IN ROME |
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The Palatine Museum
The Palatine Museum is also known as the Museo Palatino or the
Palatine Antiquarium. It's on the south side of the Palatine
Hill. The Palatine Hill is directly above the Roman Forum.
Info: Subway Colosseo. Open daily. The entry ticket to the Palatine Hill
includes the Museum. Guided tours in English are available in the summer. No
English-language labels on the exhibits. No guidebook.
What to see: First floor:
Artifacts and decorations from buildings of the Imperial period, (Augustus to the 4th c CE.) Terracotta panels, statues,
and decorations from
Nero's palace before the great fire of 64 CE. High quality marble
statues and portrait busts from the Imperial period.
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The Palatine Museum is in a plain,
unexceptional building, but the views from the Palatine Hill are
spectacular. |
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Capitoline Museums (Musei Capitolini)
The Capitoline Museums are on the Campidoglio
above the Roman Forum. They are very easy to find: follow the crowds
ascending the stairs from the Forum or from Michelangelo's stairs.
Good visitor guidebooks in
English.
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 Capitoline
Museums, Rome.
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National Museum of Rome, Palazzo Massimo alle Terme
Information: Subway Termini. The entrance to the museum is on Largo di Villa Peretti, about 100 yards from Termini
train station. The Museum is closed on Mondays.
Not all rooms are open all the time. Tel 06-3996-7700 to find out which
are open.
The Museum displays the Empress Livia's beautiful frescoes of her garden at her
Villa outside Rome.
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Bust of Antonia the Younger,
daughter of Anthony and Cleopatra and mother of Emperor Nero. Palazzo
Massimo.
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Ara Pacis
Augustae (Altar of the Augustan Peace)
Museo dell'Ara Pacis
Address: Lungotevere in Augusta--00186 Roma. Tel: +39
060608.
Don't pass up this excellent new Web site
from Reed College:
Ara Pacis
Website
Reconstructed in 1938 from hundreds of fragments, the Ara Pacis is
the most famous example of sculptured monuments from the age of Rome's
first Emperor, Augustus. The altar has been placed inside a modern building by
the New York architect Richard Meier.
Information: Located on the Tiber River at Lungotevere
in Augusta. From the Spanish Steps, walk about 700 yards toward
the Tiber.
Or from the Argentina tram stop for tram 8, take the 628 bus (marked to
MARESCIALLO GIARDINO) for 6 stops to the LGT AUGUSTA/ARA PACIS bus stop.
Closed Mondays.
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Entrance to the Ara Pacis Museum. The Tiber
River is to the left.
The Ara Pacis monument was originally painted in bright colors.
Photo courtesy Ara Pacis Augustae web site.
 Goddess
Roma, sitting on trove of weapons. Fragments of the original
marble are placed within the contemporary drawing. |
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NAPLES |
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National Archeology Museum
One of Italy's premier archeological collections. If you can't get to Naples, at least cruise the
museum's Web site. The photographs are especially well-done, and there's a 3-D tour. |
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Naples Archeology Museum. |
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ELSEWHERE IN EUROPE: |
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AMSTERDAM |
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Allard Pierson Museum
(the Archeological Museum of the
University of Amsterdam)
Address:
Oude Turfmarkt 127
1012 GC Amsterdam, Netherlands
020 5252556
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BERLIN |
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Altes Museum (Staatliche Museen zu Berlin)
Address:
Am Lustgarten
10178 Berlin, Germany
030 266424242
Do not miss. One of the world's best collections of
classical archeology.
The Museums have artworks dating from Eqyptian,
Greek, Etruscan, and Roman antiquity. The artifacts are in three museums, all within a
stone's throw of each other: the Altes Museum, the Neues Museum,
and the Pergamon Museum. |
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COLOGNE
The Roman-German Museum is located right next to the Cologne
Cathedral. In a stunning building flooded with light, it houses a
collection of Roman artifacts from the Cologne area. It is a model for
explaining how the Romans lived.
Bring your German dictionary. |
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Cologne: the Roman-German Museum |
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MUNICH |
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Glyptothek
The Glyptothek houses Greek and Roman statuary, portals, etc.
Address: Königsplatz 3
80333 Munich, Germany
089 28808380
and across the street is :
Antikensammlungen
(State
Collection of Antiquities, except Eqypt)
The Antikensammlungen houses smaller artifacts, including vases, coins, and jewelry from Etruscan and Classical antiquity.
Address: Konigsplatz, 80333 Munchen
(0) 89/599 888 30
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 Glyptothek,
Munich
 Antikensammlungen,
Munich |
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LONDON |
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The British Museum |
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The BM's collections, like those of the state museums in Berlin
and the Louvre, are world class. |
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 British
Museum interior. Photo BM Web site. |
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TRIER, GERMANY |
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Rhineland State Museum (Rheinisches Landesmuseum Trier, RLM)
An interesting collection, since the Romans made Trier a major outpost north
of the Alps. At one point, Trier was an imperial capital.
Take a German dictionary.
The Museum's Web site has a wonderful short video showing the brilliant colors the Romans would have painted their statuary and other artifacts.
It will change your view of the colors of the classical world--not all was shiny white marble
or terracotta. Life and
Love in Ancient Rome, a music video |
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 Rhineland
State Museum, Trier, Germany (Rheinisches Landesmuseum) |
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IN THE US: |
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LOS ANGELES
The
Getty Villa
Address: 17985 Pacific Coast Highway
Pacific Palisades, CA 90272
(Los Angeles)
The Getty Villa has a wealth of Etruscan,
Roman, and Greek
treasures, and knowledgeable guides. Its treasures are displayed in a truly splendid facility--a
recreated Roman villa.
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 The
Getty Villa, Los Angeles, CA |
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NEW YORK
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Address: 1000 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York
The other important Classical collection in the U.S.
The Met has recently refurbished its Classical galleries. Excellent tour
guides and guidebooks in many languages.
Metropolitan Museum of Art
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BOSTON
The Museum of Fine Arts
The
Museum of
Fine Arts
Address: 100 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02116-6511
(617) 369-6500
Nice, well labelled, and not heavily
visited classical collections.
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 Boston
Museum of Fine Arts--good lunch spot! |
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CHICAGO
The Art Institute of Chicago
The Art Institute of
Chicago
Address:
111 South Michigan Avenue
Chicago, Il 60603-6404
The Art Institute, one of the great museums of the U.S., has a
small but interesting collection of Roman classical objects. Good restaurant, modestly priced cafeteria. |
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 Visitors
at The Art Institute of Chicago. |
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SEATTLE
The Seattle Art Museum (SAM)
Seattle Art
Museum
Address: 1300 First Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101-2003
206.654.3100
Tiny collection but a great restaurant, open to midnight Thursdays and Fridays. |
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 Dacian,
or barbarian, portrait bust. Marble. Roman. 1st c. Seattle Art
Museum |
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You may contact me, Nancy Padgett, at
NJPadgett@gmail.com |
