo, to pick up my luggage before taking the bus back to the airport, I walked along the Tiber thinking about the flows of time. The names and individual deeds of the millions on millions of people who have spent their life blood, hopes, and dreams in this city, have been swept to the sea, but like the Tiber, while no longer running wild, they continue to live in spirit emanating from the concrete cracks, cobble stones, and marble facades throughout this eternally powerful city creating impressions that are as real as they are unique.
