Santa Maria Maggiore is such, and is one of the four churches in the city under the direct control of the Vatican. The original church was built when the Virgin Mary told the Pope in a dream in 352 AD to build a church at the exact spot where it would snow overnight. So he did. The miraculous bit wasn’t the dream, but the fact it was 5th August and a hot Roman summer! The structure has been improved and embellished many times since: from the photo underneath, it could be a palace.
The detail, quantity and quality of workmanship is beyond comprehension. Take the panelled ceiling as an example. Each of the hundred or so panels is exquisitely and identically formed even though the naked eye can’t see the details (these days the camera can).
Beautiful inlaid marble floors are the norm, as in this one from the church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli.
Nothing, however, quite prepares you for the size and splendour of St Peter’s. It’s the second largest church in the world (the largest is on the Ivory Coast, of all places). The first church was consecrated on this site in 326 AD following Rome’s first Christian Emperor’s conversion to Christianity. The photo below is an example of just a small part of its incredible opulence.
You’ve got the floors and walls above, now let’s look up at one of the domes. It seems to be glowing from within.
These descriptions are far too sketchy, but maybe it’s best done this way or it would fill 10 volumes. We’ll round off with an example of one of the sculptures. It’s Michelangelo’s Pietà , surely one of the most beautiful carvings of all time and one that he created at the age of only 23. In 1972 some nutcase attacked it with a hammer, so now it’s behind glass. All entrants get security checked airport-style to prevent any further incidents.
It was definitely culture overload, but an experience not to be missed.
No comments:
Post a Comment