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San Pietro in Vincoli – home of Michelangelo’s statue of Moses | Rome, Italy

Claire — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 20:57:21 +0000

San Pietro in Vincoli (Saint Peter in Chains) is a three-aisled basilica located in Rome, Italy. It is supported by twenty ancient columns and was founded in 442. Over the centuries has undergone many reconstructions and modifications. The building itself would not be so interesting, but it houses magnificent statue of Moses made by famous Michelangelo.

Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Sebastian Bergmann

The church was built on the site, where according to legend, was St. Peter sentenced to death, 400 years before. At that time, the Emperor Nero, persecuted all Christians. The people started to build a church originally only as a place where they could store “Vincoli” – the chains that St. Peter was bound with in Jerusalem.

But much more attractive relics in the church is a monumental statue of Moses situated at the end of the right side of the aisle. Michelangelo was supposed to create a total of 42 sculptures for the tomb of Pope Claire II., but finally only one statue was completed. The pope gave Michelangelo also another work in the Sistine Chapel, so he didn’t have much time to complete his tomb. After his death, no one had an interest in wasting money for the celebration, so Michelangelo decided to create at least the first sculpture as a powerful and soulful figure of Moses. And this is how one of Michelangelo’s greatest masterpieces grew up.

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Basilica San Pietro in Vincoli is located in the centre of Rome, just few steps from Colosseum. Walk up the hill towards the park and you are there. However this church is not in every city guide, you certainly should not miss this great piece of art. If you will be stressed from all those crowds, this is the best place you can relax.

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Stone bridge in Písek – the oldest bridge in Central Europe | Czech Republic

Claire — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 09:09:33 +0000

Older brother of Charles Bridge, the oldest bridge in the Czech Republic and rarest in Central Europe. These are several names of a stone bridge in the south Bohemian town of Písek, which was built in 13th century. Thanks to the reconstruction in 1998 the bridge survived a disastrous flood in 2002 when the river achieved 2m above the bridge and still connects the two banks of Otava river. Its most common name is Stone or Old Bridge.

Gothic bridge with baroque statues achieves a length of 109.75 m and the width of 6.25 m. It stands on the six pillars of granite blocks and has seven arches – six circular (from the original Gothic structure) and one segment. There were originally two bridge towers, but unfortunately, none of them has been preserved.

The bridge is decorated with sandstone sculptures from 18th century.

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Torre de Hércules – the oldest active lighthouse in the world | Spain

Claire — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 09:29:55 +0000

Torre de Hercules is an ancient Roman tower in Spain, which since its inception has served as a beacon. It is so far the oldest active lighthouse in the world. It is located in Galicia, A Coruña, about 2.5 km from the city center.

Torre de Hercules was already built by the Romans in the 2nd century. As already mentioned, it is still working, which makes it a unique monument. Torre de Hercules is 68 meters high; there are 234 stairs leading to the top. The lighting ensures a group of 4 lights that flash every 20 seconds and is visible up to a distance of 39 km. Torre de Hercules and this entire site is otherwise surrounded by a series of legends.

Around the tower Torre de Hercules there is the Statue Park, an open-air museum. There are more than 15 sculptures by major artists of the 20th Century, such as Francisco Leiro or Pablo Serrano. For local residents the most important sculpture is Breogan, which is the mythological father of the population of Galicia.

Thanks to its historical significance, Torre de Hercules is registered since 2009 in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage.

Not far from tower you can also visit A Coruña, Santiago de Compostela, the Roman walls of Lugo city, Aquarium Finisterrae.

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Bunratty Castle and Folk Park – one of the best attractions of Ireland

Claire — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 09:14:45 +0000

Bunratty Castle with Folk Park is located about 15km west of Limerick on the place, which was once the island on the north bank of the River Shannon. It’s a very strategic location and was occupied by Vikings already in 970 as part of a Viking trading camp. The first Normans built a castle here, but then lost it. The Bunratty Castle was built and destroyed several times during its history. The castle, which stands there today, was built by the MacNamara family around 1425.

In this refurbished and very impressive citadel you can find collections of furniture, tapestries, paintings and sculptures from all over Europe. A part of castle are gardens and completely reconstructed 19th century village.

The Bunratty castle is now famous for its medieval banquets, at which the “Bunratty Singers” perform. You can also attend the medieval feast which takes place on the castle.

The Bunratty castle stands on an area of 26 acres of Bunratty Folk Park, where are over 30 typical village buildings including the school building, doctor’s house, post office and other.

The admission is €10.00 to the Castle and Folk park.

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