S. SPIRITO IN SASSIA
Via dei Penitenzieri 12/Via Borgo
S. Spirito
Church
inside the SCHOLA SAXONUM, the complex built in the year 727 for Ina
king of the Saxons in order to assist his compatriots pilgrims, the English of
Wessex, the south west of England
Rebuilt in
1198 when it took the name of S. Spirito (Holy Spirit) for Innocent III
Conti di Segni (1198/1216)
It was
rebuilt again in the years 1471/75 for the Jubilee of 1475 when it was united
to the nearby hospital of S. Spirito at the behest of Pope Sixtus IV Della
Rovere (1471/84)
After the
destruction for the sack of Rome in 1527, new reconstruction and FAÇADE 1538/45 by Antonio Cordini aka Antonio da
Sangallo il Giovane (1483/1546) for Pope Paul III (1534/49)
“Sangallo
was able to operate an organic synthesis between the fifteenth-century
architectural culture and the changing needs for urban quality and
representational appearance typical of his century and beyond. It is also
remarkable this sort of timelessness that hovers in the entire building and
that often makes one underestimate the architectural choices and confuses the
visitor accustomed to recognize the same architectural choices in many churches
of the second half of the sixteenth century” (Sivigliano Alloisi)
COAT OF
ARMS, STAIRCASE AND PLASTERING OF THE FAÇADE
1588/90 by Ottaviano Nonni aka Ottaviano Mascherino (1524/1606) for Sixtus V Peretti
(1585/90)
BELL
TOWER
1471 maybe
by Baccio Pontelli (about 1450/92). It is unique
among the Romans bell towers for its robustness that makes it look like a
watchtower for the Vatican citadel
“The
decoration of S. Spirito in Sassia represents a significant evolution in the
field of contemporary visual arts, especially the works of Jacopo Zucchi
showing an attempt to give to the ideologies of the counterreformation a strong
structure. The evolution of the sixteenth-century artistic tools here has three
phases: in the time of Paul III there is still the Renaissance language
assigned to the school of Perin del Vaga. A second phase (1544/77) in which
Livio Agresti operates with the interventions of Pompeo Cesura and Giuseppe
Valeriano; a third and more important phase, with Jacopo Zucchi eventually
replaced by Cesare Nebbia” (Sivigliano Alloisi)
CEILING
Wooden
lacunar ceiling of 1547, restored in the mid-1700s and in 1856
COUNTER
FAÇADE
“Coming of
the Holy Spirit” about 1930 by Antonino Calcagnadoro (1876/1935)
“Angels”, “St.
Peter”, “St. Paul” and “Sibyls” about 1583 by Cesare
Conti (about 1550/1622)
On the left
“Visitation” 1545, the first Roman work of Marco
Pino aka Marco da Siena (about 1525/87)
On the
right “Conversion of St.
Paul”
begun in 1545 by Francesco de' Rossi aka Francesco
Salviati (1510/63) and finished by his pupil Pedro
de Rubiales
1st
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF PENTECOST
Above the
altar “Pentecost” 1588, on the right “Prophet Joel”,
on the left “St. John the Baptist”, frescoes on the walls and vault by Jacopo Zucchi (about 1542/96)
“The
Pentecost theme that in the apse he had painted a few years before had exploded
in a clear willingness to involve the whole ecclesial community encompassing
the whole church with the miracle action, here is more intimate and exclusive.
It becomes an event that qualifies as an example and witness of grace,
understood as reward and encouragement that God offers to those who have done
well in life. The means employed by Zucchi to express these concepts are very
different from those used in the complex machinery of the apse. The medium is
no longer the allure of perspective but the emotion of light, whose presence is
capable of upsetting and suggest sensations, even to the point to reduce the
viewer in a state of feverish excitement” (Sivigliano Alloisi)
2nd
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF THE ASSUMPTION
Above the
altar “Assumption” 1576 maybe by Livio Agresti (about 1508/79) but more likely by his
pupil Litardo Piccioli
On the
right “Circumcision” by Paris
Nogari (about 1536/1601) and on the
left “Nativity of the Virgin Mary” by G.B. Lombardelli (about 1538/92)
Decorations
in the basin “Life of the Virgin Mary” by Livio Agresti
ORGAN
WITH BALCONY
Fixed here
in 1547, according to Arnaldo Bruschi, by Andrea
Palladio (1508/80)
Paintings by
artists under the organ by artists of the school of
Livio Agresti
3rd
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF THE HOLY TRINITY AND S. FILIPPO NERI
Devotional
image “Merciful Jesus” 1994 by the Polish painter Piotr
Moskal, which has replaced the lost “Trinity”
by Livio Agresti
On the
sides “Healing of the blind man and the paralytic” by Livio
Agresti (about 1508/79)
4th
RIGHT - TRANSFIGURATION CHAPEL
Above the
altar “Ascension” 1570, vault “Pentecost”, on the
right “St. Augustine”, on the left “St. Paul” by Giuseppe
Valeriano (1542/96)
APSE
In the
upper part “God the Father”, in the basin “Jesus between St.
Peter and St. John the Baptist”, in the lower part “Pentecost”, on the sides “Stories of Sts.
Peter and Paul” 1582/83 by Jacopo Zucchi (about 1542/96)
with his brother Francesco Zucchi (about
1562/1622) with iconographic program designed by father Egnazio Danti (1536/86), the mastermind of the phantasmagoric Gallery of the Geographical Maps
in the Vatican Museums
“The use of
a perspective structure open on a fictitious space that simultaneously engages,
with an effect of redundancy, on a real space is a bold artistic idea that is
unparalleled in its time. Although similar expedients, but on a smaller scale,
had already been tested by artists in the High Renaissance (Mantegna,
Correggio), it is surprising to see this sudden revival of thematic perspective
that Mannerism had made obsolete and especially their application on such a
scale. In fact, after the difficult years of religious crisis, the Catholic Church
feels now strong enough to regain the initiative and felt the inadequacy of the
artistic language tools devised by Mannerism” (Sivigliano Alloisi)
MAIN ALTAR
Relics of
Sts. Tryphon, Respicius, Nymph, Agapitus and Severa
On the
floor in front of the altar “Commemorative plaque of the physician Giovanni
Maria Lancisi” d. 1720
5th
LEFT - CHAPEL OF St. JOHN THE EVANGELIST AND OF THE VIRGIN MARY
Above the
altar “St. John the Evangelist” 1834 by Antonio
Giorgini
“Stories of
the Old Testament” and on the right “Martyrdom of St.
John the Evangelist” attributed by Vasari to Marcello
Venusti, but in reality by artists of the school of
Perin del Vaga
4th
LEFT - CHAPEL OF THE HOLY CROSS OR GONZAGA
Above the
altar “Deposition” and oil paintings on the wall “Saints and stories of the Old
Testament”, on the sides “Adoration of the Shepherds” and “Resurrection”
1554/57 the first major works of Livio Agresti
(about 1508/79)
“This chapel
opened a new chapter in the history of Roman Mannerism anticipating that devout
and pious feeling that would characterize the second half of the century”
(Sivigliano Alloisi)
3rd
LEFT - CHAPEL OF THE CRUCIFIX
On the
altar “Crucifix” of the sixteenth century
Frescoes “Stories
of the Passion of Christ” maybe by Livio Agresti
or Pedro de Rubiales
On the
right “Tomb of Antonio Foderato” 1549 containing small relief with “Pietà” by Jacopo
Del Duca (about 1520/1604), maybe from a design by Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475/1564) with a very
controversial subject at the time, for which Michelangelo was described as an inventor
of garbage by an anonymous author of a contemporary document
2nd
LEFT - CHAPEL OF St. AUGUSTINE
Above the
altar “Coronation of the
Virgin Mary” (moved here from the first chapel on the left) about 1595 by Cesare Nebbia (1536/1614)
Frescoes in
the basin with “Stories of St. Augustine”, on the sides “St. Augustine” and “St.
Monica” begun by Pompeo Cesura (?/1571) and
maybe finished by his pupils
1st
LEFT - BAPTISTERY
Statue of “St.
Aloysius Gonzaga and a young man” by Ignazio Jacometti (1819/83)
Frescoes “Saints”
by Cesare Nebbia and pupils
SACRISTY
Above the
altar “St. Helena, relics of the Passion of Christ, the risen Christ and saints”
by Jacopo Zucchi (about 1542/96)
St. Helena
in this painting has maybe the appearance of Clelia Farnese, daughter of
Cardinal Alessandro Farnese and lover of Cardinal Ferdinando de' Medici
Vault
and walls with “Stories of the Schola Saxonum with popes and allegorical
figures” 1648/50 masterpiece by Guidobaldo Abbatini
(1600/56) the painter favorited as collaborator by Gian Lorenzo Bernini
S. SISTO VECCHIO
Piazzale
Numa Pompilio 8
Built on
the Titulus Crescentinae, founded by St. Anastasius I (399/401)
The
dedication to the pope and martyr St. Sixtus II (257/258) appears for the first
time in a document of the year 595, and according to the hagiographic and
epigraphic tradition his relics are preserved here
It was
rebuilt at the time of Innocent III Conti di Segni (1198/1216) and donated in
1219 to St. Dominic who founded here his first monastery for cloistered nuns in
perfect seclusion
The
monastery was built in 1222
Various
restorations, the last one in the years 1725/27 by Filippo
Raguzzini (1680/1771)
BELL TOWER
of the beginning of the thirteenth century
On the left
side “Portal in marble” 1478
INTERIOR
Restored by
Filippo Raguzzini
APSE
Frescoes “Sts.
Sixtus and Lawrence” and “Holy Trinity” of the sixteenth century
LEFT SIDE
OF THE PRESBYTERY
Important
cycle of frescoes of the thirteenth or fourteenth century with “Scenes from the
New Testament and the Apocrypha, histories of St. Catherine, Pentecost”
More
fourteenth-century frescoes in a small room to the right of the chancel and on
the walls of a staircase to the right of the apse
CLOISTER
Thirty-two
lunettes with “Stories of St. Dominic” 1725/28 by Andrea
Casali (1705/84) from Lucca, a pupil of Sebastiano Conca and Francesco
Trevisani
“Contemporaries
of Andrea Casali appreciated his ability to animate the scenes with several
characters and dramatic effects combined with the grace of 'arcadism', all
lessons, these, learned from Conca and Trevisani (...). The same factors
determined also his success in England, where he took themes and designs
intended to create a fascinating and bright world, preferring the light tones
and multiplying the female figures, while the repetition of motifs and the
speed of execution altered his technique. The theatrical and superficial aspect
of this conventional antiquity would ultimately emerge. Nevertheless, Casali
was long regarded as a talented artist and his sociability contributed to his
success” (Olivier Michel - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Treccani)
In the
garden behind the church is the SEMENZAIO (seedbed), modern version of the native
plants nursery established here by Pius IX Mastai-Ferretti (1846/78)
S. SILVESTRO IN CAPITE
Piazza
di S. Silvestro 17a
Built about
761 as Ss. Silvestro e Stefano (Sts. Sylvester and Stephen) under Pope
Stephen II (752/757) on the ruins TEMPLE OF THE SUN by Aurelian (270/275) from
which many of the archaeological fragments preserved in the cloister probably
come from
Known as inter
duos hortos (in between two gardens) because it was surrounded by gardens
or in capite (at the head) because there is a relic of the head of St.
John the Baptist
Tufa blocks
taken from the Servian Walls were used for the foundations of the church
Fully
restored in the years 1198/1216
BELL
TOWER
1216 with
on top “Bronze rooster” of the twelfth century, the only one in Rome still in
the original place
Rebuilt in
the years 1595/1601 with a design by Francesco Capriani aka Francesco da Volterra (1535/94) continued by Carlo Maderno (1556/1629)
1680/96 interior decoration by Carlo Rainaldi (1611/91), Mattia
De Rossi (1637/95) and Domenico De Rossi
(1659/1703)
FAÇADE
1703 by Domenico De Rossi
Statues on the façade from left to right:
“St.
Sylvester” by Lorenzo Ottoni (1648/1736)
“St.
Stephen” by Michel Maille aka Michele Maglia (active Rome in the second half
of the seventeenth century)
“St.
Francis” by Vincenzo Felice (about 1657/1715)
“St. Clare”
by Giuseppe Mazzuoli (1644/1725)
The monks
who used to officiate this church, first Greeks and later Benedictines were the
owners of the Column of Marcus Aurelius as mentioned by an inscription 1119 in
the COURTYARD
From 1285
to 1876 it was the seat of the Poor Clares
Since about
1886 it is officiated by the English Pallottine Fathers and it is the English National Catholic Church
PORTAL with
frame of the thirteenth century
INTERIOR
VAULT
Splendid “Assumption in glory
with saints” 1680 by Giacinto Brandi (1621/91) who
was inspired by the Baciccio
At the
corners “Sibyls” design by Mattia De Rossi
(1637/95)
Above the
entrance “Choir with Organ” 1680
1st
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF Sts. ANTHONY OF PADUA AND STEPHEN
Above the
altar “Madonna and Child with Sts. Anthony of Padua and Stephen” 1695 and
paintings with “Stories of Sts. Anthony of Padua and Stephen” by Giuseppe Chiari (1654/1727), a pupil of Niccolò
Berrettoni who was, in turn, a pupil of Carlo Maratta
2nd
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF St. FRANCIS
Above the
altar “St. Francis receiving the stigmata” by Orazio Lomi aka Orazio Gentileschi (1563/1639) from Pisa
Walls and
vault “Stories of St. Francis” by Luigi Garzi
(1638/1721)
3rd
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Above the
altar “Our Lady of Pentecost” and rest of the decoration by Giuseppe Ghezzi (1634/1721)
RIGHT
TRANSEPT
Above the
altar “Madonna and Child with saints” by Baccio Ciarpi
(1574/1654)
In the
vault “Stories of St. Sylvester” 1690 by Ludovico
Gimignani (1643/97) the eldest son of Giacinto Gimignani (1606/81) who was his first
teacher. He trivially died aged 54 for an enema too hot
“The
activity of Ludovico, from the outset, closely interwove with that of Bernini,
finding in Giulio Rospigliosi,
later Pope Clement IX (1667/69) his main patron. Since his early works
Bernini's teaching was decisive for him, as well as characteristics derived
from his father's style. Equally important for his artistic development was the
journey in 1668 to Venice, Lombardy and Modena, together with Gaulli on the
recommendation of Bernini and with a scholarship of Clement IX. The works by
Veronese were extremely important for his future artistic development. (...)
The decoration of S. Silvestro in Capite is a summary of the different cultural
currents of those years; with its calmer exhibition tones it offers the best
example of great sacred decoration in Rome at the end of the century” (Ursula Verena Fischer
Pace)
DOME
1595
frescos “Angels, Evangelists and God the Father” about 1604 by Cristoforo Roncalli aka Pomarancio (1552/1626) and
assistants
MAIN CHAPEL
Marble
altar with “Arch and angels holding the Edessena image” 1518 by Tuscan sculptors perhaps even by Michelangelo
Buonarroti (1475/1564) as well
Tabernacle
by Carlo Rainaldi (1611/91)
APSE
On the
right “Martyrdom of St. Stephen I” and on the left “Messengers of Constantine
call St. Sylvester” 1610 maybe by Orazio Borgianni (1578/1616)
In the
basin “Baptism of
Constantine” by Ludovico Gimignani
LEFT
TRANSEPT
Above the
altar “Madonna and Child
with saints” by Terenzio Terenzi da Urbino (active
from about 1578/d. 1620)
3rd
LEFT - CHAPEL OF THE IMMACULATE
Above the
altar “Immaculate Conception” 1696 and frescoes on the ceiling by Ludovico Gimignani
2nd
LEFT - CHAPEL OF St. JOSEPH
Above the
altar “Pope S. Marcellus has the vision of the Holy Family”, paintings on the
sides with “Stories of St. Joseph” and vault with “Glory of St. Joseph” 1695 by
Ludovico Gimignani
1st
LEFT - CHAPEL OF THE PASSION OF CHRIST
Above the
altar “Crucifixion” 1695, on the left “Flagellation”, on the right “Way to Calvary” and vault with “Triumph of the Cross” by the remarkable Istrian painter Francesco Trevisani (1656/1746) who had with these
works his first major and well-deserved success in Rome
“Under the inventive
aspect, marginal contributions from Caravaggio, whom he certainly admired, can
be highlighted. More direct influences, especially for the Triumph of the
Cross, from Lanfranco, also for his use of colors, and finally a vivifying
memory of compositional solutions from Veronese. But the seventeenth-century
Roman experiences had to be decisive for a distillation of his primitive
language towards a really unusual color intensity, unparalleled among his
fellow Roman painters, and towards a compositional clarity and brightness,
which did not exclude the calibrated movement of scenes such as the
Flagellation (...) or the controlled tumult of the Ascent to Calvary. In this
scene the influence of Maratta was prevalent and positive, but a major factor
was constituted, in our view, also by a familiarity with the paintings of the
Roman Bamboccianti. Indeed, the animated excitement of the scene mentioned
above looks like the implementation on a sacred level of a seventeenth-century
genre scene, represented with the detailed meticulousness typical of the
artists of Northern Europe, but expressed with the luminosity and the palette
of a Venetian painter, purified from its seventeenth century dross” (Giancarlo
Sestieri)
SACRISTY
Frescoes:
“Crucifixion”
of the thirteenth century
“Virgin
Mary of the Milk” of the fifteenth century
“Flagellation”
fourteenth of fifteenth century from the former monastery
RELIQUARY
Fourteenth
century, with skull believed to be the head of St. John the Baptist
It was
stolen in 1969 but returned by the thief the next day. Up to the early
nineteenth century also the head of St. Sylvester was kept in the church
S. SILVESTRO AL QUIRINALE
Via
XXIV Maggio 10
Mentioned
for the first time by the sources in 1030
Built over
the TEMPLE OF SEMO SANCUS DIUS FIDIUS on the spur of the Quirinal Hill known as
Mucialis Hill or Sanqualis Hill, from the name of the temple and
of the nearby gate of the Servian
Walls
Known also
as S. Silvestro in Caballo (St. Sylvester at the Horse) and later as S.
Silvestro in Arcioni from the Arcioni family who used to live in this area
Rebuilt in
the years 1524/27 for Clement VII Medici (1523/34)
FAÇADE
1873/77 Andrea Busiri Vici (1818/1911) who destroyed the
original façade and the first two chapels, following the lowering of 9 m (30
feet) of Via del Quirinale
CEILING
Coffered
wooden ceiling of the second half of the sixteenth century
COUNTER
FAÇADE
“Tomb of
Cardinal Federico Cornaro” 1591 maybe by G.B Della
Porta (1542/1602)
1st
CHAPEL ON THE LEFT
Remarkable
FLOOR in tiles 1525/27 by Luca Della Robbia
(about 1400/82). They are just like the ones used by Raphael for the Vatican
Loggia
Lower
frieze painted with “Monochrome putti” and frescoes on the side walls “Stories of Mary
Magdalene” and “Stories of St. Catherine of Siena” by Polidoro
Caldara aka Polidoro da Caravaggio (about 1495/1543) and Maturino
da Firenze (?/1528)
They are
the first landscapes ever in Roman Renaissance painting
“Outwardly
they are blunt as far as colors, monochrome, almost like the façade of Palazzo Milesi,
and have, like the actual artist's drawings, soft traits with a pictorial
effect. But their real importance is the fact that they successful bring
together huge landscaped grounds and ancient style buildings. It is amazing to
find in a period so remote a representation of heroic landscapes that
anticipates the substance of the entire artistic development all the way until
Gaspard Dughet and Claude Lorrain. Only a contemporary of Raphael, akin to him
in spirit, could have succeeded in this great innovation to complement the
style rediscovered by history” (Hermann Voss)
Vault “Stories
of St. Stephen” by Giuseppe Cesari aka Cavalier
d'Arpino (1568/1640)
2nd
LEFT - GHISLIERI CHAPEL
Above the
altar “Nativity” about 1575 by Marcello Venusti
(about 1512/79)
On the
right “Circumcision” and on the left “Adoration of the Magi” maybe by Jacopo Zucchi (about 1542/96)
On the
vault, on the right “Dream of St. Joseph” and on the left “Massacre of the
Innocents” about 1575 maybe by Raffaellino Motta aka Raffaellino
da Reggio (1550/78)
1st
CHAPEL ON THE RIGHT
Above the
altar “Pope Silvester baptizes Constantine” about 1610 by Avanzino Nucci (1552/1629) from the destroyed chapel
2nd
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF OUR LADY OF THE CHAIN
Painting on
board “Our Lady of the Chain” of the thirteenth century by the Roman school inserted in “St. Pius V Ghislieri
(1566/72) and the cardinal nephew Alessandrino in adoration of the Virgin Mary”
about 1646 by Giacinto Gimignani (1606/81)
Frescoes on
the walls, ceiling and under-arches by Cesare Nebbia
(1536/1614)
PRESBYTERY
In the
vault wonderful frescoes “Angels with palm
trees and coats of arms” 1600/01 by the brothers Giovanni Alberti (1558/1601)
and Cherubino Alberti (1553/1615)
and continued in the second vault in 1602 by Matteo
Zaccolini and Giuseppe Agellio
It is one
of the first examples of perspective painting on the vaults of any church
“The
interest in the architectural-decorative element is significantly strong in the
Alberti family: the father Alberto and his three sons Giovanni, Cherubino and
Alessandro, as well as their cousin Durante. All that had been done in
illusionistic painting in central Italy (quadrature) at the level of isolated
attempts, is summed up by their monumentality and elevated to the effect that
prepares the way for the great perspective painters of the seventeenth century,
from Pietro da Cortona to Andrea Pozzo. Already in Raphael and his school there
had been some attempts to illusionistic effects, as the recurrent and beloved
painted views in between columns. (...) That however was a very simple system
based on a strictly architectural concept. A different story with the Albertis,
where (...) each architectural idea push into each other, putti with garlands
and coats of arms float in the entire space, richly articulated allegorical
figures are placed on the balustrades - in short, the architectural scheme is
enlivened in a larger than life way from a decorative point of view and it is
dissolved in the pictorial element” (Hermann Voss)
On the left
“St. Cajetan receives milk from the Virgin Mary” by Lazzaro
Baldi (about 1624/1703)
On the
right “Dispute of Jesus” by the Theatin father Biagio
Betti
RIGHT
TRANSEPT
Above the
altar “St. Cajetan Thiene and St. Andrew Avellino” 1630 by Antonio Alberti detto il Barbalonga (1600/49), the best pupil of Domenichino
AT
THE END OF THE LEFT TRANSEPT - BANDINI CHAPEL
Splendid
and sumptuous chapel built in the years 1580/85 by the Bolognese Ottaviano
Nonni aka Ottaviano Mascherino (1524/1606)
“Considered
for a long time a minor artist (Golzio, 1929/30), more recent studies have
highlighted his figure as emblematic in the history of Roman art at the end of
the sixteenth century, his importance becoming apparent both from the analysis
of his personal life and from his works - even if often of controversial
attribution - well representing the moment of transition from late Mannerism to
Baroque. (...) He owed much of his fame to the favor granted to him by the
fellow Bolognese Gregory XIII Boncompagni (1572/85). He came to Rome probably
in 1574 along with other artists and illustrious Bolognese called by the pope
to work in the Vatican and to fill key posts in the administration and in the
papal court. (...) In Rome he had brought his wife Domenica de Pinis, from Siena,
(...) with whom it seems he lived in the Borgo neighborhood in a house on Via
del 'Mascherino'“ (Isabella Salvagni - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani
Treccani)
Beautiful “Assumption”
1585 on slate by Scipione Pulzone (about
1550/98)
In the
spandrels of the dome “Round panels with biblical scenes”:
“David
dancing before the ark of the covenant”, “Judith with the Head of Holofernes”, “Esther
before Ahasuerus”, “Solomon and Bathsheba” in 1628 by Domenico Zampieri aka Domenichino (1581/1641)
In the corner
niches statues in stucco “Mary Magdalene” and “St. John” 1628 two of the first
works in Rome by Alessandro Algardi (1598/1654)
and “St. Joseph” and “St. Martha” maybe by Francesco
Mochi (1580/1654)
On the left
“Sepulchral monument of Cardinal Ottavio Bandini” by Giuliano
Finelli (1602/53)
The left
transept leads to a SMALL TERRACE, with a cemetery chapel, with pretty stuccos
on the façade
Around the
mid-sixteenth century here gathered some protagonists of the Roman cultural
scene in a sort of religious Upper Room, where a possible internal reform of the
church was usually discussed
The
organizer was the brother Lancellotto Politi da Siena and among the
participants were Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475/1564) and Vittoria Colonna
S. SATURNINO
Via Avigliana 3/Via Topino -
Quartiere Trieste
1935 Clemente Busiri Vici (1887/1965)
Original
and austere FAÇADE with a large apse
Under the MAIN ALTAR relics of St. Saturninus moved here
in 1987 from the churches of Sts. John and Paul (body parts) and St. Peter in
Chains (skullcap)
St.
Saturninus was from Carthage and, according to tradition, was beheaded on Via
Nomentana in the year 304 AD
S. SALVATORE IN ONDA
Via
dei Pettinari 51
Mentioned
for the first time by the sources in 1127
It was
originally dedicated to S. Salvatore and S. Cesareo (St. Saviour and St.
Cesareus)
The
official name is Chiesa della Trasfigurazione di Nostro Signore Gesù Cristo
(Church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ)
Maybe it
was called S. Salvatore in Onda for the frequent floods of the nearby
river or for a now lost old painting which used to be visible in the church
with “Saviour walking on water”
In 1445 it
was given to the Franciscans who remained here for about 400 years
In the
adjacent CONVENT Francesco Della Rovere lived before he became Pope Sixtus IV
(1471/84) and also Felice Peretti before becoming Pope Sixtus V (1585/90)
In 1684 it
was restored and reduced in size
Restored
again in the years 1725/29 for Benedict XIII Orsini (1724/30) and in 1845 for
St. Vincent Pallotti (1795/1850) to whom the church had been entrusted as the
seat of the Congregazione dell'Apostolato Cattolico (Congregation of the
Catholic Apostolate) founded by him in 1835
“After the
tornado of the French Revolution and Napoleon, bishops, priests, clergy,
scholars, acted generously in defense of the faith. And Vincent Pallotti saw
and appreciated that. But he said that it was not enough: the real problem was
not to protect the fence of the believers. No, at that time one had to conquer
other believers still, everywhere, knocking down fences. He added: this is the
task of all, because every Christian has the duty to keep the faith and to
spread it where there is no more faith or not yet. This was a program of
attack. Vincenzo respected the apostolic mandate peculiar to the Pope, bishops,
clergy, but then spoke of 'Catholic apostolate' as a duty and responsibility
for every Christian, because 'God has commanded everyone to help getting
eternal salvation for his neighbor' (...) Pius XI proclaimed Vincent 'real
worker of the missions', 'provident and valuable collaborator and forerunner of
the Azione Cattolica (Catholic Action)'. Pope John XXIII proclaimed him a saint
in 1963” (Domenico Agasso - Famiglia Cristiana - www.santiebeati.it)
It is
currently officiated by the Pallottines Missionaries
FAÇADE 1845
INTERIOR
1877/78 Luca Carimini (1830/90) who restored the church,
revealing the “Twelve ancient columns”, and raised the level of the floor
CEILING
1876
CLERESTORY
Entablature
also in the apse with faux gold mosaic representing on the right “Symbols of
the Old Testament” and on the left “Tools of martyrdom and symbols of the
Evangelists” maybe by Alessandro Palombi (active
late nineteenth/early twentieth century)
Alternating
in between the windows “Characters of the Old Testament” by Filippo Prosperi (1831/1913) a pupil of Cesare Mariani
IN THE
RIGHT NAVE - CHAPEL OF THE VIRGO POTENS
1863 Luca Carimini
On the
altar “Virgo Potens” (Powerful Virgin Mary) of the end of the eighteenth
century. It belonged to the Blessed Elisabetta Sanna who is buried here
Canvases “Immaculate
Conception”, “St. Francis or Bonaventure”, “St. Anthony of Padua”, “Annunciation”,
“Judith and Holofernes” and “Esther and Ahasuerus” 1875/76 by Cesare Mariani (1826/1901)
WALL AT THE
END OF THE RIGHT NAVE - ALTAR OF Sts. JOSEPH, COSMAS AND DAMIAN
“Apparition
of St. Joseph and Christ Child to Sts. Cosmas and Damian” by Massimiliano Seitz
MAIN ALTAR
1950 by Luigi Fracassini with, inside, the body of St.
Vincent Pallotti
“Virgin
Mary and Child” 1878 by Cesare Mariani
APSE
In the
apsidal basin “Transfiguration” by Filippo Prosperi
Wall of the
apse “Sts. Peter, Paul, John of Nepomuk and Filippo Neri” by Cesare Mariani
WALL AT THE
END OF THE LEFT NAVE - ALTAR OF St. ALEXIS
Marble
relief “Apparition of the Virgin Mary to Sts. Alexis and Euphemian” late 1700s
by an anonymous eighteenth-century artist
CONVENT OF
THE PALLOTTINES
Museum on
the first floor and rooms where St. Vincent Pallotti lived
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
EXPLORATIONS
Under the
apse there is the CRYPT with three small naves
In the
level further below there are ruins of ancient Roman storage rooms and shops of
the second century AD. They are accessible from the crypt through a trap door
S. SALVATORE IN LAURO
Piazza S. Salvatore in Lauro 15
Mentioned
for the first time by the sources in 1177
Rebuilt in
1449
It was
rebuilt in 1594 by Ottaviano Nonni aka Ottaviano
Mascherino (1524/1606) after a fire that had destroyed it in 1591
It is his
architectural masterpiece
“The space
of the single nave is dramatically shaped by a rhythm of paired columns
detached from the wall, fastened at the top by protruding ribs, a solution of
exceptional force (...). It is as if the drum with double columns of the dome
of St. Peter's Basilica would be led in an interior space and would generate
tension between the plastic frame and the space as well as a chiaroscuro
vibration so intense to give a clear and authoritative alternative both to the
interiors by Andrea Palladio in Venice, and to the Church of the Gesù. It was
an alternative that would be echoed only in the Trinità dei Pellegrini church
by Paolo Maggi, who introduced the motif of the free-standing columns in the
pillars supporting the dome with a marked dramatic effect” (Paolo Portoghesi)
Completed
only in the years 1727/34 by Ludovico Rusconi Sassi
(1678/1736)
FAÇADE
1857/62 late purist
architecture by Camillo Guglielmetti (pupil of Luigi
Poletti) with bas-relief “Transport of the
Holy House of Nazareth” by Rinaldo Rinaldi
(1793/1873)
The square
was enlarged in 1939 and the proportions of the façade in relation to the
square itself were inevitably altered
The name
probably derives from a forest of laurels in the Portico of Europe that
maybe was once in this area
It is the National Church of the Piceni and of the
Marche region
INTERIOR
Marble
floor of the nineteenth century
COUNTER
FAÇADE
On the
right “Monument of Cardinal Gaspare Bernardo Pianetti” by Luigi Poletti (1792/1869) sculpted by Ignazio Jacometti (1819/83)
On the left
“Monument of Cardinal Antonio Matteucci” d. 1868 by Luigi
Fontana (1827/1908)
1st
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF THE PIETÀ
Designed by Francesco
Carlo Bizzaccheri (1655/1721)
Above the
altar “Christ dead in the
arms of the Virgin Mary” 1628/30 by Giuseppe
Ghezzi (1634/1721) who also painted “St. Nicholas of Tolentino” and “St.
Anthony of Padua” on the sides
Giuseppe
Ghezzi was born in Ascoli Piceno and was buried in this church in which, from
1687 onwards, he was responsible for the exhibition of paintings held in the
cloister every December 10, on the anniversary of the translation of the Holy
House of Loreto
This art
exhibition was the most important one of the whole seventeenth century in Rome
“The Pietà
was entirely designed over diagonal lines, the grey background tone contrasting
with the dazzling clarity of Christ's body in the foreground which seems almost
to slip towards the viewer. The two saints on the sides are considered 'among
the most beautiful and stirring works in Roman Baroque painting at the end of
the century' (Martinelli)” (Rossella Faraglia - Dizionario Biografico degli
Italiani Treccani)
In the
upper part there are sculptures of “Angels” by Camillo
Rusconi (1658/1728)
2nd
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF St. CHARLES
Above the
altar “Virgin Mary appears
to St. Charles Borromeo” by Alessandro Turchi
aka l'Orbetto (1578/1649)
On the RIGHT SIDE OF THE
CHURCH
there is a modern statue, considered very kitsch by many, with “Jesus and St. Padre
Pio”
of whom there are a few relics on the left side of the church
3rd
RIGHT - CHAPEL OF THE NATIVITY
Above the
altar “Nativity of Jesus” about 1625, early work and first
public commission of Pietro Berrettini aka Pietro da
Cortona (1597/1669)
“This first
group of paintings already clearly states the beginning of a new expression,
differing substantially, regardless of any qualitative consideration, from
contemporary artistic manifestations. In this group of paintings one notices
first of all the conscious intention to exclude from the scene and from the
characters any realistic hint and any relationship with the sentimental
individuality of the viewer. Without further indulging in the visual illusion
of the details, Pietro da Cortona diffuses light, impartially, to the entire
surface of the painting, creating that atmospheric likelihood that anticipates
the Neo-Venetian style of paintings of the following decades” (Giuliano
Briganti - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Treccani)
ALTAR OF
St. EMYGDIUS
“St. Emygdius between
St. Nicholas of Tolentino and St. James of the Marca” 1863 by Pietro
Gagliardi (1809/90)
On the
right “Tomb of Cardinal Nicola Grimaldi” about 1846 by Filippo
Gnaccarini (1804/75)
On the left
“Monument of Canon Gaspare Fatati” about 1852 and “Monument of Cardinal Raniero
Simonetti” 1751 by Girolamo Theodoli (1677/1766) sculpted by Carlo
Monaldi (about 1690/1760)
MAIN
ALTAR
1792 Antonio Asprucci (1723/1808) who maybe replaced an
altar by Andrea Palladio
On the
altar “Glory of Angels” in stucco by Vincenzo Pacetti
(1746/1820) surrounding a seventeenth-century copy of the Madonna of Loreto
“Angels” on
the pediment 1721 by Pietro Paolo Campi (active 1702/40)
SPANDRELS
OF THE DOME
“David,
Moses, Ezekiel and Isaiah” 1862 by Luigi Fontana (1827/1908)
ALTAR
OF THE CROSS OF SIROLO
Copy the
wooden Crucifix venerated in Sirolo (Ancona) 1713 by Francesco
Bellucci
ABOVE THE
DOORWAY TO THE SACRISTY
“Tomb of
Cardinal Prospero Marefoschi” 1751 by Girolamo Theodoli
(1677/1766) sculpted by Carlo Monaldi (about 1690/1760)
4th
LEFT - CHAPEL OF St. LUTGARD
Above the
altar “S. Lutgard exchanges her heart with that of the Redeemer” and on the
sides “Stories from the Life of St. Lutgard” 1679 by Antonio
Mascherotti
2nd
LEFT - CHAPEL OF St. JOSEPH
Decorated
in 1773
Above the
altar “Sts. Joseph, Joachim
and Anna” 1731 by Pier Leone Ghezzi (1674/1755)
who was buried in this church as his father Giuseppe Ghezzi
1st
LEFT - CHAPEL OF St. PETER IN CHAINS
Above the
altar “Liberation of St.
Peter”
1624 by Antiveduto Grammatica (about 1572/1626)
On the
sides “Liberation of St. Peter” and “St. Peter Baptizing the Centurion” 1731 by
Domenico Corvi (1721/1803)
from Viterbo
CONVENT or
PALACE OF THE PICENI
Beautiful
Renaissance cloister of the end of the fifteenth century; the second order was
added in the sixteenth century
FOUNTAIN OF
THE PICENI and TWO PORTALS of the late fifteenth-century
REFECTORY
On the wall
“Wedding at Cana” 1550 by Francesco de' Rossi aka Francesco
Salviati (1510/63)
On the left
“Tomb of Pope Eugene IV Coldumer (1431/47)” 1450/55 by Isaia
da Pisa (active 1447/64)
In the
middle of the wall “Tomb of Maddalena Orsini” maybe by Giovanni Duknovich aka Giovanni Dalmata (about
1440/1510)
Canvas
“St. Emygdius and other saints from the Marche region” by Pier Leone Ghezzi (1674/1755)
S. SALVATORE IN CAMPO
Piazza di S. Salvatore in Campo
Mentioned
for the first time by the sources in the first half of the tenth century and
known as S. Salvatoris de Domno Campo
The
original church was built in a place other than the one of the present church,
a little further north, in front of the church of SS. Trinità dei Pellegrini
Demolished in 1638 for the construction of the
Palazzo del Monte di Pietà
Rebuilt
where it is now, not far from the original church, in the years 1639/40 by Francesco Peparelli (active since about 1626/d. 1641)
for Urban VIII Barberini (1623/44) with a FAÇADE clearly inspired by that of
the Chiesa del Gesù (Church of
Jesus)
“It is
interesting, for the architectural culture of the seventeenth century in Rome,
the clear intent of Peparelli to blend a longitudinal plan with a central
scheme, emphasizing the areas of the two side altars” (Sofia Barchiesi)
It was
built on the back area of the TEMPLE OF MARS dating from the year 135 BC the
remains of which are still visible in the cellar of the church
Tradition
has it that Giuseppe Balsamo, Count of Cagliostro, got married in this church
At the
beginning of the eighties it was granted to the Neocatechumenal Centre “Servant
of Jave” and now is home to the Eritrean Orthodox Coptic community
ALTAR ON
THE RIGHT
“Virgin
Mary and Saints” by an anonymous artist of the
eighteenth-century
MAIN ALTAR
Seventeenth-century
copy of the “Transfiguration” by Raphael
S. SALVATORE ALLE COPPELLE
Piazza
delle Coppelle 72b
Mentioned
for the first time by the sources in 1195
It is
called alle coppelle (at the barrels) from the name of the wooden
barrels with a capacity of about 5 liters (1.3 gallons) made in this area until
the sixteenth century
From 1300s
to 1500s it was also known as S. Salvatore de Pietate
Restored
about 1738/43 by Carlo De Dominicis (1696/1758)
“In his
first two decades of activity De Dominicis fully adhered to the Rococo style,
but in 1743 it seems he underwent a change of inclination because the simple
façade 'as a temple' of the small church of S. Salvatore alle Coppelle in its
cold classicism is remarkably prophetic of the imminent neoclassical style.
It's not to be excluded, on the other hand, the possibility that the appearance
of the church was changed in a later but not documented restoration” (John
Varriano - Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Treccani)
Restored
again 1858/60 by Giacomo Monaldi (1819/1905) and
in 1915 when the iconostasis was added
“The formal
façade that we see today was the result of 'corrections' made in the purist
style in the general restoration of 1858/60, similar to what was done in those
years at S. Maria dell'Umiltà (in both cases misleading art historians).
Giacomo Monaldi (...) had built a few years before S. Giovanni della Malva in
Trastevere, whose façade has a pattern almost identical to this one” (Federico
Antonio Caiola)
BELL TOWER
About 1195,
the period of Pope Celestine III Orsini (1191/98). The bell dates back to 1664
On the
outside wall of the church there is perhaps the most ancient inscription in
vernacular Italian: CHIA DEL S. SALVATORE DELLA PIETÀ ALER DELLE CVPELLE
1195. The font, however, appears modern and some scholars believe, with
good arguments that it was made during the eighteenth-century restoration
On the
outside wall of the church there is also a “Marble mail box” of 1749
It was used
to post news of illness of guests in hotels and inns in Rome. The Confraternity
of the Blessed Sacrament and of the Divine Perseverance, which was approved
in 1663, had its headquarters here and worked for two centuries precisely to
help the sick pilgrims
Romanian National Church of Byzantine Catholic
Rite since 1914
INTERIOR
Left wall
of the entrance room “Funerary memory of Filippo Boschetti, lawyer of the Roman
Rota (the highest appellate tribunal of the Roman Catholic Church)” 1740 maybe by Carlo
De Dominicis
RIGHT NAVE
Fresco “Virgin
Mary with Jesus on her lap” maybe by the school of Antonio Aquili aka
Antoniazzo Romano (about 1435-40/1508), who had his own workshop and house in
this area of Rome
TEMPLON
(Iconostasis)
Painted in
1915 by Alessandro Pigna (1862/1919)
“The
iconostasis, which separates the nave from the chancel area was added after the
assignment to the Romanian clergy, around 1915, and painted by Alessandro Pigna
who illustrated the canonical subjects with academic expertise, enlivened by
hints of Art Nouveau” (Antonio Federico Caiola)
LEFT NAVE -
SPINOLA CHAPEL
“Tomb
of Cardinal George Spinola, Bishop of Palestrina, D. 1739” 1744 masterpiece by Bernardino Ludovisi (about 1713/49)
S. SALVATORE AI MONTI
Via
Madonna dei Monti 38
Mentioned
for the first time by the sources in 1192
It was
completely destroyed by fire during the sack of Rome in 1527
Rebuilt in
the second half of the sixteenth century
Restored in
1625 and in 1762 by Antonio Asprucci (1723/1808)
for Cardinal Odescalchi
Last
renovation in 1904 for Pius X Sarto (1903/14)
INTERIOR
In the
counter façade “Wooden choir” of 1762
Lunette
above the MAIN ALTAR “Saviour between two Neophytes” 1904 by Wolfgango Conti
On the
right wall “Tomb of the painter Agostino Masucci (1691/1758)” with a portrait
of the painter maybe by his son Lorenzo Masucci (?/1785)
COLLEGE
OF THE NEOPHYTES
To the left of the church
1635 Gaspare De Vecchi (active 1628/1643)
The
neophytes were Jews or Muslims who had converted to Christianity
S. SABA
Piazza S. Saba/Piazza Gian Lorenzo
Bernini 20
645,
monastery dedicated to St. Sabbas (439/532), head of Eastern monasticism,
founded by monks from the monastery of St. Sabbas in Judea, which had been
occupied by the Muslims
It was
built over ancient Roman structures, maybe the barracks of the IV Coorte dei
Vigili (Fourth Cohort of the Firefighters Brigade)
According
to tradition, this eventually became the site of the house of St. Silvia,
mother of St. Gregory the Great (590/604)
The monks
of the monastery, under the auspices of the popes, became promoters of a
significant diplomatic activity and became a veritable link between East and
West
In the year
768 here was imprisoned the antipope Constantine II. His eyes were gouged out,
his tongue cut out, and then he was killed on the orders of Pope Stephen III
(768/772)
Second
phase of construction of the church in the eighth century
The PRESENT
CHURCH was built in the first half of the twelfth century
The MONASTERY
was assigned in the thirteenth century to the Monks of Cluny, then to
the Regular Canons, to the Cistercians and finally was entrusted
by Pope Gregory XIII Boncompagni (1572/85) to the Hungarian German College run
by the Jesuits
Restoration
in the years 1932/33, after years of decline
The body of
St. Sabbas was returned to the hermitage of St. Sabbas in Palestine after the
Second Vatican Council
PROTHYRUM
Remodeled
in the thirteenth century
PORCH WITH
GALLERY AND LOGGIA
1463 for
Cardinal Francesco Piccolomini, restored in the late eighteenth century by Pius
VI Braschi (1775/99)
Ancient and
medieval archaeological remains including:
Ancient “Fluted
sarcophagus with dextrarum iunctio”
Relief with
“Knight with falcon” of the eighth century
PORTAL
Marble
frame 1205 by Jacopo di Lorenzo di Cosma (first
half of the thirteenth century)
The
paintings in the upper part were executed on the occasion of the Jubilee of
1575
FLOOR
1205 Jacopo di Lorenzo
di Cosma. It was
restored in 1907
14 COLUMNS
TAKEN FROM ANCIENT ROMAN BUILDINGS
CIBORIUM,
ALTAR AND CHAIR
Rebuilt at
the beginning of the twentieth century with ancient pieces
APSE
Frescos “Christ
between Sts. Andrew and Sabbas”, below “Mystic Lamb and lambs in lines”, “Virgin
Mary and Child with the twelve apostles”, further below “Gregory XIII and
saints canonized during the Jubilee of 1575” by anonymous
painters of the late sixteenth century who perhaps remade in fresco the
decoration that was previously in mosaic
Above the
chair “Crucifixion” of the fourteenth century
FOURTH
AISLE
On the left
frescos “The Legend of St. Nicholas of Bari and the three spinsters”, “Pope
enthroned between two saints”, “Virgin Mary between Sts. Andrew and Sabbas” end
of 1200s/beginning of 1300s by the Master of St. Sabbas
CORRIDOR IN
FRONT OF THE SACRISTY
Fragments
of votive panels including “Faces of three monks” of the twelfth century
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
EXPLORATIONS
In 1900 the
remains of the so-called Oratory of St. Silvia were found under the church,
including a small chapel in the north-west corner with remains of frescoes from
the first half of the tenth century:
“Three
panels with the anagram signing of one Sergius Pictor, another painted
inscription with enigmatic meaning and the representation of one Martinus
Monachus Magister”
“The
perimeter walls of the ancient church are preserved today only to a height of
about a meter and a half, having been reused as stylobates of the colonnades of
the medieval church. The rest of the building was demolished and obliterated by
the new constructions. Certain portions of masonry and a large number of
fragments of painted plaster returned to light during the excavations, as they
had been used in the foundation fill of the church, over which was laid the
cosmatesque floor of the new foundation. The building, according to my
reconstruction, starting from the late fourth-early fifth century was affected
by seven decorative campaigns, identified on the basis of the mapping and
analysis of the stratigraphy of the painted plaster” (Giulia Bordi - Opera ·
Nomina · Historiae 1-2009 - Journal of the artistic culture of the Scuola
Normale Superiore in Pisa)
