Day 99: Trieste

JULY 11 - Yesterday I mentioned the history of Trieste since the 1700’s. But, as with just about any urban center along the Adriatic coast, evidence remains of Roman occupation.

The Roman amphitheater, which I thought was in fairly good shape. It dates from the 1st to 2nd Century AD, but was buried beneath a village until 1938, when demolition of the houses above brought it to light.

Behind the amphitheater is the obvious focus of any ancient settlement, a steep hilltop that has a commanding view of any approaching ships in the area. It is up here that Roman ruins were found, once some of the later (medieval, etc) structures had fallen into disrepair and were removed.

San Giusto Cathedral, which began to take its current form in the 11th Century, also sits at the top of the hill. The belltower (left) dates from the 12th Century.

Some nice tilework in the central nave of the cathedral.

Surprise! During some construction work on the cathedral, a Roman temple was discovered to exist in the foundations. This practice of just building over the temples of older religions is about as common as it gets.

Next to the cathedral are the remains of the Roman forum, with the wall of San Giusto Castle, built between 1468-1636 as a residence for the Austrian Imperial Captain.

The entrance of San Giusto Castle, behind the trees.

There are several memorials on this hill, dedicated to soldiers lost in the wars of the 20th Century.

This is a good overall summary of what downtown Trieste looks like.

Odette reads over the shoulder of Gabriele D’Annunzio (Il Vate), poet, playwright, politician, and WWI army officer.

We head north on the #6 bus along the coast to Miramare Castle.

Only three days in Vienna wasn’t long enough for me to get into many of the Habsburg personalities. One that I’ve dealt with from a numismatic historical standpoint is Maximillian I. He was the younger brother of Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria, and an archduke of Austria. He served as Viceroy of Lombardy-Venetia, then as Emperor of Mexico in 1864-67.

He comes into the story here because of this awesome residence he had built along the Adriatic coast. He converted the bare limestone outcropping of this seaside property into an extensive botanical garden, in keeping with his personal interests.

Maximillian bought the land for his castle and garden in 1855-56, and the residence was complete by 1860.

A view along the coast back toward Trieste.

The central stairway to the upper floors.

Maximillian specifically commissioned many rooms to be relatively small and completely of wood, as this reminded him of a ship’s cabin (he was commander-in-chief of the Imperial Austrian Navy).

One of the dining rooms.

One of the rooms used by Maximillian’s wife, Charlotte of Belgium.

I’m only showing this table because supposedly it was where Maximillian signed the paperwork to become Emperor of Mexico. It was not a job he wanted, being more interested in nature and the arts. Indeed, his tenure as ruler of Mexico was not a happy one, as Mexico was hostile to having a Habsburg ruler. When the French troops supporting his shaky rule there did a runner, he was overthrown and executed by firing squad (1867).

I think this is only the second photo we’ve managed to get with all three of us in it.

Yes, its just a bronze statue behind some elephant grass. But this garden did have some good stuff. Gifting of rare or unusual plants was a big deal in the 18th and 19th Century between members of the European nobility. Two trees of note in this garden are coastal redwoods, and a ginkgo tree.

Janet gets photo award of the day for this one. The wide angle distortion of her smartphone camera worked just perfectly for this beach shot by Miramare Castle.

Italy