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10 November 1885 — Rome | |
Tuesday. 10th [November 1885]. Called at 7.30. Breakfasted at 9 & then went out with Sir John to see the garden which [he] has had put into beautiful order—& we walked in the lovely ilex avenue & in the hanging garden on the old city walls. We saw the fine Roman mosaic pavement he had discovered & put in order at the end of the garden– The weather was fine & the air cold and Henry already feels better. At 10.30 we dressed to go out in the carriage & drove to the Vatican to the Bronze gates. Not finding there the gentleman Sir John was in quest of we drove right round the building to the Library door and at last found the man who showed us the Raphael tapestries, 2 of which are not to be found in any other collection & which the S. Kensington Museum is therefore having copied, painted in oils on canvass. After seeing them we went through the library to the Borgia apartment to see the decorations by Pinturicchio & finally we came to the Bronze gate where the carriage had come round to meet us & took us home to luncheon. Afterwards we took a drive with Sir John to the Palatine to see some fine bronze statues wh have lately been discovered in digging the foundations of a bridge over the Tiber. We could not see them as 2 had been removed & the 3rd was under repair. We left cards on several people & returned home after 4. Had tea in our rooms & rested till dinner at 7.30 when we went upstairs to the state drawing rooms & there was a dinner party of Englishmen– Mrs Kennedy, the 1st secy’s wife being the only lady besides myself. Genl Maxwell, Mr Woods (of Ephesus), Mr Bliss, Mr Haseltine, Mr Beauclerk (2nd secy), Mr Plowden, Mr MacDonell the sculptor &c &c dined. Sir John took me in & Genl Maxwell sat on my left. We dined in the room next the drawing rooms. In the evening a few English people came but no one I had known before. Two young ladies played the piano feebly. | |
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