REGENTS IN EUROPE 2017

Transcription

1 COLISEUM REGENTS IN EUROPE TSWBAT explain with examples how the Coliseum represents almost perfect Roman architecture & compare it with other Roman works they ve seen (most notably the Pantheon). 2. TSWBAT describe the purpose of the Coliseum, how it was used, who built it, and why it is in the shape it is now. 3. TSWBAT attempt an analysis of how form and function can and should work together in a building (comparing & contrasting with the churches they ve seen would be helpful. 1. While waiting in line to go in, have the students notice & comment on the state of the Coliseum (Where is it in Rome? What s near it? Why might this matter? Is it low or high relatively? What condition is it in? What would Caesar think of people dressing up as Roman soldiers for tourists? Etc). 2. Once you get inside, go around to the left until you reach the stairs on the right which go up. Take them all the way up and start on the top. You ll be on one of the narrower ends of the Coliseum. It will give you a great perspective on the size of the place & the number of people it could have held. You can see the tunnels underneath through which animals and other things would have been sent up in certain games. They have reconstructed the section below you to give a small replica of what it probably looked like in its glory days under the Flavians (late 1 st century AD). 3. Give the students a chance to explore and set a meeting place for 30 or 45 minutes later. Once you ve regrouped, questions such as how is this similar/dissimilar to American stadiums are appropriate, as well as what does this show us about Roman ideas of glory, honor, & proper uses of civic wealth, as well as how it plays into the whole bread & circuses thing (is this just something from the past or something that modern governments still resort to? How is our world similar/different?). Plan on the Coliseum taking you about 1 hour.

2 FORUM (Closes between 4 and 5pm) 1. TSWBAT explain the significance of the Forum in Roman political life. 2. TSWBAT see examples of both ancient temples and basilicas and understand why the Christian church chose the basilica structure for its own buildings. 3. TSWBAT reflect upon the finitude of civilizations as the Romans would have thought you crazy if you d told them 2000 years ago that the visible center of their power would be rubble & ruin. Are there things we take for granted as being eternal (Rome is the eternal city after all) that are actually not? 1. You ll hit the forum after the Coliseum. Once through the entrance, you ll descend to the valley of the forum (located between some of the Seven Hills of Rome). About 2/3 of the way down stop and look to your right at the ruins of an old basilica. Even though nothing is standing there, you can see the general structure really well. One wide, central aisle flanked by two smaller aisles for movement. They should be able to recognize that this is what Notre Dame, St. Paul s & St. Peter s are structured on. Why would the church pick this floor plan rather than the ancient temple model (there s a couple of these left in the Forum, so you can give them some examples of that if they don t remember)? 2. Once you hit the bottom you ll be in the middle of it. To the left you ll go up towards the Palatine hill & the Arch of Titus (see if you can spot the Mennorah from Jerusalem!) with the Coliseum on the other side. To the right is the main exit, which takes you out by the Senate building & to the Mamertine prison, where according to tradition both Peter & Paul were imprisoned. Plan on the Forum taking you about hours.

3 VATICAN MUSEUM 1. TSWBAT evaluate & appreciate some of the greatest works of art ever produced, especially the Laocoon, the Sistine Chapel, the Pieta & the Raphael Rooms. 2. TSWBAT describe why the Catholic Church found it desirable to develop this entire art collection. 1. You ll be told where to meet and what time the night before at the latest. It should also be on your group s itinerary. 2. Once you get into the Vatican Museum (through another metal detector) you need to know what you re in for: the Vatican collection is one of the greatest collections both in terms of size as well as quality in the entire world. The only museums I can think of that rival it are the Louvre & the Smithsonian. It is most famous for its art, but it also holds some incredible ancient artifacts from around the world, but especially from ancient Italy. 3. Because of how huge it is, expect it to take a while and they keep the major pieces towards the end (the Raphael Rooms & the Sistine Chapel are the last things on the museum tour, right before going into St. Peter s). The museum is also very crowded (and we re there off season!). Make sure your group stays together and listens to the guide. They are very knowledgeable and can really help explain why they have some of the things they have (like an incredibly long hall filled with maps of every region of Italy as well as an equally long hall filled with tapestries, among others). 4. Once you get to the Sistine Chapel, the students should have some time to just take it all in. It is a room full of masterpieces everywhere you look, even the lower down ones on the wall were masterpieces before Michelangelo even go started on the ceiling (he also did the Last Judgment on the wall behind the altar, but much later in life (after the Reformation) and you can tell he s a little less idealistic). As you look at the ceiling at the altar wall, while being blown away by the art, it s important to keep in mind that Michelangelo always saw himself as primarily a sculptor (which is how he signed his letters) and you can see that in his paintings. The fascination with the turning & twisting of the human body is evident in his paintings as well as in some sculptures (remember the slaves from Florence?). Plan on the Vatican Museum taking you about hours.

4 ST. PETER S BASILICA 1. TSWBAT describe the rationale behind the size & scope of St. Peter s as well as reflecting on the role of beauty in the Church. 2. TSWBAT place the construction of St. Peter s in its historical context (the Reformation). 1. You ll come into St. Peter s from the side onto the porch. Once inside, notice the circular purple stone in the floor. Charlemagne was crowned Holy Roman Emperor of Europe in 800 AD (on Christmas Day!) on top of this stone (it wasn t here at the time). 2. To the right you have Michelangelo s Pieta. Unfortunately you can t walk around it like the David because someone tried to attack it a few years ago. I think it is the greatest sculpture in the world. Running down the middle of the church is a line which shows how other churches compare in size to St. Peter s. This is helpful because it doesn t really feel as huge as it is. This is intentional and done by the scale of the decorations, which are all massive. 3. In several places throughout the church you ll notice dead bodies under glass caskets. This might be a good time to talk to the students about why they are there, as well as why are most Catholic churches named after a saint (like St. Peter s). What does this say about the Catholic understanding of the communion of saints from the Apostle s Creed? 4. Notice all the paintings if you look closely you ll notice that they are actually mosaics, not paintings (this is why you can use flash photography here). 5. The Altar is right over the tomb that is supposed to belong to St. Peter himself (there is a first-century Christian tomb located below the altar). The dome was designed and built by Michelangelo (he s everywhere! this is what it means to be a Renaissance man). 6. As y all leave, be sure to look at the open arms that lead to St. Peter s (remember it is the mother church for all Catholics in the world (which makes about half of all Christians) and the architecture of the square is really trying to make a point. Ask the students if this large horseshoe shape looks familiar to anything they ve seen already (the Louvre & Versailles, in a smaller way)? Plan on St. Peter s Basilica taking you about ¾-1 hour.

5 PANTHEON & SANTA MARIA SOPRA MINERVA (9am -7:30pm) 1. TSWBAT see Roman architecture at its finest, as well as the inspiration for all later domes like the Duomo in Florence or St. Peter s. 2. TSWBAT connect the Pantheon to other official burial sites like Westminster Abbey & St. Paul s. 3. TSWBAT appreciate the one Gothic church in Rome, seeing what a parish church in Rome looks like. 1. There are a couple of ways to get to the Pantheon depending upon whether you re coming from the Corso Vittorio Emanuele II or from the Spanish Steps/Trevi Fountain area or from the Piazza Navona. 2. Once in front of the Pantheon, spend a few minutes looking at it and asking the kids what they notice (both about the building as well as what s around it). See if they notice that it s much lower than everything else. Ask them if they know why. Ask them what the front looks like if they haven t discussed it already (a Greek/Roman temple). 3. Once they get inside, give them a few minutes to explore. Might tell them in advance that Raphael (the painter) is buried here as is the kings and queens of unified Italy. 4. Once outside, have them discuss how the church is different than any others they ve seen (it s round, not a cross for one). Ask them if they can see how it would have been used by the Romans as a pantheon (ask them if they know what that word means it means all the gods ). Did they notice anything about the floor that was relevant? (it s sloped away from the middle for rain run off). 5. Travel around the Pantheon to the left and you ll see Sopra Minerva on the right. This church, with its small elephant & obelisk in front, is one of the more interesting churches in Rome. Ask the students if they know what Santa Maria Sopra Minerva means ( St. Mary over Minerva there s a temple to Minerva/Athena underneath). 6. St. Catherine is buried on the altar (except her head & a finger, which are in Siena her home town). Ask students if they know why she s so important (she s the patron saint of Italy, and also she s the one who convinced the Pope to return to Rome from Avignon it s hard to be Bishop of Rome if you re living in France). 7. The Michelangelo statue is the one to the left of the altar as you re looking at it. Ask the students if they can recognize how, from the inside alone, they know that this is a gothic church. Plan on the Pantheon/Santa Maria Sopra Minerva taking you about 30 minutes.