Vatican City (Holy See -- 圣座) Emblem of Vatican City Flag of Holy See (Vatican City)

MAP OF ROME

Geography The Vatican City State is situated on the Vatican hill, on the right bank of the Tiber River, within the city of Rome.

St Peter’s Basilica A unique collection of artistic and architectural masterpieces lie within the boundaries of this small state. At its centre is St Peter’s Basilica, with its double colonnade and a circular piazza in front and bordered by palaces and gardens. Michelangelo constructed the imposing dome that sits atop St. Peter's Basilica. This dome served as the inspiration for the dome on the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. Michelangelo: The Dome of St Peter's Basilica

The basilica, erected over the tomb of St Peter the Apostle, is the largest religious building in the world, the fruit of the combined genius of Bramante (1444－1514), Raphael (1483-1520), Michelangelo (1475-1564), and Bernini (1598-1680). Pope Julius II ordering Bramante, Michelangelo and Raphael to construct the Vatican and St. Peter's by Emile Jean Horace Vernet

Bramante Tempietto One of Bramante's Loggias (verranda) in the Court of Saint Damasus

The Three Graces Madonna dell Granduca Raphael The Entombment

David Michelangelo The Creation of Adam

David Apollo and Daphne Bernini Nile Saint Longinus

Piazza San Pietro, View from Basilica, Vatican City

Vatican City is the smallest independent state in the world in terms of inhabitants and size. It occupies an area of 44 hectares.

Government The pope has full legal, executive, and judicial powers. Executive power over the area is in the hands of a commission of cardinals appointed by the pope. The College of Cardinals is the pope's chief advisory body, and upon his death the cardinals elect his successor for life. Pope Benedict XVI. Born in 1927 in Germany. On 19 April 2005, he was elected as the successor to Pope John Paul II.

National name: Stato della Città del Vaticano Ruler: Benedict XVI (2005) Land area: 0.17 sq mi (0.44 sq km) Population: 824 (July 2008) Monetary unit: Euro Languages: Italian, Latin, French, various other languages Ethnicity: Italian, Swiss, others Religion: Roman Catholic. Labor force: dignitaries, priests, nuns, guards, and 3,000 lay workers who live outside the Vatican. Budget: revenues: $310 million expenditures: $307 million (2006)

History The Vatican City State, sovereign and independent, is the survivor of the papal states that in 1859 comprised an area of some 44,030 sq km. During the struggle for Italian unification, from 1860 to 1870, most of this area became part of Italy. By an Italian law of May 13, 1871, the temporal power of the pope was abrogated (abolished), and the territory of the papacy was confined to the Vatican and Lateran (拉特兰) palaces and the villa of Castel Gandolfo (a small town as the summer residence of the pope). The popes consistently refused to recognize this arrangement. The Lateran Treaty of Feb. 11, 1929, between the Vatican and the kingdom of Italy, established the autonomy of the Holy See.

Vatican City Travel Guide Though the smallest city-state in the world, it is one of the most visited. The place is packed with some of the world’s most beautiful churches and museums. It is a must-see. The first building you see is St. Peter’s Basilica (Michelangelo designed the dome and his Pieta [圣母玛利亚抱着基督尸体的雕刻] is exhibited within). Pieta

Plan at least 3 (or more) hours in St Plan at least 3 (or more) hours in St. Peter’s: After walking around inside, be sure to go to the roof for the view and to visit its in-house museum and see the grotto (人工洞室) below (where St. Peter, John Paul II, and other popes, are buried). Cardinals pay their respects at the tomb of late Pope John Paul II in the grotto beneath the Vatican's St Peter's Basilica, April 12, 2005.

The baldachin (华盖) over the main altar built with bronze is an interesting example of baroque design. Other Vatican sites include the Apostolic Palace, beautiful gardens, the Piazza St. Pietro (St. Peter’s Square) and the Vatican museum. The view of the Baldachin & the Pala d'Oro

St. Peter’s Basilica

St. Peter’s Tomb, St. Peter’s Basilica

Michelangelo’s Pieta in St. Peter’s Basilica

Bernini’s 7-story canopy in St. Peter’s Basilica

Spectacle in St. Peter’s Basilica

The Apostolic Palace

Rooms of the Apostolic Palace

The outside of the Sistine Chapel

The outside of the Sistine Chapel

The interior of the Chapel

The ceiling painting in the Sistine Chapel took 4 years to make The ceiling painting in the Sistine Chapel took 4 years to make. The artist, Michelangelo, took 4 years looking up and painting while some of it splated on his face, imagine that!

The Sistine Chapel built between 1475 and 1483 The Last Judgment by Michelangelo between 1535 and 1541

The Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo between 1509 and 1512

Creation of Eve

Creation of man, Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel

Altar at Vatican II Council

Vatican Museum

Staircase in the Vatican Museum

Inside the Vatican Museum

Inside the Vatican Museum

The ornate ceiling at the Vatican Museum

by Raphael in the Vatican Museum

Bronze statue of Hercules in the Vatican Museum

Inside the Vatican Museum

Statues at the Vatican Museum

A tapestry in the Vatican Museum

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Hope you can make the trip in near future! The Colosseum at night Video: Vatican City