Publication

1998 - Doubleday, New York, New York (State)

Language

English

Word Count

72,250 words, Guess

Page Count

289 pages

Identifiers

and 2 more
  • Goodreads162932
  • LibraryThing28248

Classifications

  • DDC945.6/34
  • LCCDG794 .H87 1998

Description

When in Rome is a backstairs tour of one of the world's most mysterious and eccentric cities. Hutchinson introduces the varied and colorful individuals who live and work in the Vatican. In the process, he explores the mysterious orders of medieval knights, some dating back to the First Crusade, which still play a vital role in the Vatican; explains how bumbling Vatican archaeologists found, and then lost, the bones of St. Peter; probes the sex lives of the popes, from the "pornocracy" of Sergius III to the incestuous orgies of Rodrigo Borgia; experiences high fashion in the Holy See, including a visit to the pope's personal tailor; encounters the weird relics of Catholicism, such as the mummified body of St. Pius X and a museum made entirely out of human bones; recounts the true story behind the True Cross, now kept in a run-down church near the Colosseum; and much, much more.

Subjects

Topics

Vatican cityHutchinson, Robert J.Description and travelSocial life and customsVatican City -- Description and travel.Vatican City -- Social life and customs.

Places

People

Robert J. Hutchinson

Other Editions

  • When in Rome: a journal of life in Vatican CityDoubleday1998-01-01

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