All images © byRoberto Piperno, owner of the domain. Write toromapip@quipo.it.

Notes:

Page revised in November 2024.

Links to this page can be found inBook3,Map D2,Day 8,View C1 andRione Borgo.

The page covers:
The plate by Giuseppe Vasi
Today's view
S. Pietro
In the second page:
Palazzo Apostolico
Cappella Sistina
Porta S. Pellegrino o Viridaria
SS. Martino e Sebastiano degli Svizzeri

The Plate (No. 41)

When in 1753 Giuseppe Vasi published this etching he had already shown in two separate plates thedome of the basilica (1747) and thesquare (1752); in this view he showed the square, the basilica and the complex of buildings known as the Vatican palaces including far awayPalazzo del Belvedere. As a matter of fact the focus of this plate is on the square, perhaps because the previous one showed only half of it. In 1765 he depicted in detail the basilica in aGrand View of the Vatican City.
The view is taken from the green dot in the small 1748 map below. In the description below the plate Vasi made reference to: 1) Palazzo Apostolico and Palazzo del Belvedere; 2)Amphitheatre (Colonnade). The map shows also: 3) S. Pietro; 4) Cappella Sistina; and in the enlarged map of the area near the red asterisk: 5) Porta S. Pellegrino; 6) SS. Martino e Sebastiano degli Svizzeri. 2) is shown in another page.

Today

The view in June 2009 (above) and in April 2021 (below)

When Vasi published his etching the great basilica was still regarded as being under construction because the two bell towers at the sides of the façade were not yet completed.

(left)Pinacoteca Vaticana: inscription celebrating the laying down of the first stone of the bell tower in 1638; (right) detail of an engraving by Israel Sylvestre (ca 1643) showing the bell tower before it was demolished

On the 17th November 1644: On each side of this portico, are two campaniles, or towers, whereof there was but one perfected, of admirable art.
John Evelyn's Diary and Correspondence
A project for the bell towers by Gian Lorenzo Bernini was approved byPope Urban VIII in 1637 and soon the architect started the erection of the southern bell tower. Work was halted in 1641 because the foundation did not support the weight of the tower (Francesco Borromini, a rival architect, charged Bernini with lack of technical expertise in the design and execution of the project). In 1646 the upper part of the bell tower was pulled down (Bernini had to pay the cost).

Southern clock

Eventually the idea of completing the bell towers was abandoned. In 1790 Giuseppe Valadier marked with two large clocks the locations of the bell towers and he enlarged their windows to show the bells. The clocks indicated different hours: theItalian one and the European one (Tempo Ultramontano - beyond the Alps). They constitute the main difference between the plate by Vasi and today's view. See alarger view of the northern clock with the heraldic symbols of Pope Pius VI. Aclock with the Italian Hour can still be seen in the rear façade of the basilica.

S. Pietro

"The 847 Fire ofBorgo" (in part an allegory of the fire which destroyedTroy), a fresco by Raphael in Palazzo Apostolico. It shows in the central section the façade of S. Pietro Vecchio and a Renaissance loggia from whichPope Leo IV blesses the terrified inhabitants of Borgo. The scene on the left portraysAeneas fleeing Troy with his father and his son, a subject which inspired afamous statue by Bernini

Vasi refers to the basilica as "S. Pietro", but XVIIth century writers (e.g. Giovanni Baglione - The Lives of Painters, Sculptors, Architects and Engravers - 1642) referred to it as "S. Pietro Nuovo" to indicate that it had replaced the old basilica which was built in the IVth century.
The façade of S. Pietro Vecchio was decorated with golden mosaics and for more than a century it acted as a screen which hid the construction of the new basilica; this is clearly shown in a small engraving of a1588 Guide to Rome. The choir and the apse of the old basilica were sheltered by ategurium (a roof supported by columns) designed by Donato Bramante in 1514; the last mass in S. Pietro Vecchio was celebrated on November 15, 1609.

The expected appearance of S. Pietro Nuovo in a fresco commissioned byPope Sixtus V in theVatican Library

The first stone of the new basilica was laid down byPope Julius II in 1506; several architects such as Bramante, Antonio da Sangallo the Younger and Michelangelo were involved in the design of S. Pietro Nuovo; their projects had some differences, but they all provided for a gigantic dome, the size of which was expected to be larger than that ofS. Maria del Fiore, the cathedral of Florence.In 1590 Giacomo della Porta succeeded in completing the dome and the event was celebrated in a fresco, which shows the overall appearance of the basilica according to the initial projects which were based on a Greek cross layout.

S. Pietro Nuovo seen fromTerrazza del Gianicolo (seeit during a rare snowfall)

At the beginning of the XVIIth century the initial design of S. Pietro Nuovo was regarded as not being in line with the guidelines for the layout of churches which were developed in 1577 byCardinal Carlo Borromeo inInstructionum Fabricae et Supellectilis ecclesiasticae.Pope Paul V decided to prolong the eastern arm of the new basilica so that it covered all the area of the old one; in 1607 a project by Carlo Maderno won a contest and the eastern arm was completed by 1612, thus giving the basilica the desired Latin cross layout.

Façade by Carlo Maderno

Christmas Day 1824. We were obliged to leave the Pope before the Ceremony was quite over, (..) we reached the Balcony on the left side of the front of St. Peter's, whencewe had an excellent view of said Front. The crowd below was pretty considerablebut as I understand it, not so much so as it had been on similar occasions. TheSoldiers ranged round, kept a clear square - of a part wh. made the most of wh.crowd there was. The Cardinals first appeared in the Balcony above the greatDoor of the Church, in their white Mitres, at length the Pope himself is borneout, seated on his canopied State Throne, in order that he might bless his People.In the long Row of Balcony where we were, were also Ministers from ForeignCourts, & the many other Strangers, who had come to Rome to witness theseextraordinary Ceremonies of the Church; an awning protected us from the Sun,wh. in that situation even on Christmas Day wd. otherwise have been oppressive.The Pope performed the Ceremony with his usual Grace, the Soldiers knelt, & allought to do so, but I understand many did not - they used then to cheer, but itwas profound Silence. The Blessing having been pronounced in presence of the assembled Crowd, a factwh. I take for granted from the motion of his Holiness's hands, as well as fromthe kneeling, the Silence on the one hand, & the subsequent rising up &Departure of Blesser & Blessed not the other, the Pope is born away in his Chairas before, wh. had been set down, closing the Ceremony, the Cardinals move offbehind him, without a Bow, or any thing - we too, after a few Moments' Delay,retreated, & returned home.
Sir Charles Fergusson - Travel Journal in Italy 1824-1825
The façade is not just the end wall of the eastern arm, but a building in itself; its original width is that of theinscription celebrating the event; its central balcony was meant for papal blessings; today this occurs on special occasions such as the first blessing of a newly-elected pope (you may wish to see thefirst appearance of Pope Benedict XVI in 2005).

Ceiling of the new portico

The access to the basilica is preceded by a large portico decorated with theeagles and dragons of Pope Paul V and with stuccoes depicting scenes of the life of St. Peter. Theinscription containing the epitaph dedicated by Emperor Charlemagne to Pope Adrian I was kept in the new portico. Statues ofEmperor Constantine by Bernini and ofEmperor Charlemagne by Agostino Cornacchini were placed at the far ends of the portico.

(left)Porta del Filarete: relief depicting the trial and the martyrdom of St. Peter; (right)Museo Barracco: fragment of a XIIth century mosaic from S. Pietro Vecchio

Some of the works of art which embellished S. Pietro Vecchio were retained, e.g. the bronze door by Antonio Averlino known as il Filarete, but many others did not suit the taste of the time and they were donated to members of the papal court or to other churches. You may wish to see theStefaneschi Altarpiece by Giotto andfragments of the mosaics of the façade in the Vatican Museums, amosaic at Cappella Simoncelli at Boville, anothermosaic at S. Maria in Cosmedin, arelief at S. Balbina and even abrick at S. Maria Maggiore in Ravenna.
Most of the papal funerary monuments were moved to the Vatican Grottoes or to other locations (you may wish to see adirectory where they are listed chronologically).

"La Navicella" and above it a stucco tondo portraying St. Peter and St. Cornelius the Centurion, the first Gentile who converted

The Bark of Giotto in Mosaick is over the Pillars, and in the inside of the "Portico" so that 'tis seen at a great height as you come out of the Church to go into the Piazza: 'Tis very Beautiful, and. much better Coloured than I imagined: The Fisherman is the Best Figure, and is really fine.
Jonathan and Jonathan Richardson - Account of Some of the Statues, etc. in Italy - 1722
Over the principal entrance into the atrium, and opposite the great entrance to the church, is seen affixed to the wall on high the famous Navicella of Giotto, representing the Apostles overtaken at sea by the storm, admirably executed in mosaic. (..) Giotto received the commission for its execution from Card. Stefaneschi.
Rev. Jeremiah Donovan - Rome Ancient and Modern - 1844.
The ship is a metaphor for the Church of Rome, because the Bishop of Rome is the successor of St. Peter who walks above the water to reach the hand of Christ. The original mosaic was placed in the atrium of the old basilica and it was much larger and it had a rectangular shape. Most of it was lost when it was dismantled; it was reconstructed in 1675 and only some fragments are original. According to Vasari, Giotto portrayed himself in the fisherman at the left corner of the mosaic.

The Porta Santa (Holy Door) in the interior of the basilica with a 1675 mosaic by Ciro Ferri

There is one door into the church of St. Peter's, which is called the Holy Door. This is always walled up, except on this distinguished year; and even then no person is permitted to enter by it, but in the humblest posture. The pilgrims, and many others, prefer crawling into the church upon their knees, by this door; to walking in, the usual way, by any other. I was present at the shutting up of this Holy Door. The Pope being seated on a raised seat, or kind of throne, surrounded by Cardinals and other ecclesiastics, an anthem was sung, accompanied by all sorts of musical instruments. During the performance, his Holiness descended from the throne, with a golden trowel in his hand, placed the first brick, and applied some mortar; he then returned to his seat, and the door was instantly built up by more expert, though less hallowed, workmen; and will remain as it is now, till the beginning of the nineteenth century, when it will be again opened, by the Pope then in being, with the same solemnity that it has been now shut.
John Moore - A View of Society and Manners in Italy - 1781
24th December, 1824 went (..) at an early hour to St. Peter's. (..) Colquhoun & I found ourselves at agreat distance from the Pope but as nothing else was between ourselves & the Holy Door, we saw the whole ceremony pretty well. Long had we to wait here inanxious expectation of the Pope's Arrival. At length the Members of theApostolical Chamber, with the Canon of St. Peter, came in & the Senator beingenthroned, the Cardinal & dignified Prelates ranged themselves round him,opposite the principal Entrance of St. Peter's, ready to receive the Pope himself.The vast crowd of Priests & Holy Men of every sort & Degree - a prodigious &various Crowd, with a vast multitude of Spectators beyond - the buzz & hum ofexpectation, rising from a crowd wh. cloathed yourself up to the nose, &extended to a great Distance till the extreme limits of the Perspective terminatedwith thestatue of Constantine, wh. alone enabled you to mark its boundary - thearmour of the officers of the Svizzeri, small detachments of wh. were every now & then moving in with their long Spears, & many coloured livery - & theDrums of other Regiments beating & Music playing without - add to all this thata Ceremony was about to be performed, wh. for 50 years Rome had not seen, theIntention of wh. was praiseworthy, altho it might be no offspring of soundJudgement or right Principle - that the Holy Year was solemnly to commence onthis Day, that wh. preceded the Dawn of our Saviour's Birth, of ChristianGratulation & Religious Triumph. The Idol of the Catholic Church, thePopearrives clad in Satin & Gold, with a yellow mitre on his Head, but looking very ill& very sulky. He seats himself for a few Moments on his Throne, congratulatoryMusic plays - he chaunts some hymn of praise, as one may suppose, to thank Godfor the Arrival of the Day, Choiristers sing, he quits his Throne, & preceded byAttendants bearing torches, & surrounded by the official Dignitaries of theChurch, he moves forward with a silver Hammer in his Hand, & strikes the HolyDoor nine times I believe, the notes of the Musicians singing joyous songs ofTriumph, he turns & re-seats himself on his Throne, when at length, he beingcomfortably placed his robe around him in due State, a little Bell is rung by theCard. at the side of him, and then at length the Door falls into a box of sand, wh.rises up in clouds, & out of the way of wh. he was certainly quite right to be. Butit produced a very poor Effect, the long Delay & then the Instrumentality of thelittle Bell, an affair of Punch as it were, or at best, of Stage Effect. I nowunderstand that the Door was of Brick, & that the Material is for sale in Partsthroughout Rome, each being stamped with the name of the Pontificate, & theDate of the Year. After the Holy Door had fallen, great was the Bustle, the Pope& Cardinals left the Portico, or stairs rather of St. Peter's, & moved in Processioninto the Church, where they first went I know not (..) Having seen him pass & repass, we lefthim, & returned home, heartily tired. Fergusson
The practice of closing the Holy Door with a proper wall was discontinued at the end of 1975.

Mosaics on display at a temporary exhibition atS. Maria Antiqua

The construction of the new basilica entailed the demolition of a number of ancillary facilities which surrounded the old one. The mosaics shown above embellished an oratory built by Pope John VII in 706 which was demolished in 1609. Giacomo Grimaldi, the basilica notary at the time, wrote an illustrated description of the oratory. We owe him detailed information about the old basilica, its inscriptions and works of art. Other fragments of the oratory decoration are housed in museums of Florence and Moscow.

Musei Vaticani: (above) sarcophagus with reliefs depicting episodes of the life of Jonah which was found during the construction of the new basilica; (below) detail of another sarcophagus showing the same subject which was found in 1841 during the construction of therailway behind the basilica

A number of fine Christian sarcophagi came to light during the construction of the new basilica (see alsothat of Junius Bassus) and afterwards. The depiction of episodes from the life of Jonah was particularly popular among the early Christians (see alarge floor mosaic at Aquileia). Jonah coming out uninjured from the belly of a sea monster was a clear symbol of Resurrection. Excavations carried out beneath the basilica in the 1940s led to the discovery of a small necropolis resembling that atPorto.

Interior

St Peter's seldom answers expectation at first entering it, but enlarges itself on all sides insensibly, and mends upon the eye every moment. The proportions are so very well observed, that nothing appears to an advantage, or distinguishes itself above the rest. It seems neither extremely high, nor long, nor broad, because it is all of them in a just equality.
Joseph Addison - Remarks on several parts of Italy, in the years 1701, 1702, 1703
There is nothing, I believe, in this famous structure, so worthy of applause, as the admirable symmetry and proportion of its parts. Notwithstanding all the carving, gilding, basso relievos, medallions, urns, statues, columns, and pictures with which it abounds, it does not, on the whole, appear over-crowded with ornaments.
Tobias Smollett - Travels through France and Italy - 1766
St. Peter's is a spectacle that never tires; - you may visit it every day, and always find something new to admire. Then, - its temperature is delightful; - after starving in the cold and comfortless galleries of the Vatican, it is a luxury indeed to enjoy the mild and genial air in the interior of St. Peter's; and I am told, the church is as pleasantly cool in summer, as it is comfortably warm in winter. The fact is, the walls are so thick, and it is so wholly free from damp, that the air within is not affected by that without; so that, like a well-built cellar, it enjoys an equability of temperature all the year round.
Henry Matthews - Diary of an Invalid - 1817/1818
There are days when the vast nave looks mysteriously vaster than on others and the gorgeous baldachino a longer journey beyond the far-spreading tessellated plain of the pavement, and when the light has yet a quality which lets things loom their largest, while the scattered figures - I mean the human, for there are plenty of others - mark happily the scale of items and parts. Then you have only to stroll and stroll and gaze and gaze; to watch the glorious altar-canopy lift its bronze architecture, its colossal embroidered contortions, like a temple within a temple, and feel yourself, at the bottom of the abysmal shaft of the dome, dwindle to a crawling dot.
Henry James - Italian Hours. You may wish to read more ofhis account of a visit to S. Pietro in 1873.

Holy Water font designed by Augusto Cornacchini (1725)

It is usual to desire strangers, on their first entering this church, to guess at the size of the objects, which, on account of the distance, always seem less than they are in reality. The statues of the Angels, in particular, which support the founts of holy water, when viewed from the door, seem no bigger than children; but when you approach nearer, you perceive they are six feet high. We make no such mistake on seeing a living man at the same, or a greater distance; because the knowledge we have of a man's real size precludes the possibility of our being mistaken, and we make allowance for the diminution which distance occasions; but Angels, and other figures in sculpture, having no determined standard, but being under the arbitrary will of the statuary, who gives them the bulk of giants or dwarfs as best suits his purpose, we do not know what allowance to make; and the eye, unused to such large masses, is confounded, and incapacitated from forming a right judgment of an object six feet high, or of any other dimensions, which it was not previously acquainted with.
John Moore - A View of Society and Manners in Italy - 1781

The apse seen from the drum

November 22, 1786. There is a passage all round, and from above you can take a view of the whole church, and of its several parts. As we stood on the cornices of the tympanum, we saw beneath us the Pope (Pius VI) passing to his mid-day devotions. Nothing, therefore, was wanting to make our view of St. Peter's perfect.
J. W. Goethe - Italian Journey - translation by Charles Nisbet
The decoration of the new basilica was mainly based on mosaics (rather than frescoes) in memory of the old one where this kind of decoration prevailed; a gigantic mosaic inscription quotes a passage from Matthew (16:18):Tu es Petrus, et super hanc petram aedificabo Ecclesiam meam (et portae inferi non praevalebunt adversus eam). Et tibi dabo claves Regni caelorum. King James Bible:Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church (and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it). And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven. For the Roman Catholic Church this sentence affirms its being the only "true" church. You may wish to seean enlargement of the mosaic of the right pillar.

Interior of the dome

The decoration of the dome was designed to be the visual representation ofTe Deum, a Christian hymn of praise; the Father is portrayed inside the lantern while heads of Seraphim and Cherubim are depicted in circles; the mosaics show standing angels, three of whom bear symbols of the Passion; the sixteen mosaics at the lower end of the dome portray Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary, St. John the Baptist, St. Paul and the Twelve Apostles; the mosaics were executed on the basis of cartoons by Cavalier d'Arpino, who was regarded as the greatest painter of that period; the colour effect based on gold and blue was admired, but the structure of the decoration was criticized for being too repetitive and in the following years the churches of Rome were decorated with very differentceilings.

Two of the seven privileged altars (they bear the inscription UNUM EX VII ALTAR - one out of seven altar): (left) Madonna del Soccorso; (right) Madonna della Colonna

Over the altar is a portrait of the Madonna del Soccorso, painted in the time ofPaschal II., and brought hither in 1578 from the oratory ofS. Leo the Great. (..) The adjoining altar is sacred to the Madonna della Colonna, so called from her effigy painted on a column of porta santa, which adorned the ancient basilica, and was placed here in 1607. Donovan
The faithful and especially the pilgrims are expected to pray at seven altars in order to gain the indulgences established for a visit to the basilica. The pilgrimage to theSette Chiese, each of which had privileged altars, was promoted by the example and teachings of St. Philip Neri. The presence of altars dedicated to the Virgin Mary made S. Pietro also a Marian shrine.

Cappella della Colonna - mosaics based on cartoons by: (left) Giovanni Lanfranco portraying St. Germanus whose writings fostered the doctrine and devotion to the Virgin Mary; (right) Andrea Sacchi portraying Sts. Peter and Paul helping St. Thomas Aquinas to understand the true significance of Isaiah 7:14, a prophecy about the Virgin Mary which Thomas quoted in the sermon "Germinet Terra"

The mosaics are emblems allusive to the B. Virgin. (..) Those of the spandrils executed by the Cav. Galandra represent S. Bonaventure, S. Thomas of Aquino, S. Germanus Patriarch of Constantinople and S. John Damascene. The originals of SS. Thomas and John Damascene are by Andrea Sacchi; and those of the other two, by the Cav. Lanfranco(notice the bees of Pope Urban VIII). Donovan
Much of the constituted beauty resides in the fact that it is all general beauty, that you are appealed to by no specific details, or that these at least, practically never importunate, are as taken for granted as the lieutenants and captains are taken for granted in a great standing army - among whom indeed individual aspects may figure here the rather shifting range of decorative dignity in which details, when observed, often prove poor (though never not massive and substantially precious) and sometimes prove ridiculous. James
Giovanni Lanfranco (1582-1647) and Andrea Sacchi (1599-1661) were among the leading painters of their time. The former decisively contributed in the 1620s to the Baroque surge, whereas the latter was a champion of classicism.

Right nave - Cappella di S. Sebastiano: mosaic of the dome of the vestibule

The next altar is that of S. Sebastian. Every altar is adorned with a mosaic, copied so correctly from some of the finest paintings extant, that an unpractised eye scarcely discovers that the altarpiece is not an easel painting. Of these the labour and expense are almost incredible, each occupying one man on an average 35 years, and costing an average sum of L. 10,000. They, however, are indestructible by Time, thus imparting immortality to the perishable works of the painter. (..) The mosaics of the cupola represent the Apocalyptic Vision of the Eternal Father with the mystic Lamb to his right, and the Blessed Spirits with palms of martyrdom in their hands by Fabio Cristofari and Matteo Piccioni, from the originals of Pietro da Cortona. Donovan

Left nave - Cappella della Presentazione: mosaics based on cartoons by Carlo Maratta and Giuseppe Bartolomeo Chiari (1686 - 1708) and depicting events from Exodus and Numbers

The subjects chosen for the decoration of new S. Pietro included events and personages from the Old Testament. Prophetesses and prophets are depicted in the lunettes and pendentives throughout the lateral naves. The scenes had a theological justification, but maybe some of them were selected because they were full of life and contributed to the overall richly coloured aspect the basilica.
The Biblical references (KJV) are (left to right):
Numbers 24:17 (Balaam) I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob.
Exodus 3:5 (Moses) And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
Exodus 15:20 (Miriam) And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.
Numbers 16:46 (Aaron) And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them.

(left) The Baldachin and the Octagon; (right) aedicule in a pillar of the Octagon with columns from S. Pietro Vecchio which according to tradition came from theTemple of Solomon; twisted columns similar to those of the Baldachin can be seen in many later churches, e.g. atPalazzolo in Sicily

Under the cupola, and in the centre of the church, stands the high altar (..) with that stupendous canopy of Corinthian brass, which heretofore was brought from thePantheon; it consists of four wreathed columns, partly channelled and encircled with vines, on which hang little puti, birds and bees (the arms of the Barberini), sustaining a baldacchina, of the same metal. The four columns weigh an hundred and ten thousand pounds, all over richly gilt; this, with the pedestals, crown, and statues about it, form a thing of that art, vastness, and magnificence, as is beyond all that man's industry has produced of the kind; it is the work of Bernini, a Florentine sculptor, architect, painter, and poet, who, a little before my coming to the city, gave a public opera (for so they call shows of that kind), wherein he painted the scenes, cut the statues, invented the engines, composed the music, writ the comedy, and built the theatre. Evelyn
To his mother. Rome, April 15, 1740. Good-Friday. To-day I am just come from paying my adoration at St. Peter's to three extraordinary relics, which are exposed to public view only on these two days in the whole year, at which time all the confraternities in the city come in procession to see them. It was something extremely novel to see that vast church, and the most magnificent in the world, undoubtedly, illuminated (for it was night) by thousands of little crystal lamps, disposed in the figure of a huge cross at the high altar, and seeming to hang alone in the air. All the light proceeded from this, and had the most singular effect imaginable as one entered the great door. Soon after came one after another, I believe, thirty processions, all dressed in linen frocks, and girt with a cord, their heads covered with a cowl all over, only two holes to see through left. Some of them were all black, others red, others white, others party-coloured; these were continually coming and going with their tapers and crucifixes before them; and to each company, as they arrived and knelt before the great altar, were shown from a balcony, at a great height, thethree wonders, which are the head of the spear that wounded Christ; St. Veronica's handkerchief, with the miraculous impression of his face upon it; and a piece of the true cross, on the sight of which the people thump their breasts, and kiss the pavement with vast devotion.
Thomas Gray - Letters from France and Italy in 1739-1741
Away down toward the far end of the church (I thought it was really clear at the far end, but discovered afterward that it was in the center, under the dome) stood the thing they call the baldachino - a great bronze pyramidal framework like that which upholds a mosquito bar. It only looked like a considerably magnified bedstead - nothing more. Yet I knew it was a good deal more than half as high as Niagara Falls.
Mark Twain - The Innocents Abroad. You may wish to readhis account of a visit to S. Pietro in 1867.
The Baldacchino gave Bernini his first and at once greatest opportunity of displaying his unparalleled genius for combining an architectural structure with monumental sculpture. It was a brilliant idea to repeat in the giant columns of the Baldacchino the shape of the late antique twisted columns which - sanctified by age and their use in the old Basilica of St Peter's - were now to serve as aedicules above the balconies of the pillars of the dome. Thus the twisted bronze columns of the Baldacchino find a fourfold echo, and not only give proof of the continuity of tradition, but by their giant size also express symbolicly the change from the simplicity of the early Christians to the splendour of the counter-reformatory Church, implying the victory of Christianity over the pagan world. Moreover, their shape helped to solve the formal problem inherent in the gigantic Baldacchino. Its size is carefully related to the architecture of the church; but instead of creating a dangerous rivalry, the dark bronze corkscrew columns establish a dramatic contrast to the straight fluted pilasters of the piers as well as to the other white marble structural members of the building.
Rudolph Wittkower - Art and Architecture in Italy - 1600-1750 - Penguin Books 1958

Detail of the Baldachin (see how it influenced the design ofVermahlungsbrunnen in Vienna)

The columns are topped by four large angels behind which rise the huge scrolls of the crowning motif. Their S-shaped lines appear like a buoyant continuation of the screw-like upward tendencies of the columns. The scrolls meet under a vigorously curved entablature which is surmounted by the Cross above the golden orb. (..) Here, in the open spaces between the scrolls, are the putti with the symbols of papal power, here are the energetically curved palm branches which give tension to the movement of the scrolls. (..) Critics have often disapproved of therealistic hangings which join the columns instead of the traditional entablature. But it is precisely this unorthodox element which gives the Baldacchino its particular meaning as a monumental canopy raised in all eternity over the tomb of St. Peter, reminiscent of the real canopy held over the living pope when he is carried in state through the basilica. Wittkower
In other pages of this website you can see thecoats of arms of the Baldachin, thefour gigantic statues of the Octagon celebrating the relics of the basilica andfunerary monuments by Bernini and other Baroque sculptors.

The Chair of St. Peter in the apse of the basilica (see thecoat of arms ofPope Alexander VII)

The altar of St. Peter's choir, notwithstanding all the ornaments which have been lavished upon it, is no more than a heap of puerile finery, better adapted to an Indian pagod, than to a temple built upon the principles of the Greek architecture. Smollett
This ornament of bronze consists of a group of four gigantic figures, representing the four principal Doctors of the Greek and Latin churches, supporting the patriarchal chair of St. Peter. The chair is a lofty throne elevated to the height of seventy feet from the pavement. A circular window tinged with yellow throws from above a mild splendor around it, so that the the whole not unfitly represents the pre-eminence of the apostolic See, and is acknowledged to form a most becoming and majestic termination to the first of Christian temples.
John Chetwode Eustace - A Classical Tour through Italy in 1802
Canova was not so Greek or even so classic as one used to think him, but one hardly has a moment of repose in St. Peter's till one comes to amonument by him and rests in its quiet. It is tame, it is even weak, if you like; but compared with the frantic agglomeration of gilt clouds and sunbursts, and marble and bronze figures in the high-altar, it is heavenly serene and lovely.
You may wish to read more ofWilliam Dean Howells' account of his visit to S. Pietro in 1908
The Cathedra of St. Peter in the apse of the basilica, (is) Bernini's most complex and, due to its place and symbolic import, most significant work. (..) We noted before how the whole was conceived like a picturesque fata morgana to be seen from a distance through the columns of the Baldacchino. Only from a near standpoint is it possible to discern the subtle interplay of multicoloured marble, gilt bronze, and stucco, all bathed in the yellow light spreading from the centre of the angelic Glory. Wittkower

(left) The Chair of St. Peter; (right) detail showing the "Glory" (see how it influenced similar apse decorations, e.g. atCarpentras andVienna and seesome preparatory models of the angels)

No differentiation into species is possible: the window as well as the transitions from flat to full relief and then to firee-standing figures penetrating far into space make up an indivisible whole. The beholder finds himself in a world which he shares with saints and angels, and he feels magically drawn into the orbit of the work. What is image, what is reality? The very borderline between the one and the other seems to be obliterated. And yet, in spite of the vast scale and spatial extension, the composition is most carefully arranged and balanced. The colour scheme lightens progressively from the marble pedestals to the bronze throne with gilt decorations and the golden angels of the Glory. The gilded rays spread their protecting fingers over the whole width of the work and enhance, at the same time, the visual concentration on the symbolic focus, the area of the throne. Wittkower

(left) Bronze statue of St. Peter attributed to Arnolfo di Cambio (late XIIIth century). It was located in a side chapel of S. Pietro Vecchio; (right) Pietà by Michelangelo (1499). It was commissioned by a French cardinal for the chapel of the Kings of France inside S. Pietro Vecchio

Near the Confession of S. Peter is an old brazen Statue of S. Peter sitting with his hand up as giving his blessing; and holding his right foot a little out, to be kissed. At first, some wonder to see devout People flocking thither, and kissing the Foot of that Statue, and putting their Heads under that Foot, when they have done; but when they are well informed, that all this is done only to testify, that they submit themselves to the Authority which was given by our Saviour, to S. Peter and his Successors, they rest satisfied.
Richard Lassels' The Voyage of Italy, or a Compleat Journey through Italy in ca 1668
There is a black statue of St. Peter, to be sure, under a red canopy; which is larger than life, and which is constantly having its great toe kissed by good Catholics. You cannot help seeing that: it is so very prominent and popular. You may wish to read more ofCharles Dickens' account of his visit to S. Pietro in 1845 or to see a1905 painting by Alberto Pisa showing the popular devotion to the statue.
I was not at all pleased with the famous statue of the dead Christ in his mother's lap, by Michael Angelo. The figure of Christ is as much emaciated, as if he had died of a consumption: besides, there is something indelicate, not to say indecent, in the attitude and design of a man's body, stark naked, lying upon the knees of a woman. Smollett

Main nave: statues of the founders of religious orders: (left) St. Philip Neri by Giovanni Battista Maini (1737); (centre) St. Vincent de Paul by Pietro Bracci (1754); (right) St. John Bosco byPietro Canonica (1936)

There is also a great number of tombs of popes, cardinals, andother persons of distinction, most beautifully ornamented. (..) But, for a more particular description of this church, the traveller who delights in painting and architecture, may consult an excellent book, called 'the Tempio Vaticano' writ bycavalier Fontana; or he may buy for three Julio's,near Piazza Navona, a plan of the church, where he will find the names of the painters and architects employed in this magnificent edifice.
Thomas Nugent - The Grand Tour - 1749
The sculptures, with the sole exception of Michael Angelo's ineffable "Pietà", which lurks obscurely in a side-chapel - this indeed to my sense the rarest artistic combination of the greatest things the hand of man has produced - are either bad or indifferent. James
The series of 39 statues of the founders of the religious orders started in 1706 with a statue of St. Dominic and it ended in 1954 with that of St. Louise de Marillac. The statues provide an interesting summary of the development of (figurative) sculpture over a period of 250 years.

(left) The "village" on the roof of the main nave, the main dome and thedome of Cappella Clementina (you may wish to see theheraldic symbols of Pope Sixtus V on the drum and the dome); (right) supports for the illumination of the dome andZecca (Mint) in the background

On the summit of this is fixed a brazen globe gilt, capable of receiving thirty-five persons. This I entered, and engraved my name amongst other travellers. (..) On the battlements of the church, also all overlaid with lead and marble, you would imagine yourself in a town, so many are the cupolas, pinnacles, towers, juttings, and not a few houses inhabited by men who dwell there, and have enough to do to look after the vast reparations which continually employ them. Evelyn
Then we climbed up on to the roof, where one finds a miniature copy of a well-built town with houses, shops, fountains, churches (at least they looked like churches from the outside) and a large temple - everything in the open air with beautiful walks between. We went into the Cupola and looked out at the Apennines,Mount Soracte, the volcanic hills beyondTivoli,Frascati,Castel Gandolfo, the plain and the sea beyond it. Below us lay the city of Rome in all its length and breadth with its hill-perched palaces, domes, etc.
J. W. Goethe - translation by W. H. Auden and Elizabeth Mayer - Collins

Main dome which is shown also in the image used as background for this page

Though every thing in this church is admirable, the most astonishing part of it is the cupola. Upon my going to the top of it, I was surprised to find that the dome, which we see in the church, is not the same that one looks upon without doors, the last of them being a kind of case to the other, and the stairs lying betwixt them both, by which one ascends into the ball. Had there been only the outward dome, it would not have shown itself to an advantage to those that are in the church; or had there only been the inward one, it would scarce have been seen by those that are without; had they both been one solid dome of so great a thickness, the pillars would have been too weak to have supported it. Addison

Main and minor domes in January 2023 after a major cleaning effort

The great feast of St. Peter and St. Paul has come at last. Yesterday we saw the illuminated dome and thefireworks of Castel Sant'Angelo. The illuminations are spectacular, like a scene from fairyland; one can hardly believe one's eyes. (..) To see the colonnade, the church, and, above all, the dome, first outlined in fire and, after an hour, become one glowing mass, is a unique and glorious experience. When one thinks that, at this moment, the whole enormous building is a mere scaffolding for the lights, one realizes that nothing like it could be seen anywhere else in the world.
J. W. Goethe - June 30, 1787 - translation by W. H. Auden and Elizabeth Mayer - Collins
.. but, when the night came on, without a cloud to dim the full moon, what a sight it was to see the Great Square full once more, and the whole church, from the cross to the ground, lighted with innumerable lanterns, tracing out the architecture, and winking and shining all round the colonnade of the piazza! And what a sense of exultation, joy, delight, it was when the great bell struck half-past seven - on the instant - to behold one bright red mass of fire, soar gallantly from the top of the cupola to the extremest summit of the cross, and the moment it leaped into its place, become the signal of a bursting out of countless lights, as great, and red, and blazing as itself, from every part of the gigantic church; so that every cornice, capital, and smallest ornament of stone, expressed itself in fire: and the black solid groundwork of the enormous dome seemed to grow transparent as an egg-shell! Dickens - Easter Sunday 1845
ReadWilliam Hazlitt's account of the illumination of the dome on Easter Sunday 1825.
ReadGeorge Stillman Hillard's 1848 account of the illumination of the dome.

Statues at the top of the façade. They portray Jesus with St. John the Baptist and the Apostles without St. Peter (you may wish to see morestatues close to Heaven)

It wasn't done in a day is a page providing more information on the construction and decoration of the basilica with particular reference to the popes who promoted them.
You may wish to readLord Byron's verses dedicated to S. Pietro.

Brussels Art & History Museum: one of the many ancient sarcophagi which were found during the excavations for the construction of the new basilica; it most likely was originally utilized atOstia

Move topage two.

Next plate in Book 3:Chiesa di S. Pietro in Carcere.
Next step in Day 8 itinerary:Porta Cavalleggeri.

Excerpts from Giuseppe Vasi 1761 Itinerary related to this page: