Ward Family Vacations - Italy 2001 Gallery of Fine Arts

Italy 2001

Gallery of Fine Arts

It was pouring rain when we arrived, and I was the only one to remember my $1 Dollar General plastic rain poncho. Jessica and mom bought umbrella's but still got soaked. We arrived at the Gallery and met our tour guide for the day.

When you first enter the gallery you see Michelangelo's unfinished works. He was to have said "the stones didn't tell me what they were". They were awesome to see half a figure carved out of a huge chunk of marble like it was coming alive.

At the end of the long hall was Michelangelo's famous statue of David. He carved David when he was only 26 years old and took him three years to complete.

David was set on a pedestal and stood seven feet tall. Many other stone cutters of the day said that the piece of marble David was carved out, "wasn't any good". Hm. Michelangelo sure showed them! When you looked at David's face you could almost see the determination in his eyes of what lay ahead of him. That brings me to the Bible verses from the book of Samuel.

I Samuel 17:4-7 4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail; and the weght of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass. 6 And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders. 7 And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron; and one bearing a shield went before him."

I Samuel 17:42-46 42 And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance. 43 And the Philistine said unto David. Am I a dog that you comest to me with slaves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 And the Philistine said to David, Come to me and I will give they flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield; but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou has defiled.

46 This day will the Lord deliver thee into mind hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

There were many other beautiful portraits, the one of the "Ascension" was breathtaking, but David is centered at a pivotal point in the gallery and you always come back to it.