Thursday, August 26, 2021

Galleria Spada

where: Piazza Capo di Ferro, 13
getting there: bus 64, stop Vittorio Emanuele/Navona
open: 8:30-19:30, closed Tuesdays, Christmas Day, New Years Day, May 1st
cost:€5
information: tickets are available from the Palazzo Spada or online and include the Perspective Gallery by Borromini

One of my favourite art galleries to visit is the Galleria Spada. 
The walls are crowded with paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries and they seem to hang from every available surface.
This fantastic art collection once belonged to Cardinals Bernardino and Fabrizio Spada and is now a small state run gallery in the Palazzo Spada, near the Piazza Farnese.

The gallery is situated on the first floor of the palazzo and the paintings are displayed in four rooms. Handy display cards give information on the art, sculptures and artists in each room.
Some of the works in the gallery are two paintings by Artemisia Gentileschi, Santa Cecilia, and the Madonna Nursing (only a handful of her work can be seen in Rome), il Baciccio's working of the famous ceiling in il Gesù canvas the Triumph of the Name of Jesus, and the Death of Dido by Guercino.
In the palace courtyard is Francesco Borromini's Perspective Gallery created in 1652.
Cardinal Spada commissioned Borromini to modify the palace in the Baroque style and the gallery in the private courtyard is an amazing optical illusion of columns which seem to be disappear far into the wall but are only in fact are nine metres deep.

Borromini's Perspective




Artemisia Gentileschi & Orazio Gentileschi

Guercino



Romanelli

Artists in Galleria Spada
Cerrini
Sebastiano Conca
Sofonisba Anguissola
Peter Paul Rubens
Andrea del Sarto




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Helpful Hints

Getting Around

I found walking Rome was the best way to see everything.

The metro, trams and buses are also an easy and cheap option.

Buses and the metro can get crowded. Tickets must be bought before boarding and validated.

Beware of pickpockets.

Buses 40 (express) and 64 start at Termini and end near Saint Peter's, traveling past places of interest, returning the same way.


Some stops along the 64 route are:

Repubblica

Piazza Venezia

Via Nazionale

Corso Vittorio Emanuele II


Bus 75 takes you past the Colosseum to Trastevere

Bus 910 takes you to Villa Borghese


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These are a few of my favourite books about Rome

The Cardinal's Hat by Mary Hollingsworth
This book tells the story of one of the sons of Lucrezia Borgia who became a cardinal during the 16th century.

The Tigress of Forli by Elizabeth Lev
I love this book telling the story of Caterina Sforza who was fighting against the Borgia pope to retain the rights of her land and her freedom.

The Popes by John Julius Norwich
A detailed but easy and enjoyable book to read about the history of the papacy and the popes.

The Pope's Daughter by Caroline P Murphy
This book describes in beautiful detail, the life and times of Pope Julius II daughter, Felice della Rovere.

The Families Who Made Rome by Anthony Majanlahti
I love this Book! It explains the families who made Rome what it is as we see it today and also looks at their triumphs, scandals and failures.

Rome by Robert Hughes
This book explains Rome from its beginning and expands on the Renaissance and Baroque until present times.

The Lost Painting by Jonathan Harr
Another of my favourite reads about a lost Caravaggio painting and the search for its provenance.





other sites I trust for information on Rome are:
Rome Art Lover
Churches of Rome wiki