St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica is another place where I was excited to see in person for the first time. I will always remember Mr. Litchfield, high school art history teacher, telling us how the arms of St. Peter's Basilica reach out to welcome the world. Here's a view of those arms from the cupola of St. Peter's Basilica itself.
When I walked in, the view in front of me literally took my breath away. This doesn't happen so often anymore, since I feel a bit like the jaded traveler. But seeing the sun stream down through the dome, and the magnificently tall ceilings, I can really believe, and agree, that architecture was used as a means to display the might of the Catholic church.
The baldachino (the black structure in the middle of the picture above), and the gold sunburst behind it, both by Bernini, are quite famous and well-covered by art history textbooks. But they're also rather gaudy. I was surprised that overall, however, the interior was quite tasteful. It really sticks to gold and black as the dominant colors, which gives a very classy feel.
It is here that the Pieta is also housed, another standard of art history textbooks.
