Description:
Text transcribed from caption: C-45710 ROME’S GREAT BASILICAS -- HOLY YEAR
SHRINES (First of a Series) ROME -- There are three other major basilicas in
the Eternal City -- St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major and St.
Paul’s-Outside-the-Walls -- but the first stop for most of those making the
pilgrimage to Rome during the upcoming Holy Yar will be St. Peter’s Basilia
in the Vatican. St. Peter’s can only be described in superlatives. It is
the largest church in the Christian world, and has perhaps the most
commanding dome of any building. It is able to accommodate 50,000 people and
it’s architects included some of the greatest artists the world has ever
produced. The present structure was begun in 1506 under Bramante to replace a
basilica erected by the Emperor Constantine on the supposed site of St.
Peter’s crucifixion. Bramante designed a church in the shape of a Greek
cross but after his death in 1514 a succession of architects, including
Rafael, Fra Giacondo and Fiuliano da San Gallo, made drastic changes. In
1546, Michelangelo was called in as chief architect and restored Bramante’s
Greek-cross plan. He also designed an enormous dome over the crossing that
would dominate the building. His conception may be best judged from the apse
of the basilica (the view here), since the front of the building was later
considerable changed. After Michelangelo’s death in 1564, the dome was
carried out in slightly modified form by Giacomo della Porta. Under Pope
Sixtus V, the nave of the building was lengthened to accommodate a vast
congregation, in effect destroying the planned domination of the dome from
the front of the church. The basilica itself was completed in 1614 although
work continued in and around it for decades. The most impressive later
additions are Bernini’s magnificent colonnades which extend forward from
the sides of the basilica and end in semi-circles enclosing St. Peter’s
Square. The great obelisk of Heliopolis, brought to Rome by Emperor Caligula,
adorns the center of the Square. The dimensions of St. Peter’s are
impressive, as they should be for the largest church in Christendom. The dome
rises to a height of 450 feet from the ground and the basilica is 619 feet
long. Credit Must Read: RELIGIOUS NEWS SERVICE PHOTO (R-7A-74-DS)
Creator:
Religious News Service. (publisher)
Subject names:
Religious News Service--Archives., Catholic Church--Buildings., Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano.
Topics:
Church buildings--Vatican City., Church architecture--Vatican City., Architecture, Baroque--Vatican City., Architecture, Renaissance--Vatican City., Plazas--Vatican City., Domes--Vatican City.
Geographic subjects:
Vatican City., Piazza San Pietro (Vatican City), Vatican City--Buildings, structures, etc.
URL:
https://digital.history.pcusa.org/islandora/object/islandora:360850