With Bonnie and Wendy in Rome and Florence, 27 October 2014

Monday, 27 October 2014

From Roma to Firenze

Bonnie has done her homework and discovered that St. Peter’s opens at 8:15 in the morning.  Thus we get up early, have breakfast at Navona, and grab a cab to St. Peter’s. It’s always an overwhelming experience to be in the space. Bonnie wants to see the Pieta, and does, but is dismayed that we have to stand so far back from it (all thanks to that Hungarian artist who had at it with a hammer).

We walk around a bit, taking it all in, or as much as is allowed to us in our brief time there. I always like the enthronement of Peter, and touch his toe as is demanded by tradition.  There is one thing that I want Bonnie and Wendy to see, however, and that is the Manzù doors on the south side of the main doors of the basilica. 

Commissioned by John XXIII, and created by Giacomo Manzù around 1964, the doors are commentaries on Death.  They were controversial in that Manzù, a communist, was believed to have inserted into his realizations statements about the executions of fascists during and after the Second World War.  The theme of death is appropriate to the door in that it is the door from which funeral processions both enter and leave.

Several deaths are depicted on the doors, Jesus, Mary, Abel, St. Joseph, St. Peter, John XXIII, St. Stephen, and Gregory VII.  I find the shafts of wheat and grape vines to be especially beautiful.

It is a subtle indication of the Eucharist, the foundational reality of the assembly that enters here.

At the bottom of the doors small creatures are depicted: a black bird, a dormouse, a hedgehog, and owl, a tortoise and a raven.  I find the whole ensemble to be quite moving, both artistically and spiritually.

We cab back to the apartment, grab our bags, and then cab to Termini where we relax until our 12:30 train to Florence.  I've arranged for first class tickets - a treat for all of us.

We arrive in Florence, go to our apartment, walk around a bit, and then crash.