TheClementine Hall, called theSala Clementina, is ahall of theApostolic Palace nearSt. Peter's Basilica inVatican City. It was established in the 16th century byPope Clement VIII in honor ofSt Clement, the third successor ofSt. Peter. The Clementine Hall is covered inRenaissancefrescoes and valuable works ofart. It is used by thepope as a reception room and in some cases, site of various ceremonies and rituals. The Clementine Hall is the chamber in which the body of the pope lies for private visitation by officials of the Vatican upon death, as happened during thefuneral of Pope John Paul II. The pope's body is then traditionally moved from the Clementine Hall and ceremonially carried across St. Peter's Square to St. Peter's Basilica or the Basilica ofSan Giovanni in Laterano.
TheSala Clementina, Clementine Hall, was commissioned byPope Clement VIII in honor of his predecessorSt Clement, the third in line aspope afterSt. Peter.[1] It was constructed as part of theApostolic Palace to the design ofarchitectDomenico Fontana. The hall was originally envisaged as a series of rooms encompassing three floors, but Fontana's successor,Taddeo Landini, instead took away the second and third stories to create the hall.[2] The brothersCherubino andGiovanni were contracted in 1596 to complete thefrescos that adorn the ceiling and walls. The ceiling was completed in 1600 and the walls in 1602.[3]
The Clementine Hall measures 23 by 14.4 m (75 by 47 ft). It is lit by two windows that are mounted high up on the walls.[2] It is illustrated withRenaissancefrescoes.[4] Thevault is covered in a fresco by Giovanni Alberti titled “The Apotheosis of St. Clement", which includes a kneeling St Clement surrounded by angels. The vault includes examples ofillusionistic ceiling painting, including quadratatura anddi sotto in sù.The long walls have a highdado that is encrusted with marbles.[1] Along one the walls are figures representing thecardinal, faced by thetheological virtues lining the other wall, although Charity is replaced by Heroism, representing the attributes ofmartyrdom.[5] On one of the short walls, above the doors, appears the fresco "The Martyrdom of St Clement" by the Dutch painterPaul Bril.[6] In it, the saint is shown being thrown off a ship with an anchor tied to his neck. The other wall has the frescos "The Baptism of St. Clement" and "Allegory of Art and Science".[7][1] Although the latter is by the Alberti brothers, the other frescos on the walls are the work of Cherubino Alberti andBaldassare Croce, Giovani having died in 1601 before the work was complete.[8]
Used as a reception room by thepope, the Clementine Hall also performs a number of ceremonial functions.[1] It is frequently used for state visits, including one on 4 June 2004, in whichPresident of the United StatesGeorge W. Bush presentedPope John Paul II with thePresidential Medal of Freedom.[9] Often visitors will wait in the Hall for an audience with the pope, watched over bySwiss Guards.[10] The Swiss Guard have been posted in the hall since before 1758.[11]
The Clementine Hall is the chamber in which the body of the pope lies for private visitation by officials upon death. The body can be exposed to high temperatures as the room is not air conditioned and it is therefore often lightly embalmed to preserve its features.[12] For thefuneral of Pope John Paul II, the pope's body waslaid in state from 3 to 4 April 2005, after which it was processed acrossSt. Peter's Square toSt. Peter's Basilica for public visitation until the funeral on 8 April.[13]
