Siena 14

An Underground Chapel 

They say this area is where Saint Catherine came to pray in the night after ministering to people. So a chapel was built to commemorate her devotion.

And next to it a tiny hall chapel in memory of her mother.

Siena13

Children’s Exhibit 

One part of the Hospital Museum had an area with exhibits of art for or about children. 

An expanse of wall was filled with these. We had no idea what its connection was to children.

Part of row

An extensive collection by this artist filled an alcove

And they all wore shoes.

All in all a laudable attempt to mix old and new. 

Siena 12

Creche 

Within the Old Hospital museum, was a chapel ( actually several, but this was the biggest). Within, two nuns were singing a liturgy in beautiful harmonies. 

And at the back of the chapel was the most wonderful creche ever. St. Francis of Assisi invented the concept of Nativity scenes. His were live. So the Italians take theirs very seriously, and have made an art form of it. This one was the work of one man and a few helpers in a tiny town in some rural place. It was loaned to this chapel from November to February on a traveling tour. It was entirely hand-sculpted. The figures are of terracotta, painted, and dressed. And the light slowly changed from daylight to night. At “night,” tiny street lights came on. And a shooting star traveled across the sky. 

A traditional procession in the village 

See the star in the background. Here the Wisemen have replaced the shepherds visiting the Christ Child. 

A vast amount of culture is depicted and implied in this whole work. 

Intermezzo

Sunshine!

The snow is gone, the morning fog has flown (well after eight a.m., but we don’t claim the name of Camelot) and the sun came out. 

Most of the greenhouse contents survived. The bulbs got their winter freeze. And the Rhubarb not only survived, but it looks good. 

And we have our Christmas gift birdbath placed.

P.S. There were some odd typographical errors and autocorrections in the previous post. They are corrected now, if you want to know what I actually was trying to say.

Siena 11

Next Museum

Siena, like most ancient cities, is layer upon historic layer. Not only are newer buildings built over older buildings, but underground rooms, and aqueducts and even roads are built into the hillsides. In the next museum complex we visited, across from the Duomo, we found these many layers. For the past thirty-some years, this former charity building has been under renovation for a museum. In medieval days it was a refuge for pilgrims on their way to Rome or Santiago or other holy sites. The rich of the city funded it (maybe to expiate some sins - like the “Userers” giving parts of their ill-gotten gains to fund beautiful chapels in various churches in the city, for prayers for their souls, which changed no deeds whatsoever). Later the building complex became a very notable hospital, not in the sense of today with drugs and surgery, but by binding up the cut and broken, and giving the needy healthful food and care, provided from the farms that the owners had. That sounds like a wonderful hospital to me. Here also, orphans and abandoned babies were brought and raised. In the 1800’s, it became a modern hospital, for awhile. 

First, a grand room in our hotel, a former Palazzo. 


Then on to the day’s adventure….

Layers of building, old and new.

Old pottery from the site. An Italian Jackalope and Unicorn.

A “gnome bird “?

Lovely scribbles 


These used to be room beams looking down on you.

The whole city was polychrome with holy images. This is what unrestored parts look like.

Reliquaries 




This had a holy something in it.


A detail of the above reliquary 


This was labeled as containing a piece of the true Cross (one of a whole forest of such across Europe)

Next will be of a marvelous chapel deep in the bowels of the complex, with a couple of lovely surprises. 

Intermezzo

Blooms

A Christmas gift blooms today, for my dear daughter’s birthday

Happy Birthday, Maria.

Siena 10

City Museum, Continued

It was behind glass, being solid gold and itchy fingers being discouraged, so the photo is not sharp, but it’s worth seeing, nonetheless. 

A very fine equestrian sculpture, plaster, probably as a model for a bronze. 

Architect and painter from Siena, known especially for illusionist architectural  painting that visually blended into the actual physical architecture. 

This fellow really should be happy, in that he got a very skilled sculptor to bring him to life from that rock. Phenomenal work.