 | Rome Things To Do | Tips 11 - 20 of 5594 |  |
 | |  |  | Museo Nazionale Romano: PALAZZO MASSIMO II-Fascinating bronze statues. | Tip Rating:  |  |  | |  |
There are in the Museum Palazzo Massimo alle Terme two large bronze statues, among the most beautiful of the antiquity.
The "Pugilatore" resting pugilist or "boxer" is the ancient, most extraordinary, most attractive statue I saw these ten last years.
I turned and turned around the resting boxer who expresses in such realistic way the tiredness and the suffering of the fight. The wounds of his face are distinctively shown on the bronze. I noted the protection of hands and forearms by leather gloves made of straps binding the four fingers and leaving the thumb free. They are of a clearer colour because they had been rubbed in the past by people who considered this statue as a good-luck charm "portafortuna".
Don't try that now; there is an alarm system on the statue.
Some steps further stands another remarkable bronze statue “the Hellenistic Prince" (pic.4). This is maybe king Attalus II of Pergamon or could also be a Roman wishing to be presented as a Greek prince.
The two statues of the Hellenistic period (2nd c. before J.C.) were found in 1885 at the Terme of Constantine. The boxer was well preserved because buried in fine sand. An old photograph shows the statue being digged out (pic.3). It is told that the assistants were struck when this somewhat frightening athlete appeared after a rest of almost thousand years.
These two bronzes are an assemblage of different parts produced by the lost wax technique, fused separately and subsequently welded together.
Don’t leave Rome without having seen these statues.
Open 9 - 19.45 h, closed on Monday.
Price: Combined ticket for Palazzo Massimo, Terme di Diocleziano, Palazzo Altemps, Crypta Balbi, valid during 3 days: 7 €, reduced 3,50 €, free for EU citizens less than 18 or more than 65 years old.
Supplement for the temporary exhibit: 3 € Address: Largo di Villa Peretti 1Directions: Between piazza della Repubblica and Termini bus terminal.
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| | | | Museo Nazionale Romano: Museo PALAZZO MASSIMO - I. Introduction. | Tip Rating: | | | | |
This palace close to the Diocletian's Baths was built in 1887 for Cardinal/Prince Massimiliano Massimo and housed a college run by the Jesuits. It was bought by the Italian Government and transformed in a museum which opened in 1998 as the seat of the Museo Nationale Romano, which formerly was headquartered in the nearby Baths of Diocletian.
The PALAZZO MASSIMO ALLE TERME is the most important of the 4 sites among which are split the various buildings who constitute the Museo Nazionale Romano.
It is also the best and I really do recommend the visit to all who have some taste for antics. It is very comfortable museum with no lines, at least when I was there in December.
Palazzo Massimo holds Ancient Roman art (sculpture, frescos and mosaics) distributed over three floors. This collection contains celebrated examples of Roman art dating from the Republic to the late Empire, as well as several original Greek works discovered during excavations in the Gardens of Sallust. Very famous are the bronze statues of the "Boxer" (pic. 1) and the "Prince" and the statue (pic. 2) of Emperor August Pontifex (in all schoolbooks when I was a kid). I will come back on some of the highlights of this museum.
Impressive is the head of Socrate (pic. 3) found during the construction of the Victor Emmanuel II monument.
In the basement are the numismatic and jewellery collections (pic.4). The numismatic collection is rated as the best Roman coin collection in the world.
Open 9 - 19.45 h, closed on Monday.
Price: Combined ticket for Palazzo Massimo, Terme di Diocleziano, Palazzo Altemps, Crypta Balbi, valid during 3 days: 7 €, reduced 3,50 €, free for EU citizens less than 18 or more than 65 years old.
Supplement for the temporary exhibit: 3 € Address: Largo di Villa Peretti 1Directions: Between piazza della Repubblica and Termini bus terminal.
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| | | | Colosseum: Avoiding the Long Lines at the Coliseum | Tip Rating:  | | | | |
Il Colosseo! Everything glorious, and many things despicable, about the Roman culture of 2000 years ago can be found in its history. What an astounding pummeling of feelings hit me the first time I saw it.
But first, how to avoid the lines.
1. Buy your ticket at the Palatine Hill entrance. A ticket allows you entrance to both the Palatine Hill and the Colosseum. The entrance to the Palatine is only about 200 meters southwest of the Coliseum. Just follow the path, around the Arch of Constantine, buy your ticket there. Then walk back, past the line at the entrance (the line should form on the right, but often snakes over to the left). Walk up to the turnstiles, place your ticket in the slot, and voila, you're in!
2. There are actually 2 lines at the Coliseum - one for tickets, one for tickets plus audio guide (an extra 4 euros). The audio guide line is always much shorter.
3. Buy the Rome Archeologia Card which costs 20 euros and will gain you entrance to a number of archeological sites including the Coliseum, Palatine Hill, Baths of Caracalla, the National Museum of Rome, etc. You can buy this ticket at any of these sites all of which have a shorter line (most likely, no line) than the Coliseum, then just bypass the line as above. It's valid for 7 days.
4. Make a reservation by phone: 39 06 3996 7700. But I would wait to see what the weather is like. There is a special ticket window to pick up your reserved ticket, so again, no waiting in line.
5. Make a reservation on the internet. (read the fine print): http://www.pierreci.it/do/show/list/20
6. Take a commercial tour. There are a some cheesy "guides" hawking tours outside the Coliseum. Better to go with a reputable company. Leave a Comment Address: You CANNOT miss it!Phone: 39 06 3996 7700 reservationsDirections: Southeast end of the Roman Forum - next to Via dei Fori ImperialiWebsite: http://www.pierreci.it/do/show/list/20 for reservations
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on May 28, 2008
on November 8, 2004
on December 26, 2006
