Holy Spirit Prep Becomes Vatican Patron of the Arts

Theology Department Chair Tom Cole had only heard about the private, after-hours tour of the Vatican Museums, but he wasn’t sure how he could access this experience for the annual Senior Rome Trip. Upon consulting Head Chaplain Fr. Juan Hernandez, Mr. Cole contacted Fr. Kevin Lixey who is the international director of the Patrons of the Arts of the Vatican Museums.

In corresponding with Fr. Kevin, Mr. Cole was able to find out how Holy Spirit Prep could become Patrons of the Arts of the Vatican Museums—by joining the Georgia Chapter—and then benefit from the after-hours tour only available to such patrons. So, that is precisely what he did! “I am hopeful that our membership will remain an ongoing association,” said Mr. Cole, “benefiting both the important work of the Vatican Museums and our seniors, who will be able to visit the museums in such a special way!”

The donation from Holy Spirit Prep went to help one of the restoration projects to restore golden glass artifacts. When the seniors and chaperones visited for the tour, Fr. Kevin gave Mr. Cole a beautiful hardback book highlighting different restoration projects, including this one.

Information about the golden glass artifacts, taken from the Vatican Museums website:

“The golden glass collection of the Vatican Museums is amongst the most remarkable worldwide; and these pieces belong to the most precious glass productions of the late ancient ages. A refined technique allowed the creation of glass pottery, mostly plates and bowls, which were decorated with representations made in gold leaf that were set into two layers of glass.

The majority of these artifacts were found within the Roman catacombs, where they were fixed to the finishing mortar of the cemetery plots. For the most part, they are decorated with features and subjects of the Christian figurative repertoire: biblical and theological themes like the traditio legis, the concordia apostolorum and representations of saints and martyrs. Moreover, there were also family portraits and representations of pagan mythology and Jewish tradition. The restoration intervention, planned for 2017, aims to restore eighteen of these very important relicts and to research a more adequate preservative system to be carried out in specific containers. Moreover, in 2018 there will be an intervention concerning another core of golden glass artifacts; these still have to be defined, as well as other glass objects.”

The membership enabled the seniors to have a private tour of the Vatican Museums, including the Sistine Chapel and Raphael Rooms, after the museum had closed to the general public. “It really was amazing to see the place empty of the crowds that normally fill it,” recalled Mr. Cole. “It also meant we spent some real quality time in the Sistine Chapel, and even got to take a group picture there, which is not typically permitted.”

Established in 1996, Holy Spirit Preparatory School is an independent Catholic school in Atlanta, Georgia, that combines the best traditions of Catholic education with those of a classical preparatory school. Serving students ages six months through twelfth grade, the young school has become known for its strong Catholic identity and its integrated program of academic and spiritual formation. In 2009, the U.S. Department of Education named Holy Spirit Prep a Blue Ribbon School. In 2017, the Catholic Education Honor Roll recognized HSP as a national leader in Catholic identity and academics for the sixth consecutive time.