Visiting Castel Sant'Angelo in Rome, Italy
Hello Steemians,
Today I will share with you pictures of Castel Sant' Angelo (Castle of the Holy Angel). Castel Sant' Angelo was originally commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family (1). It is the same person who built a wall in Britain (Vallum Hadriani in Latin), to keep the Ancient Britons away (2). The castle was later used by the Popes as a fortress, and now functions as a museum.
I visited Castel Sant' Angelo in March 2010. I went there on a beautiful sunny day, one of those days you forget all your worries, and you're just happy you are alive.
It was on the same day that I visited the Vatican, so I walked down the road from St Peter's Basilica to the castle. As I was walking, I took a picture of the basilica behind me.
On arriving at the castle, I was greeted by a proper Roman soldier, sword and everything.
I got in and paid for my ticket at the ticket office. There was a beautiful statue of an Angel in the courtyard.
According to a legend, the Archangel Michael appeared at the top of the mausoleum, sheathing his sword, as a sign that the plague of 590 AD had ended. That's how the castle took its present name.
In 1536, Raffaello da Montelupo created a marble statue of Saint Michael holding his sword, which was put at the top of the castle. But in 1753, Montelupo's Angel was moved down to this courtyard, so that a new bronze statue of St Michael, created by Peter Anton von Verschaffelt, could be placed at the top of the castle.
I started climbing the stairs of the castle towards the Papal Apartments. These apartments would be the Pope's refuge, in case there was a siege of Rome.
As I was climbing up, I could enjoy views of Rome and the river Tiber through the openings.
The bridge you see below is the Ponte Sant' Angelo, once known as the Aelian Bridge or Pons Aelius, meaning the Bridge of Hadrian. It was again commissioned by Roman Emperor Hadrian, and was completed in 134 AD. It spans the river Tiber, from the old city center to Castel Sant' Angelo (3).
I reached the Papal apartments. They had beautiful paintings on the walls and ceiling,
Of course the castle is beautiful in its own right, but it has an extra advantage too; the magnificent views one enjoys from the top.
There is also a roof top cafe, where you can sit and have refreshments.
And if you're wondering what it looks like all lit up, here's the answer:
And that's the end of today's post. I hope you liked it, and that you will follow me to my next post.
Have a good day, and we'll speak again soon!
References:
1.Text from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castel_Sant%27Angelo.
2.Text from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadrian%27s_Wall.
3.Text from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Sant%27Angelo.
Rome is beautiful :)
yes it is firesteem.
Amazing photos ! thanks for sharing !
thank you rouketa. very kind of you.