St. Peter's Basilica, in the Vatican, is the largest Catholic church and concentrates, in a single building, some of the most studied works in the history of Western art. For anyone walking in without knowing where to start, this is the gist of what to look at, and why.
The nave and Bernini's Baldachin
The central nave impresses before any detail: proportions calculated to appear, at the same time, immense and harmonious. In the exact center, over the papal altar and over the place traditionally identified as the tomb of St. Peter, stands Bernini's Baldachin, a bronze canopy supported by four spirally twisted columns, high enough to visually organize the entire space around it.
Michelangelo's dome
Looking up, the visitor finds the dome designed by Michelangelo, who took over the architectural direction of the basilica at an advanced age and conceived the structure that today is one of the most recognizable landmarks on Rome's skyline. The work was only completed after the artist's death, but generally maintained its original conception.
The Pietà, in a side chapel
Right at the entrance, in a chapel on the right, is the Pietà, the sculpture in which Michelangelo, still young, sculpted Mary holding the body of the dead Christ. It is the only work he signed, and it is worth taking a few steps before heading to the center of the basilica.
The Chair, in the apse
In the background, in the apse, the eye is led by the light to the Chair of St. Peter, the monumental bronze throne with which Bernini enclosed, centuries later, the ancient chair venerated as a relic of the episcopal see of Peter in Rome. It is the most solemn point of the building, the highest chair in Christendom.
The grottoes, underground
Below the floor of the basilica, the Vatican grottoes house the tombs of several popes over the centuries, a quieter and more collected space, in direct contrast to the grandeur of the nave above.
Traveling through these six points, in the order in which the building itself leads the eye, from the nave to the top, from the Pietà to the Chair, from the center to the basement, is to cross centuries of faith, art and power concentrated in a single route.
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Discover the courseFrequently asked questions
What to see in St. Peter's Basilica?
Six points concentrate the essentials of the visit: the central nave, Bernini's Baldachin on the papal altar, the dome designed by Michelangelo, Michelangelo's Pietà in a side chapel, the Chair of St. Peter in the apse and the Vatican grottoes, where the popes' tombs are located, in the basement of the basilica.
Who designed the dome of St. Peter's Basilica?
Michelangelo took over the architectural project of the basilica at an advanced age and designed the dome that today dominates Rome's skyline, although it was only completed, with adjustments by other architects, after his death.
What is Bernini's Baldachin?
A monumental bronze canopy, supported by four spiral columns, erected by Bernini directly over the papal altar and the location traditionally identified as the tomb of St. Peter, marking the exact center of the basilica.
Continue: The Chair of St. Peter, by Bernini · The Pietà, by Michelangelo · Who was Bernini? · Why is Macbeth "the Scottish play"?
Source class: O Eleito, de Thomas Mann