1) The basilica of St. Peter with its square in front, today stands on the ruins of an ancient church whose foundations rested on the old walls of an original circus built by Emperor Caligola, half a kilometer long and which at the time already covered all the space that today occupies the basilica with its square.
2) The ancient church built, in the 4th century, by Emperor Constantine, who came to power in Rome, was already at that time the largest and most important church in Europe. It remained standing for about 1000 years but when it threatened to collapse, in the fifteenth century, the pontiffs decided to demolish it and build a new one, the one that we can admire today in its magnificence. In the destruction of the old basilica were lost immense and priceless artistic treasures of sculpture and painting and that Bramante razed to the ground with a blind fury so much that he was nicknamed “Master ruinante” (the craftsman who destroys). Centuries later, the Lanciani, the great archaeologist of the twentieth century, stated that the damage caused to Rome’s classical heritage was so great that it could be compared to ten years of barbarism suffered!
3) The work on the construction of the new basilica lasted about 120 years, from 1506 to 1626 and was so expensive that the popes decided to resort to the payment of “special” taxes, such as that on the earnings of prostitutes and that related to the sale of indulgences (request for money in order to obtain the remission of sins). About fifteen great architects worked on the construction of the new basilica whose first project initially involved a Greek cross plan (two segments intersected in the middle). As the years have elapsed and the popes alternate with different ideas and views, the Greek cross plan was modified into a Latin cross plant (the long segment intersected by a shorter one) five times! Until Michelangelo had the best and his square plan was approved and later enriched by the construction of the majestic dome. Michelangelo’s desire was to trace the project of the basilica of St. Sofia in Constantinople, which at the time represented the largest and most beautiful church in the world.
4) At Michelangelo’s death and works not yet completed, it happened the Maderno who, under the imposition of Pope Paul V, wanted an even wider church and altered the previous Michelangelo design by adding a part made by a row of three chapels, conclusively and definitively changing its initial structure. The large facade in front of the basilica was also the work of the Maderno and was completed by him only in 1614. Flanked by the statues of St. Paul on the left and St. Peter on the right, it features, on its summit, a line of 13 statues of the apostles, almost 6 meters high. The balcony above the central gate is the one from which the new pope-elect faces to give the blessing Urbi et Orbi.
5) The interior of the church infuses an atmosphere of majesty; The long side of the segment measures more than 200 meters and the short side above 150. The arches of the aisle are as high as a 6-story building, as you approach and observe the details you realize that the “putti” who support the aquasantieres, on the first pillars of the central aisle, are as tall as a man! On the floor in front of the entrance there is a disc of granite rock, coming from the ancient basilica, where Charlemagne, on Christmas Eve of the year 800, knelt down to be crowned emperor. Turning the church counterclockwise, beginning with the first chapel on the right, we find the sculptural group of Michelangelo’s Pieta in which, a young Mary, holds in her lap the dead body of Christ; this extraordinary work represents the only work Michelangelo has ever signed. In the second chapel is the memorial of Queen Cristina of Sweden who, in 1655, repudiated Protestantism. She died of an illness that disfigured her face, which is covered with a silver mask in her grave. The third chapel is the largest and is fenced by a very fine iron gate designed by Borromini, inside we can admire a sumptuous tabernacle of golden bronze and lapislazzuli of Bernini’s work.
6) Reaching the center of the nave, you enter the part designed by Michelangelo. Under the altar, in the center, is the embalmed body of Pope John XXIII. Four immense polygonal pillars support the colossal 136-meter-tall dome, which is the largest brick structure ever built. On the pillar on the right is the bronze statue of St. Peter sitting in the act of bless. A centuries-old tradition invites the faithful to kiss their foot, which today is extremely consumed. The focal point of the church is the main altar; on it can say only the pope or a prelate delegated by him. Below there is the tomb of St. Peter, which is accessed by a double flight of stairs. The balustrade that surrounds and completes the staircases, has a semi-circular shape and is perpetually illuminated by ninety-nine bronze lamps, lit day and night. The materials used to make the grand staircase and the balustrade were recovered from the ancient Constantine basilica. It is a very special place because it is the area of the basilica closest to the burial of St. Peter.
7)The confession of St. Peter, as it is called, is the work of the Maderno who had the walls coated with inlays of marbles to form geometric designs. On the right and left sides there are two sculptures in golden bronze: one depicts St. Peter’s and the other St. Paul. Above the main altar stands the Bernini Canopy, 29 meters high, a formidable bronze work in twisted columns, one of the highest representative figures of the Roman Baroque. Another eloquent example is the Chair of St. Peter, a monumental decorative set; in the center is the golden bronze throne, inside which is located the wooden chair itself. Four colossal bronze statues, also depicting four church doctors (foreground St. Augustine and St. Ambrose for the Latin church and in the background St. Anastasio and St. John Crisostomo for the Greek Church), are represented in the act to support the chair, which seems to hover weightlessly over clouds of golden stucco. The chair is flanked by two of the most beautiful burial monuments in the basilica: on the right the tomb of Pope Urban VIII and on the left the tomb of Pope Paul III.
8) Continuing the tour counterclockwise we find the altar of Pope St. Leo the Great who stopped Attila in his advance towards Rome. In the next step we meet the tomb of Pope Alexander VII, the work of Bernini. After the transept of the left we find the altar dedicated to St. Gregory the Great, whose remains rest under the altar and the macaw of Pius VII. The rich chapel that follows is the work of Giacomo Della Porta. In the next step we meet the monument to Pope Pius X represented while calling for peace at the beginning of the First World War. Opposite is the tomb of Pope Innocent VIII, which is the only burial monument transferred from the ancient basilica to the new one. The penultimate chapel is dedicated to the Stuart family (of Scotland) by the Canova; the last chapel is the Baptistry, a baptismal source in red porfido.
9) Leaving the basilica, St. Peter’s Square, with its spectacular and monumental colonnade, represents the daily meeting point for thousands of Catholic faithful from all over the world. It is an immense ellipse almost once and a half the size of the area occupying the Colosseum; the two hemicycles that make up it, similar to immense arms, consist of imposing arcades on quadruple rows of columns, 284 in all and 88 pillars, which support over 150 statues of saints designed by Bernini. In the middle of the hemicycle stands a very high Egyptian obelist from Heliopolis, found in the Circus of Caligola and raised here with memoranda feat by Domenico Fontana in 1586. On its sides two beautiful fountains of seventeenth century, of equal design, throw high jets of water into the architectural solemnity of the environment. From the obelist you can admire the complex of papal palaces gathered immediately to the right of the basilica. Halfway between each of the fountains and the obelist, they are inserted into the floor of the stone slabs with a circular crown design; If you place one of these colons and look at the colonnade, it appears to consist of individual columns instead of rows of four.
10) The dome of St. Peter is one of the most famous symbols of the city of Rome and one of the most scenic points of the city, with 360-degree views of the entire Vatican City and almost all the neighborhoods of Rome’s historic center. It has an internal diameter of about 42 meters. Michelangelo worked there until the year of his death in 1564. The design resembles that of the Cathedral of Florence; it has thick ribs that divide it into wedges on each of which open three windows or “eyes” superimposed in descending measure. Below, on the magnificent base, a row of matching columns alternates with beautiful windows and frames them. Visitors will be allowed to reach the top of the dome through the payment of a ticket:
– €10 with an elevator to the panoramic terrace and then walk up the remaining 320 steps;
– €8 to walk up the 551 steps.
The choice will be oriented according to your fitness. Have a good visit to everyone!
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