Santissimo Sudario all'Argentina ('' hurch ofthe Most Holy Shroud at the Argentina'') or Santissimo Sudario dei Piemontesi (''Church of the Most Holy Shroud of the Piedmontese'') is a church in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, sited on the via del Sudario in the

Sant'Eustachio Sant'Eustachio is a Roman Catholic titular church and minor basilica in Rome, named for the martyr Saint Eustace. It is located on Via di Sant'Eustachio in the rione Sant'Eustachio, a block west of the Pantheon and via della Rotonda, and a bl ...

district. It is the subsidiary church of the military orders in Italy. It was also once the national church of the

Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...

and is now the regional church for

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

and

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

. It houses a replica of the

Turin Shroud The Shroud of Turin ( it, Sindone di Torino), also known as the Holy Shroud ( it, Sacra Sindone, links=no or ), is a length of linen cloth bearing the negative image of a man. Some describe the image as depicting Jesus of Nazareth and bel ...

History

Originally dedicated to Saint Louis of France, it was rebuilt in 1605 by the Archconfraternity of the Savoyards and Piedmontese, which had been founded in Rome at the end of 1537 under the title of the 'sacra Sindone' or holy shroud and promoted to be an archconfraternity in 1592 by

Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII ( la, Clemens VIII; it, Clemente VIII; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born ...

. The church was restored in 1678 by

Carlo Rainaldi Carlo Rainaldi (4 May 1611 – 8 February 1691) was an Italian architect of the Baroque period. Biography Born in Rome, Rainaldi was one of the leading architects of 17th century Rome, known for a certain grandeur in his designs. He worked at f ...

. During the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kin ...

of 1798 to 1799 it was deconsecrated and used as a magazine and armoury. In 1856 it was restored and in 1870 became a kind of private chapel for the

House of Savoy The House of Savoy ( it, Casa Savoia) was a royal dynasty that was established in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, the family grew in power from ruling a small Alpine county north-west of Italy to absolute rule of ...

Description

A guide from the 19th century ascribes the main altarpiece to

Antonio Gherardi Antonio Gherardi (''Il Reatino'') (20 September 1638 – 10 May 1702) was an Italian painter, architect, and sculptor (stuccoist) of the Baroque style, active mainly in and near Rome and his native city of Rieti. Life Antonio was born in Riet ...

, which accompanied a replica of the

Holy Shroud The Shroud of Turin ( it, Sindone di Torino), also known as the Holy Shroud ( it, Sacra Sindone, links=no or ), is a length of linen cloth bearing the negative image of a man. Some describe the image as depicting Jesus of Nazareth and bel ...

. Other altarpieces depict ''St Frances of Sales'' by

Carlo Cesi Carlo Cesio or Carlo Cesi (17 April 1622– 6 January 1682) was a Baroque-style painter and engraver of the Roman school. Biography Cesio was born in 1622 at Antrodoco in the present Province of Rieti, then part of the Roman States. He was br ...

, and a ''Blessed Amadeo of Savoy'' by

Giovanni Domenico Cerrini Giovanni Domenico Cerrini (1609–1681), also called ''Gian Domenico Cerrini'' or ''il Cavalier Perugino'', was a painter of the Baroque period, born in Perugia and active mainly in Rome and influenced in large part by painters of the Bolognese ...

; and others by

Lazzaro Baldi Lazzaro Baldi ( – 30 March 1703) was an Italian painter and engraver of the Baroque period active mainly in Rome.

.Guida metodica di Roma e suoi contorni
by Giuseppe Melchiorri, Rome (1836); page 421.

Bibliography

* G. Carpaneto, ''Rione VIII Sant’Eustachio'', in AA.VV, ''I rioni di Roma'', Newton & Compton Editori, Milano 2000, Vol. II, pp. 499–555.

* C. Rendina, ''Le Chiese di Roma'', Newton & Compton Editori, Milano 2000, p. 354.

References

{{Authority control Roman Catholic churches in Rome National churches in Rome Sudario Argentina 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Baroque architecture in Rome