San Petronio, Bologna on:
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The interior houses a ''Madonna with Saints'' by Lorenzo Costa the Younger, and a ''Pietà'' by Amico Aspertini.
The church hosts also a marking in the form of a meridian line inlaid in the paving of the left aisle in 1655; it was calculated and designed by the astronomer
In 2002 five men were arrested on suspicions of planning to blow up the basilica. The men were allegedly connected to
Bologna racconta
(in Italian)
*High-resolution viewers for Giovanni da Modena'
Living Cross
an
Verdant Cross
by Factum Foundation for Digital Technology in Conservation {{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1479 Churches completed in the 1470s 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Petronio 1390 establishments in Europe 14th-century establishments in Italy Unfinished buildings and structures Gothic architecture in Bologna Burial sites of the House of Bonaparte Cultural depictions of Muhammad
The Basilica of San Petronio is a
In 1388, the ''Consiglio Generale dei Seicento'' prepared the construction of the church as a civic temple. To make room for the church, the adjacent Curia of Sancti Ambrosii was demolished, together with the majority of one of the city's burgs, including at least eight churches and towers. The first stone of construction was laid on 7 June 1390 under the supervision of architect Antonio di Vincenzo. Works lasted for several centuries: after the completion of the first version of the facade, in 1393 the first pair of side chapels were begun. The series were completed only in 1479.
The third bay was built in 1441–1446. Its construction was delayed by the cardinal Baldassarre Cossa, who sold the construction material of the basilica and kept the money.
In 1514, Arduino degli Arriguzzi was chosen as the architect to construct the dome. His proposal included a large dome resting upon the width between the side aisles, which necessitated larger transepts and apses. The project was considered too complicated, and after building the first two pillars and two triangular pylons for the dome, the work was halted. According to legend,
Jacopo della Quercia
Jacopo della Quercia (, ; 20 October 1438), also known as Jacopo di Pietro d'Agnolo di Guarnieri, was an Italian sculptor of the Early Renaissance, a contemporary of Brunelleschi, Ghiberti and Donatello.
Biography
Jacopo della Quercia takes hi ...
, photographed by Paolo Monti">
Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico (Bologna, 1980) - BEIC 6353871.jpg, ''Original sin''
Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico - BEIC 6366114.jpg, ''Fall of man''
Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico (Bologna, 1980) - BEIC 6353870.jpg, ''Noah's Ark''
Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico (Bologna, 1980) - BEIC 6353873.jpg, ''Binding of Isaac''
Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico (Bologna, 1979) - BEIC 6353697.jpg, ''Prophets'' on the archivolt
Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico (Bologna, 1979) - BEIC 6353701.jpg, ''Massacre of the Innocents''
minor basilica
Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...
and church of the Archdiocese of Bologna located in Bologna
Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
, Emilia Romagna
Emilia-Romagna (, , both , ; or ; ) is an administrative region of northern Italy, comprising the historical regions of Emilia and Romagna. Its capital is Bologna. It has an area of , and a population of 4.4 million.
Emilia-Romagna is one of ...
, northern Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. It dominates Piazza Maggiore
Piazza Maggiore (''Piâza Mażåur'' in the Bolognese dialect, Bolognese language) is a central square in Bologna, region of Emilia-Romagna, Italy, largely preserving its 15th century layout. The Northwest corner opens into Piazza del Nettuno wit ...
. The basilica is dedicated to the patron saint of the city, Saint Petronius, who was the Bishop of Bologna in the fifth century. Construction began in 1390 and its main facade has remained unfinished since. The building was transferred from the city to the diocese in 1929; the basilica was finally consecrated in 1954. It has been the seat of the relics of Bologna's patron saint only since 2000; until then, they were preserved in the Santo Stefano church.
History
Construction
In 1388, the ''Consiglio Generale dei Seicento'' prepared the construction of the church as a civic temple. To make room for the church, the adjacent Curia of Sancti Ambrosii was demolished, together with the majority of one of the city's burgs, including at least eight churches and towers. The first stone of construction was laid on 7 June 1390 under the supervision of architect Antonio di Vincenzo. Works lasted for several centuries: after the completion of the first version of the facade, in 1393 the first pair of side chapels were begun. The series were completed only in 1479.
The third bay was built in 1441–1446. Its construction was delayed by the cardinal Baldassarre Cossa, who sold the construction material of the basilica and kept the money.
In 1514, Arduino degli Arriguzzi was chosen as the architect to construct the dome. His proposal included a large dome resting upon the width between the side aisles, which necessitated larger transepts and apses. The project was considered too complicated, and after building the first two pillars and two triangular pylons for the dome, the work was halted. According to legend, Pope Pius IV
Pope Pius IV (; 31 March 1499 – 9 December 1565), born Giovanni Angelo Medici, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 December 1559 to his death, in December 1565. Born in Milan, his family considered itself a b ...
halted the "megalomaniac dream" and instead encouraged the construction of the Archiginnasio of Bologna.
Architecture
Exterior
The basilica is a large church measuring 132 metres long, 66 metres wide, and 47 metres tall, and is described as the "most imposing" church in Bologna. The facade was designed by Domenico da Varignana and started in 1538 by Giacomo Ranuzzi. However, it remains unfinished. The main doorway (''Porta Magna'') was decorated byJacopo della Quercia
Jacopo della Quercia (, ; 20 October 1438), also known as Jacopo di Pietro d'Agnolo di Guarnieri, was an Italian sculptor of the Early Renaissance, a contemporary of Brunelleschi, Ghiberti and Donatello.
Biography
Jacopo della Quercia takes hi ...
of Siena
Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
with scenes from the Old Testament on the pillars, eighteen prophets on the archivolt
An archivolt (or voussure) is an ornamental Molding (decorative), moulding or band following the curve on the underside of an arch.
It is composed of bands of ornamental mouldings (or other architectural elements) surrounding an arched opening, ...
, scenes from the New Testament on the architrave
In classical architecture, an architrave (; , also called an epistyle; ) is the lintel or beam, typically made of wood or stone, that rests on the capitals of columns.
The term can also apply to all sides, including the vertical members, ...
, and a Madonna and Child
In Christian art, a Madonna () is a religious depiction of the Blessed Virgin Mary in a singular form or sometimes accompanied by the Child Jesus. These images are central icons for both the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches. The word ...
, Saint Ambrose
Ambrose of Milan (; 4 April 397), venerated as Saint Ambrose, was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promoting Roman Christianity against Ari ...
and Saint Petronius on the tympanum. It is flanked by two side doors, with Alfonso Lombardi's ''Resurrection'' on the left and Amico Aspertini's ''Deposition'' on the right.
The central nave covering and apse shooting were completed in 1663, designed by Girolamo Rainaldi and directed by Francesco Martini. The lower naves are enclosed by rectilinear walls. The first two windows were designed by Antonio with the assistance of Francesco di Simone, Domenico da Milano, Pagno di Lapo Portigiani and Antonio di Simone. The bell tower
A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...
was designed by Giovanni da Brensa and built between 1481 and 1487.
Interior
The interior houses a ''Madonna with Saints'' by Lorenzo Costa the Younger, and a ''Pietà'' by Amico Aspertini.
Main altar
The altar contains a 15th-century wooden crucifix. At the back, a fresco of the ''Madonna with St. Petronio'' by Marcantonio Franceschini and Luigi Quaini, cartoons by Cignani (1672). The ciborium of the main altar was built in 1547 by Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola. The fifteenth-century wooden choir was completed by Agostino de 'Marchi. The vaulting and decoration of the central nave is by Girolamo Rainaldi, who completed them in 1646–1658.Side chapels
The nave contains twenty-two side chapels: # Chapel of St. Abbondio, formerly of the Dieci di Balia – restored in neo-Gothic style in 1865. In this chapel, in the year 1530, EmperorCharles V Charles V may refer to:
Kings and Emperors
* Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558)
* Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain
* Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise
Others
* Charles V, Duke ...
was crowned by Pope Clement VII
Pope Clement VII (; ; born Giulio di Giuliano de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the most unfortunate o ...
.
# Chapel of St. Petronio, once of the Cospi and Aldrovandi families, designed by Alfonso Torreggiani, designed to contain the relic of the head of San Petronio.
# Chapel of St. Ivo, Formerly of the family of San Brigida dei Foscherari: it has statues of ''Angelo Piò'' and the paintings of the ''Madonna of St. Luke and Saints Emidio and Ivo'' by Gaetano Gandolfi and ''Apparition of the Virgin to St. Francesca Romana'' by Alessandro Tiarini (1615). On the pillar, two clocks, one of the first made in Italy with the correction of the pendulum (1758).
# Chapel of the Magi, once of Bolognini family: its marble Gothic balustrade designed by Antonio di Vincenzo (1400); the ''Triptych'' wooden altar with twenty-seven figures carved and painted by Jacopo di Paolo. The walls were painted by Giovanni di Pietro Falloppi Giovanni may refer to:
* Giovanni (name), an Italian male given name and surname
* Giovanni (meteorology), a Web interface for users to analyze NASA's gridded data
* ''Don Giovanni'', a 1787 opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on the legend of ...
/ Giovanni da Modena with a cycle depicting the ''Episodes in the life of San Petronio'', the back wall, right wall, ''Stories of the Three Kings''; the left wall, at the top, ''The Last Judgment'' with the ''Coronation of the Virgin'' in oval, and the controversial ''Heaven and Hell'', Dante
Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...
's depiction of the places, with a gigantic figure of Lucifer
The most common meaning for Lucifer in English is as a name for the Devil in Christian theology.
He appeared in the King James Version of the Bible in Isaiah and before that in the Vulgate (the late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bib ...
.
# Chapel of St. Sebastian, once of Vaselli family.
# Chapel of St. Vincent Ferrer, formerly of the Griffoni, and Cospi-Ranuzzi families: bronze monument of Cardinal Giacomo Lercaro made by Giacomo Manzù (1954).
# Chapel of St. James, formerly of the Rossi and Baciocchi families: the ''Madonna Enthroned on the altar'' was painted by Lorenzo Costa
Lorenzo Costa (1460 – 5 March 1535) was an Italian painter.
Biography
He was born at Ferrara, but moved to Bologna by his early twenties, and was probably influenced by the Bolognese school, Bolognese School. However, many artists worked in ...
(1492), to the same author attributed the designs of the stained glass. Funeral monument containing the remains of Prince Felix Baciocchi and his wife Elisa Bonaparte (1845).
# Chapel of St. Rocco, formerly of the Ranuzzi family: it contains a ''Saint Roch with a Donor'' by Parmigianino
Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola (11 January 150324 August 1540), also known as Francesco Mazzola or, more commonly, as Parmigianino (, , ; "the little one from Parma"), was an Italian Mannerist painter and printmaker active in Florence, Rome, ...
(1527).
# Chapel of St. Michael formerly of the Barbazzi and Manzoli families: it houses a painting of ''Archangel Michael defeating the Fallen Angels'' by Denys Calvaert (1582).
#Chapel of St. Rosalie, formerly of the Sixteen of the Senate, now the Town Hall: canvas of ''Glory of Santa Barbara'' by Tiarini.
# Chapel of St. Bernardino stands before the fifteenth-century organ case by Lorenzo da Prato, the chapel was painted in 1531 by Aspertini with ''Four Stories of St. Petronius''.
# Chapel of the Relics, formerly of Zambeccari family.
# Chapel of St. Peter Martyr, formerly the Society of Beccari, with marble railing by Francesco di Simone (late fifteenth century);
# Chapel of St. Anthony of Padua, formerly of Saraceni and Cospi families: the statue of ''St. Anthony of Padua'' attributed to Jacopo Sansovino.
# Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, formerly of the Malvezzi Campeggi, rebuilt in the nineteenth century.
# Chapel of the Immaculate, formerly of Fantuzzi family: art nouveau decorations by Achille Casanova
Achille Casanova (2 October 1941 – 17 July 2016) was a Swiss journalist and politician. He held the office of Vice-Chancellor of Switzerland between 1981 and 2005, and during this time became the first official spokesman for the Swiss Federal ...
.
# Chapel of St. Jerome, formerly of the Castelli: the ''St. Jerome'' altar attributed to Lorenzo Costa
Lorenzo Costa (1460 – 5 March 1535) was an Italian painter.
Biography
He was born at Ferrara, but moved to Bologna by his early twenties, and was probably influenced by the Bolognese school, Bolognese School. However, many artists worked in ...
.
# Chapel of St. Lorenzo, formerly of the Garganelli, Ratta and Pallotti families: the Pieta was painted by Aspertini.
# Chapel of the Cross, formerly of the Notai: with devotional frescoes depicting ''Saints'' by Francesco Lola, Giovanni Pietro Falloppi and Pietro Lianori (XV). The window was made by Blessed Fra Giacomo di Ulm designed by Michele di Matteo da Bologna.
# Chapel of St. Ambrose, formerly of the Marsili, with a fresco in the style of Vivarini (mid-15th century).
# Chapel of St. Bridget, formerly of the Pepoli: polyptych by Tomas Garelli (1477).
# Chapel of Our Lady of Peace: ''Madonna'' in Istrian stone by Giovanni Ferabech (1394).
Music
Bologna was a principal center ofBaroque music
Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Classical music, Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance music, Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Class ...
in Italy. The musical organisation had been officially instituted by Pope Eugenius IV in 1436; the first regularly paid instrumentalists were added in the late sixteenth century, and in the seventeenth century San Petronio was renowned for its sacred instrumental and choral music, with its two great organs, completed in 1476 by Lorenzo da Prato and 1596 by Baldassarre Malamini, both still in remarkably original condition; the library remains a rich archival repository. Three successive ''maestri di cappella'' marked the great age of music at San Petronio: Maurizio Cazzati (1657–71), Giovanni Paolo Colonna (1674–95) and Giacomo Antonio Perti
Giacomo Antonio Perti (6 June 1661 – 10 April 1756) was an Italian composer of the Baroque era. He was mainly active at Bologna, where he was '' Maestro di Cappella'' for sixty years. He was the teacher of Giuseppe Torelli and Giovanni ...
(1696–1756). The current maestro, since 1996, is the harpsichordist Sergio Vartolo who has revitalised the cappella with a series of recordings for Naxos, Tactus, Brilliant Classics and Bongiovanni.
Tenor Giuseppe Marsigli () was a singer in San Petronio's choir for 50 years in addition to having a career as an opera singer and as a court musician to the Duke of Mantua
During its Timeline of Mantua, history as independent entity, Mantua had different rulers who governed on the city and the lands of Mantua from the Middle Ages to the early modern period.
From 970 to 1115, the Counts of Mantua were members of ...
.
Cassini's Meridian Line
The church hosts also a marking in the form of a meridian line inlaid in the paving of the left aisle in 1655; it was calculated and designed by the astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini
Giovanni Domenico Cassini (8 June 1625 – 14 September 1712) was an Italian-French mathematician, astronomer, astrologer and engineer. Cassini was born in Perinaldo, near Imperia, at that time in the County of Nice, part of the Savoyard sta ...
, who was teaching astronomy at the University
A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
. A meridian line does not indicate the time: instead, with its length of it is one of the largest astronomical instruments in the world, allowing measurements that were for the time uniquely precise. The sun light, entering through a hole placed at a height in the church wall, projects an elliptical image of the sun, which at local noon falls exactly on the meridian line and every day is different as to position and size. The position of the projected image along the line allows to determine accurately the daily altitude of the sun at noon, from which Cassini was able to calculate with unprecedented precision astronomical parameters such as the obliquity of the ecliptic
In astronomy, axial tilt, also known as obliquity, is the angle between an object's rotational axis and its orbital axis, which is the line perpendicular to its orbital plane; equivalently, it is the angle between its equatorial plane and orbital ...
, the duration of the tropical year
A tropical year or solar year (or tropical period) is the time that the Sun takes to return to the same position in the sky – as viewed from the Earth or another celestial body of the Solar System – thus completing a full cycle of astronom ...
and the timing of equinox
A solar equinox is a moment in time when the Sun appears directly above the equator, rather than to its north or south. On the day of the equinox, the Sun appears to rise directly east and set directly west. This occurs twice each year, arou ...
es and solstice
A solstice is the time when the Sun reaches its most northerly or southerly sun path, excursion relative to the celestial equator on the celestial sphere. Two solstices occur annually, around 20–22 June and 20–22 December. In many countries ...
s. On the other hand, the size of the projected sun's image, and in particular its rate of variation during the year, allowed Cassini the first experimental verification of Kepler's laws of planetary motion
In astronomy, Kepler's laws of planetary motion, published by Johannes Kepler in 1609 (except the third law, which was fully published in 1619), describe the orbits of planets around the Sun. These laws replaced circular orbits and epicycles in ...
.
Cassini and Domenico Guglielmini published an illustrated account of how the meridian line was accomplished in 1695.
Terror threat
In 2002 five men were arrested on suspicions of planning to blow up the basilica. The men were allegedly connected to Al Qaeda
, image = Flag of Jihad.svg
, caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions
, founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden
, leaders = {{Plainlist,
* Osama bin Lad ...
. Again in 2006, plans by Islamist terrorists to destroy the Basilica were thwarted by Italian police. The terrorists planned to destroy the church because one of the chapels features a 15th-century fresco
Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...
, painted by Giovanni da Modena and based on Dante Alighieri
Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...
's ''Divine Comedy
The ''Divine Comedy'' (, ) is an Italian narrative poetry, narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun and completed around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature and one of ...
'', depicting Muhammad
Muhammad (8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious and political leader and the founder of Islam. Muhammad in Islam, According to Islam, he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the tawhid, monotheistic teachings of A ...
in the eighth circle of Hell
In religion and folklore, hell is a location or state in the afterlife in which souls are subjected to punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history sometimes depict hells as eternal destinations, such as Christianity and I ...
, in a section reserved for religious schismatics, being tortured and devoured by demons.
See also
* Bolognese bell ringing, which was conceived and created in the Basilica's bell tower *Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri
The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and of the Martyrs (, ) is a Catholic titular minor basilica and former Carthusian conventual church in Rome, Italy, constructed in the ruined '' frigidarium'' and '' tepidarium'' of the Roman Baths of ...
, whose meridian line Pope Clement XI
Pope Clement XI (; ; ; 23 July 1649 – 19 March 1721), born Giovanni Francesco Albani, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 November 1700 to his death in March 1721.
Clement XI was a patron of the arts an ...
commissioned to rival Bologna's
*Palazzo dei Banchi
Palazzo dei Banchi is a Renaissance architecture, Renaissance-style palace façade located on the eastern flank of the Piazza Maggiore in the center of Bologna, region of Emilia-Romagna, Italy.
In the 16th century when the present façade was con ...
* Palazzo d'Accursio
*Palazzo del Podestà, Bologna
The Palazzo del Podestà is a civic building in Bologna, northern Italy.
The edifice was built around 1200 as the seat of the local ''podestà'', the various functionaries of the commune. It stands on the Piazza Maggiore, near the Palazzo Co ...
* Palazzo dei Notai
Notes
Sources
*External links
Bologna racconta
(in Italian)
*High-resolution viewers for Giovanni da Modena'
Living Cross
an
Verdant Cross
by Factum Foundation for Digital Technology in Conservation {{Authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1479 Churches completed in the 1470s 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Petronio 1390 establishments in Europe 14th-century establishments in Italy Unfinished buildings and structures Gothic architecture in Bologna Burial sites of the House of Bonaparte Cultural depictions of Muhammad