Europe 2022 - 2023

We visited the world renowned Naples archeological museum yesterday where some of the best pieces of antiquity are on display. Namely findings from Italy during Roman times as well as the Pompei collection. The statues (shown in second post) are part of the Farnese collection credited with financing the digs. The most notable statues are Hercules as well as the Toro Farnese which weighs 15 tons and was carved out of one solid piece of Italian marble. The Toro Farnese (picture of the bull two men and two women) is the largest and most intact group statue in the world. Other pictures and mosaics are mostly from the Pompei collection that were found in the aftermath of the Mt Vesuvius eruption. We were stunned at how beautiful these mosaics were as many look like paintings until you get up close to see the tiny individual pieces. One of the world's most notable mosaics was found as a floor piece in the house of the faun in pompei which was a 40 room estate. This mosiac showing Alexander in battle was made from over a million individual pieces of tile.Read more