Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
private art collection of Cardinal Bernardino Spada. Its most impressive aspect is
the guided tour of the Borromini Perspective, which leaves when there are enough
people gathered. This is a museum for those who don't like museums. The rooms,
which were built as a private home for Cardinal Girolamo Capo di Ferro in 1540,
are intriguing, with original frescoes and old uneven tile floors. The art here is lit-
erally plastered all over the walls, which makes it less assuming and somehow eas-
ier to enjoy than the showcase art at some of the more traditional museums. There
is a very cozy feel here, and there are informative handouts with explanations in
English.
The
Museo Barracco di Scultura Antica
(Corso Vittorio, 166;
%
06-68806848;
adults
€
2.60, seniors and students
€
1.60; Tues-Sun 9am-7pm)
is, unlike the
Galleria Spada, a museum for people who do like museums. It has recently been
restored and has a cold, almost institutional feel to it, though the exhibits of pre-
Roman art are impressive. There are lots of vases, reliefs, and relics, but it's noth-
ing compared to both the Capitoline and Vatican museums. Museo Barracco is
definitely a worthy museum, even though a much more interesting stop is the very
new
Crypta Balbi
(Via delle Botteghe Oscure, 31;
%
06-6780167; integrated
ticket
€
7 adults,
€
3.50 children),
which defines, in great detail, the layers of Rome
and how they represent the city's evolution from the 5th to the 10th centuries. This
museum is often empty, which is surprising because it is so well endowed with
exhibits like the tools and objects from everyday life in ancient Rome. Down below
the museum is the crypt and ruins of an old set of stores where grains were sold
and distributed. This is the newest addition to Rome's National Museum and is
still one of the city's best kept secrets.
The Ghetto
Between the Crypta Balbi and the Tiber River is what is known as the Ghetto,
which is still home to Europe's oldest Jewish community, which has lived in this
neighborhood for 2,000 years. The jewel of this area is the synagogue, which is
accessible through the
Museo d'Arte Ebraica
55
(Lungotevere Cenci;
%
06-
68400661;
€
6, includes admission to synagogue; Mon-Thurs 9am-4:30pm, until
6:30 during summer, Fri 9am-1:30pm, Sun 9am-noon).
This museum has displays
of some truly beautiful art—from crowns to Torah mantles—and it also tells the
tragic history of the persecution of Rome's Jewish citizens over the course of his-
tory. There are papal edicts that surely make the modern-day Church cringe, as
well as grim artifacts from concentration camps across Europe. Along the Via
Lungara (p. 65) is a plaque commemorating October 16, 1943, the day that
Rome's Jewish families were rounded up and deported from the Ghetto to con-
centration camps.
Behind the synagogue on the
Via Portico d'Ottavia
are the ruins of an ancient
piazza and the remnants of great temples that date back to Emperor Augustus in
the 1st century. You can walk behind the ruins through a small passage near the
end of the street, and wind your way toward the
Fontana delle Tartarughe
(Piazza Mattei). This was built in the 1580s for the Duke of Mattei in 1 night to
impress his fiancée (she lived in the large
palazzo,
which now houses the Center
for American Studies). Hers is the window now walled in, but one can easily
imagine her surprise when she woke to find the fountain built just for her.
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