Vatican Museum Night Tour

The Vatican Museums occupy a vast portion of the papal palaces. Precious works of architecture in and of themselves, these spaces were built by the popes to house the many artistic masterpieces of their collections, where they have remained for centuries. The long history of construction of these palaces began with the return of the popes to Rome after more than a century of absence from the city. Led by Martin V in 1420, and driven by a desire to bring an end to the degradation of the city whose population had dropped below 20,000 inhabitants (from about one million in the 1st century A.D.) and whose former glory had all but vanished, the Church and powerful Roman families initiated the Renovatio Urbis – the renovation of the city.

This renovation was only one of many sweeping the cities of the Italian Renaissance and bringing significant change to all fields of knowledge, art, and daily life. From the invention of the printing press to the maps that permitted Columbus to cross the ocean and reach America; from the laws of perspective to gun powder, from the techniques that allowed Brunelleschi to construct the dome of Florence Cathedral and Michelangelo the dome at St. Peter’s, this is the essence of the Renaissance – a time of renewal and discovery. We in our turn will rediscover this fascinating history on our Vatican group tours.

The Vatican Museums possess one of the world’s richest collections of Greek and Roman art, thanks to the intellectual curiosity that led the popes to amass ancient artworks from the Renaissance onwards. Here we will accompany you in fascinating adventures of discovery, introducing you to works of great beauty like the Laocoon, the Apollo Belvedere, the Belvedere Torso and dozens of others. We will also see the sarcophagi of Helen and Costanza, mother and daughter of the emperor Constantine, and help you understand their original meanings – as well as their secrets.

From the Pinecone Courtyard to the Belvedere Courtyard, from the Gallery of the Candelabra to the Hall of Maps and the Tapestries Gallery, the journey we’ll undertake on this Vatican group tour is a captivating one. The same fascinating journey was made by the men of the Renaissance who gathered around tables luxuriously set by popes and princes in these very spaces. Over rivers of wine and refined dishes, artists and courtesans, philosophers and cardinals discussed the works of the ancients, chewed over the surprising finds of ancient statues and gave their opinions on the great undertakings of the day – the construction of the new St. Peter’s basilica amongst them.