Trips

Sun., 5/14/23 - Trento

Trento is one of Italy’s five autonomous regions or states. Fifteen regions are governed and taxed by Rome and five (Sicily, Sardinia and 3 border areas like this one) have more authority concerning laws and tax structure. These 5 retain 60-100% of their taxes and receive less help from Rome but their taxes are used for benefits more appropriate to their region which is so unlike the rest of Italy.

A local guide took the group on a walking tour of Trento.

Wall bas relief	Street scene
Colonnade which once housed German merchants' shops	Street scene
Church of San Pietro	Bell tower of the Church of San Pietro
The center of the old city near the Duomo has the houses of previously wealthy people. Many of the house walls have extensive frescos painted on them. The Duomo houses the cathedral and the tribunal for civic affairs.
One of the many tiled roofs	Fresco
Lots of frescos - very elaborate
Advertising the annual Economy Festival
The tour took us to the outer grounds of the castle, Castello del Buonconsiglio. Our guide explained that the castle was lived in by “prince-bishops” from the 13th to the 18th centuries. These “prince-bishops” served in both civil governance and church business. Each new owner added on to the original building. The castle has swallow tail battlements signifying its Ghibeline (non-Roman pope) orientation and interesting defensive projections (bosses) on the lower walls.	Castello del Buonconsiglio
	Projections (bosses) that dissipate the energy of projectiles
At the end of the group tour, nine of us headed back to the castle and used our Trento Card, provided by OAT, for free or reduced price museum tickets. It still cost us 7 euros each even with the card. The castle now houses a museum of items found locally from the Iron, Bronze, etc. Ages and art from these early times through the Renaissance. Some of the information about the various displays was in English, but we had to use Google Translator to identify many of the objects. We spent a lots of time going through many rooms on the way up to the castelvecchio (the old castle) and finally got to the rooms with intricate wooden carved and painted ceilings and frescoed walls. The portrait of every prince-bishop and some German/Austrian kings is painted on the walls. We walked through the large hall (ballroom) and Hall of Mirrors and several balconies and courtyards. It was overwhelming by the end.	Model of the Castello del Buonconsiglio Museum
Museum interior	Coat of arms of a pope
Coat of arms of another pope	Cast for making daggers
Jewelry - Pins	Necklace
Mosaic from the floor of an early Christian basilica	Lion of St. Mark
Beautiful pottery	Beautiful pottery
Mausoleum of Cesare Battisti The man was a symbol of local irredentism - a policy of advocating the return to Italy of all Italian-speaking districts subject to other countries.	Trento from the Castello del Buonconsiglio Museum
Frescos on the walls of the museum	Portraits of the Bishops of Trento
Portraits of the Bishops of Trento	Portraits of the Bishops of Trento
Tile fire place	Tile fire place
Papal coat of arms	Statue of Santa Lucia
Ceiling	Alpenhorn
Garden of the museum	After a rest and lunch back at the hotel, we walked to the Duomo. It is nothing very special inside. The walls were mostly plain. The markers for the Stations of the Cross were uniquely modern. The rose window was not stained glass and is referred to locally as the “Wheel of Fortune.” On the way out, we ate gelato from Grom.
Duomo - Cathedral di San Vigilio	Cathedral di San Vigilio
Cathedral di San Vigilio	Neptune fountain outside the Cathedral di San Vigilio
Plain interior of the Cathedral di San Vigilio	Plain rose window, as well
Very modern Stations of the Cross	Very modern Stations of the Cross
Torre Civica - City Tower

Continue on next page