The Grandeur of the Duomo di Milano

I'll never forget the moment I first saw the Milan Cathedral in Milan’s Piazza del Duomo. We emerged from the darkness of the Metro on a particularly hot and humid summer afternoon and suddenly we all spotted the Duomo at the same time. I could tell that because all four of us took a sharp intake of breath and went silent. It certainly is an impressive sight.

On the day that we came back to visit, we made sure that we were at the Duomo bright and early in the morning because we had heard that the queues could get pretty long. We were dismayed when we arrived because the queues were indeed quite lengthy but we were amazed at how quickly the queue went and how efficient the organisation was.

Entrance to the Duomo is free but they do ask for a €2.00 donation if you’re going to take photos inside. We figured that I was going to take a lot of photos inside so I paid €5 just in case!

The Milan Duomo is as impressive inside as it is outside. Entrance to the nave is restricted to worshippers and there was a service in session when we arrived. You can see the somewhat smoky effects in the photo above and below from the incense. It was really beautiful and peaceful inside and I stood with my mother-in-law for some time while she watched the service.

We turned into the South Aisle and took a look at the South Transept. What impressed me most about the Duomo was the incredible detail everywhere we looked. I thought that these tiles were quite exquisite.

The Milan Cathedral or Duomo di Milano in Italian is the fifth largest cathedral in the world and it took a whopping six centuries to build! Construction of the Gothic Cathedral began in 1386 and was only completed as recently as 1965. It kind of puts the construction of the Sagrada Família into perspective; although not yet completed, construction on the Sagrada Família only began in 1882.

This is La cappella di san Giovanni il Buono or the Alter of St John the Good in English. The inscription on the pediment reads “Ego Sum Pastor Bonus” which translates as “I am the good shepherd”. These were my favourite two photos from inside the Duomo.

Just left of the alter stands the famous sculpture of San Bartolomeo Flayed which was completed by Marco d'Agrate in 1562. If you’re squeamish, it might be a good idea to page down at this point and not read the next sentence…

… ready? The sculpture depicts the saint’s flayed skin thrown over his shoulders like a stole. It is pretty grim but what is notable about the sculpture is the incredible level of detail. Click on the photo above to see the blood vessels, tendons and ligaments; it really is quite impressive.

One of the stranger things you will see at the Duomo is the mummified corpses of important Catholic saints. I think this is a bit bizarre to say the least, even though I know that Catholics are not alone in this particular practice. Then again, I won’t even walk over graves in a graveyard so I guess I just like the dead to remain undisturbed and restful.

This is Cardinal Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster who died in 1954 and was beatified in 1996. If you click on the photo above, you can see his gnarled and mummified hands.

On that note, we decided it was high time for a breath of fresh air! This final photo shows the detailed carvings in the front doors of the cathedral.

We certainly enjoyed our visit to the Milan Duomo and I would recommend going inside. You can pay extra for guided tours and access to the terraces but we thought that there was more than enough to see without taking those extras.

Duomo di Milano
Piazza del Duomo
Milan
Italy

Opening times: Daily 7.00 – 18.30
Entrance: free plus €2.00 for a photographic pass

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Postcards from the World: My Favourite Travel Photos

Brace yourself! Tonight is a bumper photo post and as always, it comes with a bit of a story. Very often when I go on a trip, I’ll save one of my photos and add it to my photo folder at work. My PC at work is set up to rotate a selection of photos as my screen saver and it is always a matter of some pride when a colleague will say that they love the photos on my screen saver and I can reply that they are all mine. Of course, they always express surprise that I have any creativity whatsoever because accountants aren’t exactly known for being arty!

For the longest time, I’ve wanted to share these photos with you and so it was pretty fortuitous when I received notice of this month’s travel link up: your favourite travel photo(s).

And so here you go… all fifteen photos that are absolutely my favourite travel photos. I’ve left links all over the post if you’d like to visit the original posts on the blog.

Turkey – The Celsus Library at Ephesus

Turkey was the first place I visited when I began this blog in 2008 and this photo was taken of the celsus library at Ephesus.

Italy - Alone in Riomaggiore

I’d wanted to visit Italy since I was 20 and finally got to visit last year – twice! This photo was taken in Riomaggiore, Cinque Terre.

London – Chinese New Year

This was my favourite of the photos I took during this year’s Chinese New Year celebrations in London.

Italy - Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan

The ceiling of the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan. This is where you can visit the Last Supper.

Serbia – The Name of Mary Church, Novi Sad

Given my love of Serbia, it should be no surprise that I would feature a photo from there. This was taken during my most recent visit to Novi Sad.

Italy – Duomo di Milano

The good news is that next week I’m finally taking you inside the Duomo in Milan. It is as opulent inside as it is on the outside. I loved this photo because of the inclusion of both the lion statue and the Duomo.

Bosnia – Jablanica

I’d heard about the beautiful turquoise lakes and rivers in Bosnia but nothing quite prepares you for a sight like this. I’m sure I’ve said this before but I would move to this country in a heartbeat. I think I left my heart somewhere here on the road between Mostar and Sarajevo.

Italy - Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan

People often say that they don’t like Milan but I don’t really understand that. I really enjoyed my time there and spent many long afternoons simply walking around or drinking coffee in sidewalk cafes. This was taken in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II which is one of the most beautiful structures I have ever seen.

London – The Eye

I can confirm that you can never take too many photos of the London Eye. It is simply not possible. This photo was part of a post I wrote about London at dusk.

Italy – Gondolas in Venice

Somehow I’ve always liked this photo of the gondolas in Venice. I like the composition and the contrast of the blue material in the gondolas against the blue sky. I still have so much to tell you about Italy!

France – The Abbey of Mont St Michel

Taken during our most recent visit to Mont St Michel in France. I just loved the detail here of the old Gothic abbey and the blue sky.

Bosnia – Stari Most, Mostar

The most beautiful bridge in the world. This photo was taken from Koski Mehmet Pasha Mosque where they promise you the best views of the bridge in all of Mostar. The view from our hotel Villa Anri was pretty special too.

Italy - Museo D'arte Antica, Milan

I love this photo because it was hard to decide which was more impressive in the Museo D'arte Antica in Milan – the exhibits or the frescoes.

London – St Paul’s Cathedral

I love this photo simply because it was taken on the first day of spring this year. London is beautiful when the sun shines!

Bosnia – Stari Most at Dusk

And finally, my favourite photo of all time. I took this on my first night in Bosnia on the eve of my 40th birthday. There was nowhere else on earth I wanted to be more than there in Mostar. I’ve printed two enlargements of this photo – one is hanging in our bedroom and the other is in my brother’s lounge.

Do you have a favourite travel photo? Feel welcome to link to it in the comments below!

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The Dominican Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan

When Sarah from The Experience Collection Project suggested that I book ahead for the TickItaly Last Supper tour, I wasn’t sure what to expect but I duly went ahead and booked tickets for my mother-in-law Robyn and I. I’m really glad I did because I loved learning all about the Sforza Castle and seeing works by Michelangelo and Leonardo in the Museo D'Arte Antica. The highlight of our tour was seeing Michelangelo’s Last Supper but before we did, we explored the beautiful Church and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie where the painting is housed.

I have a fascination with churches and it is an interest that I have held for about 20 years, ever since a friend of my mother’s showed me the photos he took of churches around South Africa. In the years since I have been travelling, I have realised that my interest extends beyond churches to mosques and synagogues too. I consider myself to be quite secular but something about these majestic establishments instils a sense of wonder in me.

And sometimes, a church especially takes my breath away.

From the moment I spotted the Santa Maria delle Grazie, it was as if the tour guide and everything else dissolved around me. I immediately fell in love with the geometric lines of the dome, the circles and rectangles and the simple yet elegant design.

Despite my newfound admiration, I was still unprepared for the beauty of the church’s interior.

It was Francesco Sforza, Duke of Milan who ordered that a Dominican convent and church be built in Milan in the 15th century. It was built on the site of a small chapel and similarly dedicated to St Mary of the Graces (Santa Maria delle Grazie). The convent was completed in Francesco’s lifetime but it was his son Ludovico who ordered that the cloister and apse be completed when he came to power in 1494. Ludovico deemed the church to be the Sforza family burial place and his wife Beatrice was buried there in 1497.

The walls of the church are adorned with frescoes by Gaudenzio Ferrari and Bernado Zenale and there is intricate paintwork throughout the church.

It is difficult to comprehended as you stand in this magnificent place and contemplate its beauty, but the Santa Maria delle Grazie was heavily bombed by British and American forces in 1943. The bombs hit mainly between the refectory and the church thus destroying the northern wall of the church and much of the refectory. The Last Supper adorns the northern wall of the refectory and was saved by heavy sand-bagging of the area.

For many years before rebuilding and restoration, the historic painting was protected only by tarpaulin and a scaffolding built specifically to protect the wall.

This is why the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict was so important, to protect against indiscriminate destruction of cultural property during wartime.

We did get the chance to see the Last Supper during our stay. Visits are firmly limited to windows of 15 minutes and photography is strictly forbidden in the refectory. I can tell you that it is absolutely worth seeing this painting in person. The perception of depth and perspective is quite marvellous, such that you feel as if Christ and his disciples are there on a raised podium above you and you can see beyond to the hills behind them. I’m not really sure if 15 minutes was sufficient. It was all rather dignified (except for the people caught sneaking photographs) and I didn’t feel that we were herded in like cattle but I think I would have preferred a quieter, lengthier moment of contemplation.

Linking up with Our World Tuesday.

Have you ever stood in awe in a place? What is the most beautiful place you have seen?

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Five Treasures of the Museo D'arte Antica, Milan

The Museo D'arte Antica or Museum of Ancient Art is significant both for the works it houses and the frescoes painted upon the ceilings and the walls. Located on the ground floor of the Ducal Courtyard in the Castello Sforzesco, we walked through the rooms that were once converted to barracks and dormitories by Napoleonic forces but have since been lovingly and carefully restored. It is here in the museum that we felt most strongly the connection between the Sforza family and the great master Leonardo da Vinci.

These were the five items that most inspired my imagination:

Monumento Sepolcrale di Bernabò Visconti

Room 2. The frescoes in this originate from the Spanish Age and depict vines, flowers and coats of arms. I was most impressed by Bonino da Campione’s marble Sepulchral Monument of Bernabò Visconti.  

Leonardo da Vinci's La Sala Delle Asse

Room 8: La Sala Delle Asse. I know, the photo above doesn't exactly inspire awe but if you're playing along at home, you should open your mouth and say "wow" right now. That is an original Leonardo da Vinci fresco, currently being restored and taken in low light without a flash to preserve the works. The fresco depicts the leafy coverage of a forest and it flows down the walls into tree trunks. There was great excitement just last week when it was discovered that the works extend even further down the walls to what looks like the roots of the trees stuck in rock.

Sala dei Ducali

Room 11: Sala dei Ducali: This room was once a wing of the ducal apartments built for Galeazzo Maria Sforza and Bona of Savoy in 1468. The beautifully decorated ceiling features a Sforza coat of arms and you can just make Galeazzo’s initials above: GZMA.

Madonna del Coazzone

Room 12: Capella Ducale: I must point out at this point that our tour guide was talking about lots of other interesting facts but I was transfixed with Pietro Antonio Solari's statue of the Madonna del Coazzone. This room is the Ducal Chapel which was turned into stables by Napoleonic forces.

Michelangelo's La Pietà Rondanini

Room 15: Sala Degli Scarlioni. I had quite underestimated how it would feel to see an original, albeit unfinished work of Michelangelo’s sculpture. I’d seen photos of Michelangelo’s David and thought I knew it all, even hanging back to let the other people see the Pietà Rondanini first. Naturally I was wrong and there was something startling about this unfinished sculpture. Our guide showed us the features of the previous, larger sculpture which Michelangelo decided to cut away, the face facing towards the left, the arm that remains suspended. In my mind’s eye, I compared the perfection of David and marvelled at the vision this man must have possessed to see this stone before him and create such permanent and enduring beauty. Sometimes it is nice to be wrong.

Our tour of Castello Sforzesco and Museo D'arte Antica was relatively short and the next time I blog about Milan, I will take you to the Convent of Santa Maria della Grazie, Milan where The Last Supper is located.

Do you like visiting museums and art galleries? Have you ever been truly surprised or inspired in one?

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Milan's Sforza Castle: Stranger Than Fiction

Torre del Filarete Castello Sforzesco Milano

I have a confession to make which long time readers of this blog might already have guessed: I am obsessed with castles. Nothing thrills me more than to discover that there just happens to be a castle in our next destination. Perhaps because his wife is a castle-obsessed eternal tourist, you may not be surprised to learn that my poor long-suffering husband (and most partners-of-bloggers are long-suffering) is kind of over them.

It was therefore serendipitous when we visited Milan as not only was there a beautifully restored Renaissance castle but Stephen was spending the entire weekend in Monza for the Grand Prix and I was free to explore to my heart’s desire.

Detail Torre del Filarete

I had another reason for wanting to visit the Castello Sforzesco (Sforza Castle in English). Cardinal Ascanio Sforza is my favourite character in the Showtime series The Borgias and I love the way the name Sforza rolls off the tongue. Ever fascinated by the history behind the show, I wanted to earn a bit more about the Sforza family.  Of course, this was not the first time that I realised that the truth in 15th century Italy was far more gruesome than the fiction of The Borgias.

Torrione di Santo Spirito

In 1447, the citizens of Milan ousted the Visconti lords and destroyed their castle. It was on these foundations that Francesco Sforza, Duke of Milan, decided to build his residence. On his death, his tyrannical and cruel son Galeazzo Maria Sforza became Duke of Milan but he was assassinated in 1476, leaving the regency to his 7-year-old son Gian Galeazzo. Bona of Savoy, the second wife of Galeazzo assumed the regency which simply did not appeal to Ludovico Maria Sforza, second son of Francesco and brother of Galeazzo. 

Following an unsuccessful play for power and subsequent exile, Ludovico took advantage of rivalries in Bona of Savoy’s court; engineered the execution of Simonetta, chief counsellor to Bona; kidnapped young Gian and finally deprived him of his duchy. With Gian stripped of his power, Bona of Savoy was obliged to leave Milan and in 1494, Ludovico Sforza became lord of Milan.

Ludovico may have been ruthless but it was he that invited artists such as Leonardo da Vinci to decorate the castle and is responsible for the ornate frescos that we can still see today. He is also best known as the man who commissioned Leonardo da Vinci to paint The Last Supper in the Santa Maria della Grazie which we also visited on this trip.

Torre del Filarete Castello Sforzesco Milano

Before we step inside the castle, I’d just like to take a moment to appreciate the exquisite structure of the castle itself. What we see today is primarily the result of extensive restoration works undertaken between 1900 and 1905 under the direction of Luca Beltrami. The Castello Sforza had seen significant changes under Spanish and Austrian rule between the 16th and 19th centuries but Napoleonic rule at the beginning of the 19th century proved disastrous to the castle. The outer fortifications were demolished, the Ducal Chapel transformed into a stable and priceless frescoes were covered in lime.

Torre del Filarete from Piazza delle Armi

It was Beltrami who restored the beautifully decorated Filarete Tower, featured above, which is visible across the whole city of Milan. He based his design on 16th century drawings. He also restored the rounded corner towers Torrione di Santo Spirito (also pictured above) and Torrione dei Carmini whose upper levels had been removed by the Austrians who needed open space for their artillery.

Today the Castello Sforzesco is a quadrilateral built around the Piazza delle Armi. It is home to several art galleries and museums including the Pinacoteca del Castello Sforzesco, the Egyptian Museum and the Museum of Ancient Art which we visited.

Sforza coat of arms, inner curtain wall

What impressed me most about the fortifications of Castello Sforzesco was the intricate detail in the brickwork, mosaics and murals. I loved the decorative tile work featured above and the outer fortifications looked like fine lace to me. This really is one of the prettiest and best restored castles I have visited before.

Corte Ducal

The Ducal Courtyard or Corte Ducal is beautifully kept and once again a place of calm and reflection. Napoleon’s dormitories and barracks are a distant memory a last.

Curtain walls Castello Sforzesco

Next: Five Treasures of the Museo D'arte Antica.  I’ll take you inside the Ducal Courtyard to the Museum of Ancient Art where we discovered treasures by both Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.

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Capturing Moments: An Instagram Tour of Milan

I was trying to explain to a group of new friends the other day that I see a difference between the art of photography and capturing images on Instagram. For me, Instagram is about moods, impressions and observations. Using filters, text and hash tags, we capture a moment in time, much like our parents did on Polaroid film. Before I take you on a tour of the fabulous things we saw in Milan, I thought I’d show you my first and last impressions of Milan along with my original comments.

Milan. Oh so pretty and stylish

Milan. Cosmopolitan and metropolitan.

Milan. Gritty and urban.

Milan. A room with a view.

Milan. Stylish. The courtyard of our hotel.

Brera, Milan.

It rained in Milan today.

One last look at Brera

Leonardo, Piazza delle Scala

Lone figure at a window. (Arrivederci Milan)

Milan really surprised me. I was worried that there would be little to do, that I might not enjoy it but I really did like it and would love to revisit the city.

What do you think? Do you think I captured the mood and tone of Milan?

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