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CHIARAMONTI MUSEUM PIO-CLEMENTINO MUSEUM
PIO-CLEMENTINO MUSEUM
Housed within the smaller Belvedere Palace of Innocent
VIII (1484-1492), the marble halls of Museo Pio-Clementino
exhibit one of the world’s most comprehensive collections
of Classical Greek and Roman statues. A few examples
are the Roman copy in marble of Apollo, originally cast in
bronze in the 4th century BC, and a pontifical collection of
sculptures housed in the crimson-hued Cortile delle Statue
(today it’s called the Octagonal Court).
THE GALLERY OF MAPS
One of the most popular exhibits in the Museums,
the Gallery of Maps (Galleria delle Carte Geografiche)
measures a whopping 394 feet and is plastered end-to-end
with more than 40 full-size geographical paintings by the
16th-century Dominican monk and cosmographer, Ignazio
Danti. Visitors to the museums pass through the gallery on
their way to the Sistine Chapel.
THE GREGORIAN ETRUSCAN MUSEUM
Commissioned by Pope Gregory XVI in the middle of the
19th century, the Museo Gregoriano Etrusco has eight
galleries that hold a fascinating selection of artifacts
related to the mysterious Etruscan civilization, which
predated Rome by at least hundreds of years. The
Etruscans left behind rich grave goods, including bronze,
glass, ivory, and ceramics found in ancient Latium and in
cities across central Italy.
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