Vatican Splendors

Clearly the Vatican is not inclined to loan out their really splendid works of art. The collection in Ft Lauderdale was ordinary with only a few pieces that were really special. After all of the hype the show received I was disappointed with the actual display.

I was fortunate in that I went on two seperate occasions since I had already planned to attend with friends and then bought tickets for my sisters who came into town B4 a cruise. I enjoyed having the headsets to get explanations of what I was seeing especially on the weekend when I went with my sisters as it was almost impossible to get close enough to read the written info on the walls near the objects on the weekend due to the crush of the crowd.I wish what was written on the walls and not on tape had also been put on tape because I feel my sisters missed some of the interesting info provided.

If you have never been to the Vatican, maybe of interest, but if you have not that interesting Also found the cost too high for what you see A BIG dissapointment

THE DISPLAY WAS VERY INTERESTING,HOWEVER IT WAS WAY TOO CROWDED AND THE LACK OD ABILITY TO CONTROL PEOPLE FROM JUMPING LINE AND WALKING IN FRONT OF YOU WAS A LITTLE ANNOYING

This was a phenomenal exhibit. A once in a lifetime experience.

While the items were from the Vatican, they fell short of being splendid. The exhibit was well marked, and it provided a wonderful history lesson. Getting the audio tour did nothing to enhance the experience.

This event was unforgettable. Perfect place to bring the family and learn about the history of our faith.

With the wealth of art and historical objects that the Vatican has it was very unimpressive! There were too many reproduced artifacts and too much emphasis on the Popes in the end. If you weren't Catholic it certainly was not worth the time and effort.

I went to the Vatican exhibit in Cincinnati several years ago and enjoyed it tremendously. I enjoyed this exhibit also. I am so glad I went and took a friend who loved it also!!!

Items were great- but the layout and flow of the actual tour was not very good. The numbering was often hard to find to match the next part of the audio tour. Since the Musem did not open until 10 AM there was a long line to get in and therefore, although you had 10 AM tickets you were late getting in, which caused every time to overlap and too many people in the area at one time. At other tours I have taken at different venues, the actual site opened earlier and then the first tour time was slightly later- such as at the Tut exhibit in NYC the venue opened earlier and then the first tour was at 9:30 at least 30 minutes after opening. I realize that many of the people at the Missouri History Museum are volunteers, but they need some assistance in laying out the flow of the exhibit and need to delay the first tour in the future to at least 10:30 or open the Musuem ealier to get people in and then get the lines started. Also, the placement of the introductory film was poor- there was nothing to block the noise of people entering and visiting the exhibit- they were talking and learning how to operate the audio tour machines- the sound was so low that it was difficult to hear and there was constant interruption during the film/video. I was also disappointed in the fact that many of the items were reproductions of the actual items- I believe this is the first time I have been to anything with this many reproductions and yet the advertisements did not indicate this. Overall, it was informative and interesting but not one of the best exhibits I have attended. I did think that the audio was excellent and it gave a lot of information that would be missed without it. Sometimes the audio just repeats what you can read- but this one was information and helpful.

An interesting view of the Catholic Church's history through the eyes of the Vatican. The items are mostly reproductions, but still lovely. The Pieta was my favorite.

The information around St. Peter's was the most interesting to us. We have been to the vatican and had a sense of the layout of it and the surrounding area. We like the information about the circus on which the Vatican and St. Peter's Church was built. Previous to this I could not understand how they would have known St. Peter was buried there. Placing him in a cemetary outside of the circus makes sense to me. The other intersting thing was the time it took to built St. Peter's and the changes the design of it underwent.

Amazing!! Even if you are not into art, you have to appreciate this. It's unexplainable. Beautiful.

good. but they let you in whenever you wanted to go in. lots of people came early or later, which made the crowds inside very large. couldn't see or read much of the plaques. next time only let people in at the exact time.

I expected many more historical artifacts, especially in the areas of art work, decorative arts and textile arts.

Excellent! A lot of pieces moved from italy for this specific event, definitely worth it.

Excellent, very interesting and informative. descriptive narratives were clear and concise.

Beautiful; very nice that it was arranger chronologically. Great presentation,lighting and docents.

Amazing..very moving. The exhibits were beautiful.

For the most part things were reverently displayed. Several items would have been better displayed in a center area one could walk around circumferentially. Only one slightly disturbing moment-----some very holy relics were on casual display. There should have been a kneeler in front of them. These are very sacred.

The Zsa Zsa collection of artifacts from the Vatican. Many copies.

The museum is very organized as far as getting people into the tour. It seemed rather crowded for and event that had timed entries. The audio tour was not as informative and as necessary as I expected. I would not recommend the headphones to others.

Although the exhibit was interesting and had many items of interest, the audio tour sold at the venue was not great. It didn't provide a context for the entire exhibit. It only covered a smattering of the items on view. Overall, I'd skip it.

This was an amazing exhibit. I am not a religous person, but it was definately a moving experience. There was so much to see. And putting my hand on the mold of Pope John Paul II's was cool. From the pictures to the sculptures, it was breath-taking. A must-see.

I truly enjoyed the Vatican Splendors display. The artwork was magnificant. The show was extremely educational. One thing, they may have considered letting less people in for each show, as it was so crowded that it was difficult to see all of the displays.

Enjoyed the art and information provided listening to the audio helped a lot with facts and other information, Thank You for bring it to Pittsburgh.

It was both amazing and spiritual. Some items had never been outside the Vatican. I wish I could have a list of the names and artists of all of the works so I could try to view them on-line somewhere again. As a Catholic, I would go again this weekend if I could.

This was incredible! Saw sights that were of great historical and religious significance that we might not have otherwise seen. Highly recommend this.

I was so excited to go and it was worth it. I would recommend that you do the audio for the tour. You will be amazed at the information you will learn from this event. I became Catholic in 2000 and the information for me was alot. I learned a great deal from this tour that I would do it again and again just to remember it all. I had a feeling come over me as I was looking at certain artifacts. It was a very good feeling.

I'm very glad I chose to participate in the Audio tour, as it provided additional information about the artwork and artifacts. The artwork and artifacts were breath-taking and inspiring; I was humbled to view pieces of art I've only read about in my art history books.

The display of priceless artwork was amazing and fantastic. To see the artwork, let alone listen to the history behind the items was very impressive. It makes me proud to be Catholic...and to be able to put my hand into the hand print of Pope John Paul II...moved me to tears. Thank you, Thank you for bringing this to Pittsburgh!!

We were in the last time slot and the tour started late. The early exhibits were very beautiful and interesting. About 1/2 way thru the tour we were told to speed it up because they would be closing. So the last half was rather hurried and could not fully appreciate the exhibits or their significance. Iwould go again but not in the last time slot.

The Vatican Splendors Tour was excellent! It was very interesting and traffic flow through the exhibit allowed for easy viewing of the displays.

It was such a pleasure to see a small piece of Italy's history brought to Pittsburgh. It was also a pleasure to see the artifacts up close. The entire tour would have been much more enjoyable if the museum staff had addressed the issue of the screaming infant who continued to squeal and cry for one hour non-stop, much to the aggravation of the roomful of people who wished to enjoy the sanctity of the religious ambiance of which we respected.

This event was everythibg it was billd to be. The only con was that I punched the audio tour which was good but the numbers were not as you got to that part of the tour and some numbers were missing.

I purchased timed tickets in the middle of November - it was to be a special December holiday treat for our family. Can I say I enjoyed it? Yes. Can I say I would have enjoyed it a whole lot more if about half as many people were allowed in during each time slot? Absolutely. Late December and people were packed into each viewing room like sardines. People were often three deep trying to read info on the displays. Literally, you could have about 25 people in a room about the size of an average size dining room. I was happy that I had ordered the audio headset so that I didn't have to be right up next to each exhibit. Fortunately, the people in attendance were basically quiet and respectful. I was also grateful that no major flu bug was in town otherwise EVERYONE in town would now have it. I have been to many important, popular exhibits in DC and NYC, and never was as packed in as this. I kept thinking also that it might have been nice to have someone demonstrating how a fresco is actually done - as a non artist, the description of how the work was done, intrigued me.

We were privileged to have "Vatican Splendors" here in Pittsburgh. The audio tour added essential elements for a deeper understanding of the exhibit. Without the audio, the tour would have been far too superficial, especially considering the crowds of people who were in attendance. I was not expecting the details on the building of the Basilica, which I found fascinating. I also enjoyed seeing the Arabic letters and the Oriental artwork and letters. The mixture of 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional art was also a delight to the eye.

The Audio tour was a big help while checking out the Vatican Splendor at the Heinz History Center. The display itself was nice, but not awesome. I thought I'd see a more impressive collection. The Audio made the experience so much richer. It was like having your own personal tour guide at your leisure. The museum was very liberal with your "timed" tickets. I never felt rushed nor was I asked to leave after a certain time frame. Well run...Heinz History Center.... We also enjoyed your other exhibits. My Western-Pa husband (a Monessen boy) loved the local history exhibits.

Great exhibition. We are certainly glad we didn't miss out on this experience. Truly uniques artifacts and artwork. Audio tour was well worth it. It may have been a better experience if the area of the exhibit was more spacious. It seemed a bit cramped at times especially if you wanted to spend time viewing a particular piece. Only real criticism was ordering tickets on-line for pick-up at will call and upon arrival had to stand in line with people purchasing tickets. There was no dedicated will call pick-up area.

This show was not only for those of the Catholic faith but to everyone interested in history and/or art. I would recommend that any one attending in the future not wait until the final weekend. If I could do it over I would have gone earlier and probably a second time to absorb all there. Some on the art was able to raise ones emotions.

I was VERY glad I ordered the audio tour. Since there were no guides I learned much more than just reading the signs. Someone at work was going and I insisted her and her family get it.

This was truly a very beautiful and educational tour. It was extremely interesting to see all the old artifacts and models of the original vaticans and how they have evolved thru the centuries into what it is today. It was very interesting learning about the different popes from other eras and how they impacted the church.