Church Of St. Peter In Chains

We finished the Forum well before our 4:55 timed ticket to the Coliseum, so, after a rest and a drink, we thought we might hike back up a bit of the Esquiline Hill to visit the church of St. Peter in Chains, another old favorite...but with an interesting surprise.

Another very old and historic church; one of the
earliest paleo-Christian churches [click to enlarge]

Standard basilica design

Near the entrance/exit, a fresco said to have been
painted during the 1476 plague (the big one was
in 1348)

Nave view; beautiful Doric columns

Depiction of Peter, in chains, visited by an angel; in
Jerusalem, not Rome; actually, there is no Biblical
nor other credible evidence that Peter ever was
in Rome

Tomb of Pope Julius II; sculpture by Michaelangelo
and assistants

Among others, Rachel, Rachel

And Moses, one of Michaelangelo's biggest
hits; the horny Moses...

As if a Michaelangelo sculpture on that scale were not enough,
here is the relic, the actual chains used to confine Peter; looks
like a grade #30 from Home Depot

Plunk a euro into the Divine Illumination Machine (DIM) and
the lights come on for better viewing and photography

Frescoed half dome above the altar 

Bare adjacent ceiling: "this space available," "your
message here"

So I am photographing the very old organ when
suddenly it begins playing...and I hear Vicki
excitedly calling to me...

She has found us something entirely new and 
different and interesting, a Divine Organismic Machine
...plunk down a euro and you get an historic musical
experience to go with all the rest...

Roman Forum

The next day was one of our biggest yet...the Forum, St. Peter in Chains, then the Coliseum (included on the Forum ticket). We'd not seen the Forum since 2011, and much was closed then. 

Our (Rickie Stevie audio-) tour began near the Coliseum 

And the Arch of Constantine

At the Arch of Titus, mostly commemorating his victory over
the Jews

Where much of our tour went

Remaining bit of the Basilica of Maxentius, a huge structure

The Forum is mostly a dry barren place, especially unpleasant in
the hot summer...but the blooming wisteria help

Doors to the Temple of Romulus (a late Emperor's
son); they and their hinges are original and still
work

Remains of the Temple of Tony and Tina (Antoninus Pius and
wife Faustina); 2nd century CE

Antoninus?

Temple of the Vestal Virgins

Garden and ponds of the Vestal Virgins' domicile; with statues
of some of them (the tradition of the Vestal Virgins, like most
other things in ancient Rome, went on for many centuries)

Traditional site where Julius Caesar's body was cremated; used

to be covered in flowers; now coins

There is excellent signage (and in English too)
throughout the Forum; I especially appreciated the 
credit given the archaeologists...

As close as we could get to the Curia, the reconstruction
of a late Empire version of the Roman Senate building

Arch of Septimius Severus

Temple of Saturn

No lack of spare parts

Column of Phocas; emperor in Constantinople
(Rome was no longer the capital) in early 7th
century CE; the last monument to be erected in
the Forum in classical times; in the foreground,
a fig tree, an olive tree, and a grape vine; according
to Pliny the Elder, three trees grew in the Roman
Forum, ficus, olea, and vitis...symbolizing the
primacy of agriculture in Roman culture 

Remains of the Temple of Castor and Pollux, 
said to be the most-photographed scene in the
Forum

Portico of the Harmonious Gods...dating from the 1st century
BCE, reconstructed in the 19th; it's been a while since I read
Homer or Hesiod or Virgil, but I never got the impression the
Olympian gods were all that harmonious...

Looking back where we've been...end of tour

Interim Update #1,265

Our three weeks in Rome were up, and it was time to move on to Florence. The Train of Great Velocity sped us there in something less than two hours, and our new home, a small apartment called the Tosca Suite, was only a couple blocks from the SM Novella station. So we are settled here, we have already located the Carrefour, the Conad, and other necessities, and I am ready to resume blogging. Except we want to visit the many sights here...

Passing under beautiful Orvieto at Great Velocity

Our street, Via della Scala

Return To SM Maggiore

On a day off, we made good on my pledge to return to nearby Mary Maggie for some better pix. Alas, the light was no better and the mosaics just as far away, but here's a sampling anyway.

Along the way, an exposed part of the Aurelian wall; note the
recycling

Ditto

Now in the great ancient 5th century church again, looking at the
totally mosaic'd triumphal arch

And the half dome

Crowning the Queen of Heaven

Lower right of the arch: Bethlehem

Lower left: Jerusalem

And now a few of the mosaics over the nave: battle scenes, mostly;
don't ask me...

Lots of battles...I must have been looking at the Old Testament
side, where the light was better...

Cat Sanctuary

Our walk back from Trastavere to the bus stop took us also to the cat sanctuary at Torre Argentina. I am posting a few pix for family members who are, have been, or will be, feline fanciers.