Mid-Atlantic (Fodor's Guides) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0679004548 ISBN 13: 9780679004547

Publisher: Fodor's Travel Publications Inc.,U.S., 1980

Synopsis

Holy Rome A Millennium Guide to the Christian Sights Years of massive renovations have prepared Rome for the 26th Jubilee and the start of the third millenium. Today the city gleams more brilliantly than ever, displaying a fresh, bright face that conjures up the city of centuries gone by, when popes, cardinals, and powerful families were adding magnificent new works of art and architecture to the city's treasure of antiquity and its early Christian relics. Like no other guidebook before, FODOR'S HOLY ROME explores every aspect of the stunning legacy of Christendom -- and brings you close to the powerful soul of the city that has drawn travelers and pilgrims since the dawn of the first millennium. No other guidebook highlights so many sights important to Christianity. Nearly 500 are covered in all, from the Vatican museums to the many churches, cloisters, shrines, and relics of saints. Covering them all, district by district, this one-of-a-kind guidebook gives you all the tools to explore. Clear overviews and complete descriptions help you understand what you see. You'll find moving anecdotes from the lives of the saints, tales of Jubilees through the centuries, biographical sketches of key artists working in Rome, inside stories about recent renovations, and thorough background information on every sight. An exceptional city atlas from Italy's premier cartographers keep you on track. It's more up-to-date and more detailed than in any other guide, and all the churches and holy sights described in the texts are keyed to the maps. Exclusive themed itineraries highlight key facets of the city. You'll walk in the footsteps of Peter and Paul, take in Christmas in Rome, and see subterranean Rome, angels and altars, relics and reliquaries, and outdoor shrines and pilgrimage routes. Calenders from the Vatican and the Rome Agency for Jubilee Preparations give you dates and key information on masses, celebrations, exhibitions, concerts and other Jubilee events. A wonderful souvenir as well as an essential companion. More than 230 gorgeous photographs depict Rome's landmarks fresh from their face-lift -- and document Rome as it looks today.

About this title

Review:

This is a book for Christians expected to throng to Rome for the millennium jubilee, the introduction to Holy Rome boldly states. It would be a shame to exclude the rest of the world from enjoying this slight but sharp and sometimes cheeky book. The English-language title is under the Fodor heading, translated from the Italian Touring Editore publication. Little is lost in the translation and much can be learned about how Italians perceive their history and relationship to the Catholic Church.

The guide covers 500 locations and includes biographical sketches of artists and excellent maps keyed to the sites. It includes useful calendars for jubilee events--masses, celebrations, exhibitions. The guide's "neighbourhood" layout is quirky and surprisingly interesting: sections are based on the location of relics of saints and the churches where they are buried, entombed or enshrined. The brief entries by church, crypt or chapel are a tribute to factual writing about what some consider fiction. The essays are intriguing and more academic than what is normally found in a travel guide.

Holy Rome does not purport to be a sightseeing tome heavy with hotel, restaurant and entertainment sections: use a typical travel guide(like Fodor's Exploring Rome) for those details. And use Holy Rome for what it is: An invaluable travel guide for anyone planning to use the millennium year to see for themselves the evolution of 2,000 years of Christianity. -- Kathleen Buckley

Synopsis:

Covers nearly 500 sights important to Christianity, from the Vatican museums to shrines and relics of saints, includes tales of Jubilees through the centuries, and offers themed itineraries highlighting key facets of the city.

About this edition

• Publisher: Fodor's Travel Publications Inc.,U.S.
• Publication date: 1980
• ISBN 10: 0679004548
• ISBN 13: 9780679004547
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 180
• Editor: Fodor Eugene, Etc.