lundi 19 août 2013

Some exciting findings: Villa Giulia (Rome)

Nymphaeum Loggia by Ammanati 


Villa Giulia in Rome is one of these nice off the beaten track places where you have a chance to see  museum instead of touristic crowds with guides and photo cameras. Located close to a high end residential area, it is a gorgeous place: a combination of a remarkable architecture with the Renaissance frescoes and mosaics and a stunning archeological collection of the Etruscan Art. An excellent place to enjoy the history and to get a lunch on a grass after.

The Tunnel Vault of the Semicircular Portico (Loggia) 
at the rear of the Casino by the architect Vignola



The Castellani's collection of the Etruscan jewelry was, unfortunately, closed. Nonetheless, it was exciting to find a few wonderful pieces of amber jewelry from the Etruscan tombs.








These two pieces are crafted out of gold and amber (most likely Sicilian amber which has a distinctive red hue). At that time amber and gold had the same value. These bulky jewelry was used as pins and were fixed with the bronze pins. The donuts at the same photo are also carved out of amber and (maybe) were worn on the pins.




This restored necklace is a similar example of the popular amber-gold combination in Etruscan jewelry.