San Pietro in Montorio (Saint Peter on the Golden Mountain) 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 ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, which includes in its courtyard the ''Tempietto'', a small commemorative '' martyrium'' (tomb) built by

Donato Bramante Donato Bramante ( , , ; 1444 – 11 April 1514), born as Donato di Pascuccio d'Antonio and also known as Bramante Lazzari, was an Italian architect and painter. He introduced Renaissance architecture to Milan and the High Renaissance styl ...

History

The Church of San Pietro in Montorio was built on the site of an earlier 9th-century church dedicated to

Saint Peter ) (Simeon, Simon) , birth_date = , birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire , death_date = Between AD 64–68 , death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire , parents = John (or Jonah; Jona) , occupat ...

on Rome's

Janiculum The Janiculum (; it, Gianicolo ), occasionally the Janiculan Hill, is a hill in western Rome, Italy. Although it is the second-tallest hill (the tallest being Monte Mario) in the contemporary city of Rome, the Janiculum does not figure among t ...

hill. It serves as a shrine, marking the supposed site of St. Peter's

crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagi ...

. In the 15th century, the ruins were given to the Amadist

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century; the term distinguishes the mendicants' itinerant apostolic character, exercised broadly under the jurisdiction of a superior general, from the ...

s, a reform branch of the

Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

, founded by the Blessed Amadeus of Portugal, who served as

confessor Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways. Confessor of the Faith Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death.Pope Sixtus IV from 1472. Commissioned by

Ferdinand Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...

and Isabella of Spain. It is a

titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church is a church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the clergy who is created a cardinal. These are Catholic churches in the city, within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Rome, that serve as honorary des ...

, whose current title holder, since 1 March 2008, is Cardinal

James Francis Stafford James Francis Stafford (born July 26, 1932) is an American cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as major penitentiary of the Apostolic Penitentiary from 2003 to 2009. He previously served as president of the Pontifical Council ...

Interior

The church is decorated with artworks by prominent 16th- and 17th-century masters. The first chapel on the right contains

Sebastiano del Piombo Sebastiano del Piombo (; c. 1485 – 21 June 1547) was an Italian painter of the High Renaissance and early Mannerist periods famous as the only major artist of the period to combine the colouring of the Venetian school in which he was trained ...

's ''Flagellation'' and ''Transfiguration'' (1516–24). Michelangelo, who had befriended Sebastiano in Rome, supplied figure drawings that were incorporated into the ''Flagellation''. The second chapel has a fresco by Niccolò Circignani (1554), some Renaissance frescoes from the school of Pinturicchio, and an allegorical sibyl and virtue attributed to

Baldassarre Peruzzi Baldassare Tommaso Peruzzi (7 March 1481 – 6 January 1536) was an Italian architect and painter, born in a small town near Siena (in Ancaiano, ''frazione'' of Sovicille) and died in Rome. He worked for many years with Bramante, Raphael, and lat ...

. The fourth chapel has a ceiling fresco by

Giorgio Vasari Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work '' The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculp ...

. Although there is no grave marker, tradition has it that

Beatrice Cenci Beatrice Cenci (; 6 February 157711 September 1599) was a Roman noblewoman who murdered her father, Count Francesco Cenci. She was beheaded in 1599 after a lurid murder trial in Rome that gave rise to an enduring legend about her. Life Beatri ...

—executed in 1599 for the murder of her abusive father and made famous by Percy Bysshe Shelley, among others—is buried either in this chapel or below the high altar. The ceiling of the fifth chapel contains another fresco, the ''Conversion of St. Paul'', by Vasari. The altarpiece is attributed to

Giulio Mazzoni Giulio Mazzoni (1525–1618) was an Italian painter and stuccoist, active during the Renaissance period. He was born in Piacenza, but studied in Rome under Daniele da Volterra, and was active about the year 1568. He helped decorate the Palazzo S ...

, while the funerary monument of Pope Julius III (

Giovanni Maria Del Monte Pope Julius III ( la, Iulius PP. III; it, Giulio III; 10 September 1487 – 23 March 1555), born Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 February 1550 to his death in March 15 ...

) and Roberto Nobili are by

Bartolomeo Ammannati Bartolomeo Ammannati (18 June 151113 April 1592) was an Italian architect and sculptor, born at Settignano, near Florence. He studied under Baccio Bandinelli and Jacopo Sansovino (assisting on the design of the Library of St. Mark's, the ''Bibli ...

. Also buried in the chapel is Julius III's scandalous 'nephew', and probable lover Cardinal

Innocenzo Ciocchi Del Monte Innocenzo Ciocchi del Monte ( – 1577) was a notorious cardinal whose relationship with Pope Julius III (born Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte) caused grave scandal in the early 16th century. Born in Borgo San Donnino (now Fidenza) to a beggar- ...

Until 1797,

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual a ...

's final masterpiece, the '' Transfiguration'' graced the high altar; it is now in the Vatican pinacoteca. The altar currently displays a copy by Cammuccini of Guido Reni's ''Crucifixion of St. Peter'' (also now in Vatican museum). The last chapel on the left contains a ''Baptism of Christ'', attributed to Daniele da Volterra, and stucco-work and ceiling frescoes by

. A pupil of

Antoniazzo Romano Antoniazzo Romano, born Antonio di Benedetto Aquilo degli Aquili (c. 1430 – c. 1510) was an Italian Early Renaissance painter, the leading figure of the Roman school during the latter part of the 15th century. He "made a speciality of re ...

frescoed the third chapel with the ''Saint Anne, Virgin, and Child''.

Dirck van Baburen Dirck Jaspersz. van Baburen (c. 1595 – 21 February 1624) was a Dutch painter and one of the Utrecht Caravaggisti. Biography Dirck van Baburen was probably born in Wijk bij Duurstede, but his family moved to Utrecht when he was still youn ...

, a central figure of the Dutch Caravaggisti, painted the '' Entombment'' for the Pietà Chapel, which is indebted to Caravaggio's example. Baburen worked with another Dutch artist,

David de Haen David de Haen (1585, Amsterdam – 1622, Rome), was a Dutch Caravaggesque painter and draughtsman, active in Rome between 1615 and 1622. Biography David was born in Amsterdam and moved to Rome at a young age where he would remain the rest of hi ...

in this chapel. The two other paintings, ''The Mocking of Christ'' and ''The Agony in the Garden'' are variously attributed to either or both of the artists. The second chapel on the left, the Raimondi Chapel (1640), was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. It includes Francesco Baratta's ''Saint Francis in Ecstasy'' and sculptures by

Andrea Bolgi Andrea Bolgi (22 June 1605 – 1656) was an Italian sculptor responsible for several statues in St. Peter's Basilica, Rome. Towards the end of his life he moved to Naples, where he sculpted portrait busts. He died in Naples during a plague epid ...

and Niccolò Sale.

Irish chieftains' tombs

At the high altar are two tombs: that of Hugh O'Neill, The O'Neill, 2nd

Earl of Tyrone The Earl of Tyrone is a title created three times in the Peerage of Ireland. It was first created as part of the Tudor attempt to establish a uniform social structure in Ireland by converting the Gaelic kings and chiefs into hereditary nobles of t ...

and his son Hugh who predeceased him, and the tomb shared by

Rory O'Donnell, 1st Earl of Tyrconnell Rory O'Donnell (; 1575 – 30 July 1608), younger brother of Hugh Roe O'Donnell, was the last King of Tyrconnell and 1st Earl of Tyrconnell.An apparent original of the letters patent of the Earldom were in the possession of Count Maximilian ...

, and his brother Cathbharr, both of them younger brothers of Red Hugh O'Donnell. These

fled ''Fled'' is a 1996 American buddy action comedy film directed by Kevin Hooks. It stars Laurence Fishburne and Stephen Baldwin as two prisoners chained together who flee during an escape attempt gone bad. Plot An interrogator prepares a man to ...

Ireland in 1607. Rory, Lord Tyrconnell, died in 1608, his brother Cathbharr ("Calfurnius" in the inscription) and Hugh, the son of the Great Earl, died in 1609. The cause of death in all cases was fever, probably malaria. Their tombs are covered with marble inscribed slabs with coloured borders, crests and shields.Dr. Elizabeth Fitzpatrick, Lecture delivered at the Royal Society of Antiquaries Ireland, 11 April 2005
They are about 12 feet from the altar on the left as you face it and are normally covered by a carpet. Lord Tyrone himself died in 1616 and was buried in the church with much less solemnity. The original simple tombstone was lost in about 1849, but the text of the short inscription was copied: "D.O.M. Hugonis principis ONelli ossa" (Dedicated to God the Best and Greatest. The bones of Prince Hugh O'Neill). In 1989,

Tomás Cardinal Ó Fiaich Tomás may refer to: * Tomás (given name) * Tomás (surname) Tomás is a Spanish and Portuguese surname, equivalent of '' Thomas''. It may refer to: * Antonio Tomás (born 1985), professional Spanish footballer * Belarmino Tomás (1892–1950) ...

laid a new marble plaque with the same inscription in approximately the original place.

The ''Tempietto''

The so-called ''Tempietto'' (Italian: 'small temple') is a small commemorative tomb (''martyrium'') designed by

, possibly built as early as 1502 in the courtyard of San Pietro in Montorio. Commissioned by Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, the Tempietto is considered a masterpiece of

High Renaissance In art history, the High Renaissance was a short period of the most exceptional artistic production in the Italian states, particularly Rome, capital of the Papal States, and in Florence, during the Italian Renaissance. Most art historians stat ...

Italian architecture. After spending his first years in Milan, Bramante moved to Rome, where he was recognized by Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere, the soon-to-be

Pope Julius II Pope Julius II ( la, Iulius II; it, Giulio II; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope or th ...

. In Rome, Bramante was able to study the ancient monuments firsthand. The temple of Vesta at Tivoli was one of the precedents behind the Tempietto. Other antique precedents Bramante was able to study in Rome include the circular temple of the banks of the Tiber,

Temple of Hercules Victor The Temple of Hercules Victor ('Hercules the Winner') ( it, Tempio di Ercole Vincitore) or Hercules Olivarius ((Hercules the Olive Branch Bearear) is a Roman temple in Piazza Bocca della Verità in the area of the Forum Boarium near the Tiber in ...

, believed at the time to be a temple of Vesta. However, circular churches had already been employed by early Christians for martyriums, like Santa Constanza, also in Rome. Bramante would have been aware of these early Christian precedents, and as a result, the Tempietto is circular. The Tempietto is one of the most harmonious buildings of the Renaissance. The temple was constructed from bearing masonry. The circular temple supports a classical entablature, and was framed in the shadowy arch of the cloister. It is the earliest example of the

Tuscan order The Tuscan order (Latin ''Ordo Tuscanicus'' or ''Ordo Tuscanus'', with the meaning of Etruscan order) is one of the two classical orders developed by the Romans, the other being the composite order. It is influenced by the Doric order, but with ...

in the Renaissance. The Tuscan is a form of the

Doric order The Doric order was one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of c ...

, well suited for strong male gods (such as Hercules) so Tuscan was well suited for St. Peter's. It is meant to mark the traditional exact spot of St. Peter's martyrdom, and is an important precursor to Bramante's rebuilding of St. Peter's. Given all the transformations of Renaissance and Baroque Rome that were to follow, it is hard now to sense the impact this building had at the beginning of the 16th century. It is almost a piece of sculpture, for it has little architectonic use. The building greatly reflected

Brunelleschi Filippo Brunelleschi ( , , also known as Pippo; 1377 – 15 April 1446), considered to be a founding father of Renaissance architecture, was an Italian architect, designer, and sculptor, and is now recognized to be the first modern engineer, p ...

's style. Perfectly proportioned, it is composed of slender Tuscan columns, a Doric entablature modeled after the ancient

Theater of Marcellus The Theatre of Marcellus ( la, Theatrum Marcelli, it, Teatro di Marcello) is an ancient open-air theatre in Rome, Italy, built in the closing years of the Roman Republic. At the theatre, locals and visitors alike were able to watch performances o ...

, and a dome. Bramante planned to surround the building with concentric rings of

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or cur ...

s, the columns of which would have been radially aligned to those of the ''Tempietto'', but this plan was never executed.Engraving in

Sebastiano Serlio Sebastiano Serlio (6 September 1475 – c. 1554) was an Italian Mannerist architect, who was part of the Italian team building the Palace of Fontainebleau. Serlio helped canonize the classical orders of architecture in his influential trea ...

's ''Book III''

References

Sources

* Freiberg, Jack (2014), "Bramante's Tempietto, the Roman Renaissance, and the Spanish Crown", New York, Cambridge University Press, 2014. *Fortunato, Giuseppe (2010) "The Role of Architectural Representation in the Analysis of the Building: The 3d Survey of San Pietro in Montorio's Temple in Rome", atti del "X Congreso Internacional expresiòn gràphica aplicada a la edificacìon, Alicante, Editorial Marfil", S.A., .
Satellite Photo
The Tempietto is the circular dome in the center, enclosed tightly by the cloister of San Pietro in Montorio. Just west is the white hemicircle of the

Acqua Paola The Aqua Traiana (later rebuilt and named the Acqua Paola) was a 1st-century Roman aqueduct built by Emperor Trajan and inaugurated on 24 June 109 AD. It channelled water from sources around Lake Bracciano, 40 km (25 mi) north-west of Rome ...

External links

*High-resolution 360° Panoramas and Images o
San Pietro in Montorio , Art Atlas
*High-resolution 360° Panoramas and Images o
Tempietto , Art Atlas
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pietro In Montorio, San Roman Catholic churches completed in 1500 Pietro in Montorio Pietro in Montorio Renaissance architecture in Rome Church buildings with domes Donato Bramante church buildings Churches of Rome (rione Trastevere)