Chedworth Roman Villa

This post is a little out of order, but on my trip back from Stratford-on-Avon  after seeing Coriolanus I decided to call in to a small National Trust property, Chedworth Roman Villa.

The site was originally excavated in 1864, and is believed to have been built in around 120AD, and subsequently extended and rebuilt, before being destroyed in the 5th Century.

It's a fairly small site (although is apparently one of the larger Roman Villas in this country) 

There are lots of walls, most about 2' high, marking the various rooms of the villa (Roman brickwork, topped with modern tiles to prevent deterioration) and then a large section of the villa where mosaic floors have been uncovered, in what were the Dining Room and Bath House. 

I gather that there were further excavations this year, uncovering more mosaics, but they have been recovered to avoid damage, so I didn't get to see them!

The villa is in a lovely secluded area, and as I arrived just before it opened, I had it to myself for  little while, before it started to get busier.

There was also an art exhibition taking place while I was visiting, which was fun - lots of sculptures scattered around the grounds.

I particularly enjoyed this hawk, and the shoal of fishes.

Definitely a nice place to visit, and an interesting way to break the journey home.

Torcello and More

I was a little disappointed by the mosaics in St Marks, not because they are not impressive, because they are, but because it's hard to get to to see them, given how crowded the place is, so,largely for that reason, I decided to take a trip to the island of Torcello, which is, these days, very sparsely populated, but which has a cathedral which is famous for having the oldest mosaics in Venice, created in the 11th and 12th century.

My trip to the ferry stop took me via the fruit and fish markets at the Rialto, after which there was a somewhat grey ferry ride to Torcello. 

I got an early boat,and there were very few people around as I walked up from the landing stage to the cathedral. There is just one canal, which leads from the ferry quay to the village so you can't get lost, and while the landscape is not very inspiring, it it was good to be away from the city for a little while, and enjoy some peace and greenery.

I  had not realised, but there are actually 2 churches, side by side. There is the 11thC church of St Fosca, which is starkly plain and understated inside. I liked it, but there are no mosaics!

St Fosca

Then there is the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, which was founded in the 7thC, although the current building was mostly built in the 11thC, with additions and repairs in the 14th 

It does have mosaics. And they are very impressive.  I was fortunate that when I arrived, there was no one else in the church, so I got to enjoy them in peace for a a short time, before others joined me!

There are images of Mary and of Christ in two of the Domes at the Eastern end of the church, but the really dramatic one is on the West wall, where there is a huge image of Judgement Day.

Cattedrale di Torcello (Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta)

I particularly enjoyed the section half way down the left hand side, showing the dead being resurrected from their graves and winding sheets,  and (for reasons which were not adequately explained) from various beasts. I liked the lions.

On the opposite side, are the damned, being cast into Hell, together with little vignettes illustrating the seven deadly sins, although I am embarrassed to admit that I am not certain which sin is which (Although I'd guess that the 3 people on the left, having a snack while standing in a fire, probably represent Gluttony...)

As well as the church, Torcello also has a tiny historical and archaeological museum, which I visited briefly.

At around this point,  a couple of school trips arrived, so I decided to leave.

Back in Venice, and after a rather tasty lunch, I found the Scuola Dalmata - also known as San Giorgio degli Schiavoni. It is one of Venice's mediaval confraternity houses (or Scuolas), and I wanted to go because, in 1502 the members arranged for the painter Carpaccio to paint a series of panels of the fraternity's patron saints, including a rather nice one of St George and the Dragon.

I should mention, perhaps, that I don't know much about medieval art, and next to nothing about Carpaccio, but I saw a picture of this panel and liked it, so I wanted to see the original.

Another panel shows George triumphantly leading the (now much smaller!) dragon into a town square.

Another of the Scuola's parton saints was St Jerome, who apparently struck up a friendship with a lion after removing a thorn from the lion's paw. 

The painting shows Jerome with the lion, together with some rather alarmed friars. I'm with the friars on this one. I am not sure that I would wish to rely , for my safety, on the gratitude of a lion...

But I did like the pictures. They have a certain charm to them which appeals to me. 

I spent the remainder of the afternoon looking at a different kind of art altogether, one which I think needs its own post.

Venice, Or What I Did on My Holiday, Part 2

One of the things many visitors to Venice do is to go up the Campanile of St Mark's, to see the views over the city. However, you have to queue, and the queues are long. I don't like to queue.

So, instead, I decided to get the ferry across to San Giorgio Maggiore, which *also* has a Campanile with great views, and which seems to be a little of the beaten track, so far as crowds are concerned. Plus, bonus boat ride!

There are nice views back across to St Mark's, from the boat.

When I got to San Giorgio, it was still closed (there does seem to be a certain unreliability about information places provided regarding opening hours, but there are worse things than pottering around a marina and looking at Venice in the sunshine!)

But being early did mean that when I went up the tower (there is the luxury of a lift) there were only 2 other people up there. And some bells. The views are pretty great.

It turns out also that 25th April is the feast day of St Mark, and St Mark is pretty popular in Venice.From the campanile I could hear the brass bands in St Mark's Square.

After leaving San Giorgio I decided, on a whim, to go to Murano, another of the islands, famous for its glass-making.

The Beast from the Lagoon

There is a glass museum, which has some interesting exhibits. I liked the sculpture garden, where I found the creature from the lagoon, and some glass cuttlefish (or maybe squid).

Glass Squid (or Cuttlefish) : Murano

The museum also has displays showing the history and development of glassmaking in Venice . I ave to admit that Murano glass doesn't actually do a whole lot for me, but the museum was interesting, and some of the exhibits are pretty impressive. I mean, I'm not entirely sure why anyone would want a glass trumpet or a glass celestial globe, but it's quite impressive that people are making them...

Mosaic peacocks, Chiesa dei Santi Maria e Donato, Murano

After the museum I visited the church of Saints Maria and Donato, which is one of the oldest churches in Venice. St Donato apparently killed a dragon, and brought the bones with him to this church, where they are displayed behind the alter. It would be churlish to suggest that they look a lot like whale bones..

The church also house some rather nice 12th Century mosaics on the floor, including  a very nice pair of peacocks.

Back in Venice itself, I spent some more time exploring the quieter streets, and came upon the Ponte del Chiodo, the bridge without parapets. Apparently, originally, none of the bridges in Venice had parapets, but this is the only one left in the city itself (there's another on Torcello) 

I ended up back at St. Mark's again. There was still a lot of celebrating going on. I'm not a big fan of crowds or crowded places, but it was all very good tempered and non-threatening. 

There were also nuns selling red roses - apparently it s a tradition, that Venetian men give roses to their wives or girlfriends, a rose on St Mark's day, so the nuns sell them on behalf of the Red Cross.

Museo Correr

I  spent the evening visiting the Museo Correr, which is at the far end of St Mark's Square from the Basilica. It is, as you can see, another subtle and understated building!

 

It was originally built in the 1620s and then updated and extended under Napoleon, who wanted a suitable palace for his brother-in-law. 

The museum has a collection of Canova sculptures, and also some beautiful 17thC globes, with little painting of ships to decorate all the oceans.  The building also houses the city's archaeological museum, so there are some Roman sculptures and Egyptian sarcophagi, as well as the more modern stuff, and a whole suite of rules decorated in the 18th Century with images inspired by Pompeii.

I finished the evening with a stroll down to the Rialto to enjoy the views over the Grand Canal in the dark.

It was a good day.