SANTA MARIA MAGGIORE

Description

Essentials about Santa Maria Maggiore in brief

Churchgoers in Rome are spoiled for choice. No other city in the world has so many, so beautiful and so interesting places of worship to choose from as the Eternal City. Alone 80 of them are dedicated to Mary. Among these Marian churches, however, one stands out in particular: Santa Maria Maggiore (“Great Saint Mary”). Its very name indicates that it is the most important of the eighty churches dedicated to Mary in Rome. It is one of the four papal basilicas in Rome (the other three are St. Peter’s Basilica, St. John Lateran Basilica and St. Paul Outside the Walls) and with its magnificent interior, with a spectacular gilded ceiling and ornate chapels, it is also one of the most beautiful churches in the city.

The history of Santa Maria Maggiore

The church is sometimes called Santa Maria della Neve (“Great Mary Snow”), or the Liberian Basilica, a reference to the medieval founding legend. According to this legend, on the night of August 5, 352, the Madonna appeared to the Roman patrician John and his wife and promised that their wish for a son would come true if a church were built in her honor on the spot where there was snow the next morning. The couple then went to see Pope Liberius, who, it was learned, had had the same dream. On the morning of August 5, the highest elevation of the Esquiline Hill was indeed colored white by snow (supposedly in the form of a floor plan for a church). However, there are no ancient documents to support the story of snow in August.

The Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, which can be seen today, also has nothing to do with its presumed predecessor, which according to legend was built in 352 by the Roman bishop Liberius. The Basilica of Liberius was probably located at another, albeit nearby, site on the Esquiline. However, it was burned down during the sack of Rome by the Visigoths under Alaric in 410.

The present church was built under Pope Coelestine I and consecrated by his successor, Pope Sixtus III, in 434. The popes of the early 5th century were faced with the task of giving the formerly pagan metropolis of Rome a Christian face. At that time, the Eternal City was characterized by its world-famous pagan buildings, especially at the Roman Forum. Now, in the succession of the Roman emperors and the Roman Senate, the popes had the sole authority and power to change the cityscape. The magnificent basilica on the highest elevation of the Esquiline Hill was to decisively shape the face of the new, Christian Rome as the center of the Church and the center of the Imperium Romanum. Santa Maria Maggiore is considered the first church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the West and is also the oldest Marian church in Rome.

The architecture of Santa Maria Maggiore

Santa Maria Maggiore is also the first early Christian basilica to be commissioned as a votive donation by the Roman bishop rather than by the emperor or the imperial family. Moreover, its size (79 meters long, 35 meters wide and 18 meters high) surpasses most of the title churches of the time.

The church was built in the tradition of a great Roman basilica without a transept. Over the centuries, the church underwent many changes. In the 14th century, a bell tower was built to help guide pilgrims to their destination. Later, in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, two large chapels were added, changing the structure and making the church look like a Latin cross. The facade, with its two-story arcades, was not added until the mid-18th century. It includes an older facade from the 12th century, which was decorated with mosaics in the late 13th century.

The mosaics are still visible and tell the story of the miraculous snowfall in August. On the left side is the Porta Sancta (Holy Gate), which is opened only during a jubilee year (once every 25 years). On the right side there is a statue of Philip IV of Spain, who gave an unlimited annual donation to the church. The 75-meter bell tower – the tallest Romanesque in Rome, by the way – was built in 1377, shortly after the popes returned from exile in Avignon. The pyramidal spire was added much later, in the early 16th century.

The interior of Santa Maria Maggiore

The church of Santa Maria Maggiore is famous for its magnificent interior, which still resembles that of an ancient basilica. It is divided into three naves by 36 Ionic columns of marble and granite. Above the columns, just below the windows, are a series of early 5th century mosaics depicting 36 scenes from the Old Testament. Another highlight in the basilica is the beautiful coffered ceiling, which was created by Giuliano da Sangallo in the 16th century. Supposedly, the gold used for it came from one of Christopher Columbus’ voyages to America and was presented to Pope Alexander VI by the Spanish king.

The papal altar in the apse is covered by a richly decorated canopy supported by four ancient columns taken from Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli. The apse is decorated with a magnificent mosaic depicting the “Coronation of Mary”, with Christ and Mary seated on a throne and accompanied by saints.

The two large chapels facing each other, the Capella Borghese and the Capella Sistina, form the transept of the church. The chapel on the right is the Capella Sistina (Sistine Chapel), named after Pope Sixtus V, who commissioned its construction. Designed by Domenico Fontana and built in 1587, the chapel houses valuable relics and the tombs of Popes Pius V and Sixtus V.

The Capella Borghese, which is also known as Capella Paolina, was built later, in 1611 by Flaminio Ponzio. The chapel is named after Pope Paul V Borghese. According to legend, the Madonna in the Borghese Chapel was painted by St. Luke the Evangelist and finished by angels. It is more likely that it was created in the Middle Ages, probably around the 13th century. Popes Paul V and Clement VIII are buried in this chapel.

However, the most famous personality buried in Santa Maria Maggiore is Gian Lorenzo Bernini, one of the most important sculptors and architects in history. Very aware of his own importance, Bernini designed a monumental tomb for himself in the last years of his life. Unfortunately, the tomb was never built and only a simple tombstone marks the grave of Bernini and his family.

The squares in front of and behind Santa Maria Maggiore

In front of the church is Piazza Santa Maria Maggiore, in the center of which is a column with a Baroque bronze statue of Mary and Child. It was erected in 1614 by Pope Paul V in thanksgiving for the forgiveness of the plague. The column was taken from the Basilica of St. Maxentius in the Roman Forum. The statue is by the French sculptor Guillaume Berthélot.

The obelisk on the other side of the church, in Piazza dell’Esquilino, was erected in 1587 by Pope Sixtus V as a guide for pilgrims. It was originally located at the entrance of the Mausoleum of Augustus. A wide staircase behind the obelisk leads to the apse of the church. From here you have a magnificent view over the square and its surroundings.