Vatican Museums - 4 Things to Know Before Visiting

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About Vatican Museums

With 54 galleries, this is one of the largest and most visited museums in the world. The museum displays works from the humongous collection acquired by the Catholic Church over multiple centuries. The collection includes the most renowned Roman sculptures and most important masterpieces of Renaissance art. The museum contains about 70,000 art pieces. The museum was founded in the 16th century by Pope Julius II.

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Attractions Near Vatican Museums

Apostolic Palace

Apostolic Palace

0.39km from Vatican Museums

A majestic 135-acre building complex in a garden setting in the city of Castel Gandolfo, Italy. It consists of a 17th-century villa, an observatory, and a farmhouse with 75 acres of farmland. It has been a museum since October 2016. It served for centuries as a summer residence and vacation retreat for the pope, the leader of the Catholic Church, and is afforded extraterritorial status as one of the properties of the Holy See. It overlooks Lake Albano.

Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel

0.4km from Vatican Museums

The Sistine Chapel in Rome is named for Sixtus IV della Rovere, who was Pope from 1471 to 1484. The interior walls of the chapel are covered in exquisite frescoes painted by some of the greatest Italian artists in history, including Perugino, Botticelli, Ghirlandaio, Rosselli, and of course Michelangelo, who painted the stunning frescoes which adorn the ceiling. The fame of the Sistine Chapel lies mainly in the frescos that decorate the interior, most particularly the Sistine Chapel ceiling an

Gardens of Vatican City

Gardens of Vatican City

0.42km from Vatican Museums

With the size of about 57 acres, the Gardens of Vatican City covers more than half og country. The garden is protected by stone walls expect on its east side. Up untill 2014, the gardens was a private area, and since then it was opened to the public by Pope Francis. The pope is the owner of the gardens.

Saint Peter's tomb

Saint Peter's tomb

0.43km from Vatican Museums

Located under St. Peter's Basilica, it was built to memorialize the location of Saint Peter's grave. The complex consists of several graves, and it is was partially torn down during the reign of Constantine I in about AD 330 to provide the foundation for the first St. Peter's Basilica.

St. Peter's Basilica

St. Peter's Basilica

0.48km from Vatican Museums

St. Peter's Basilica is the most renowned work of Renaissance architecture. The basilica is the burial site of the St. Peter the chief amongst Jesus's apostles and is situated in the Vatican City, the papal enclave within the city of Rome.

Vatican Necropolis

Vatican Necropolis

0.53km from Vatican Museums

The suspected grave of Apostle Peter is located in the Vatican Necropolis. The Necropolis lies nder the Vatican City, 5-12 meters below Saint Peter's Basilica, and it was originally a burial ground outside of the the city walls of Rome. Guided tours can be arranged here in advance, if you contact the office of the Vatican sponsored archaeological excavations(scavi).

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Vatican City

Vatican City

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It is the smallest country in the world, and the center of Roman Catholic Church.

Location of Vatican Museums

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For more information about Vatican Museums, visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatican_Museums