Santa Maria In Via Lata; Rome, Italy

 

  

   Santa Maria in Via Lata is an old church that was constructed back in the 11^th using an ancient Roman portico. This church built above an old one as a result of the rise of the ground level. The ground level was however restored later in the 15^th century at the initiative of Pope Innocent VIII and Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia whose coats of arms are clearly seen on the side wall of the church. It is believed that St, Paul spent around two years in the crypt under the church while under house arrest awaiting trial (Richardson, 2009).

            The 13^th century icon of the church, Virgin Advocate is believed to have performed a lot of miracles and it is believed that the martyr Agapitus and the relics of the 3^rd century Deacon lie beneath it. During the reconstruction of the church in the late 15^th century, the Arcus Novus was destroyed as it was located at the church’s site. The church was later on renovated by Coismo Fanzago in the 17^th century. This renovation led to the completion of the façade together with its Corinthian columns imposing vertical emphasis. In this façade, its designer appears to evoke a triumphal arch. The church’s high altar constructed in 1636, known as Madonna Advocata is attributed to Bernini and is one of the few paintings that the church has. The church’s ciborium in the apses was made using lapis-lazuli and alabaster.

            Along the right hand side of the church’s nave is the first altarpiece of the martyrdom of St. Andrew. It was constructed in 1685 by Giacinto Brandi. The second altarpiece on the same side is that of saints Nicola, Biagio and Giuseppe that were constructed by Giuseppe Ghezzi. When a person enters the chapel, he or she is likely to see the apse of Madonna with child together with Saints Catherine and Cyriac built by Giovanni Odazzi.

            The chapel’s new façade built by Pietro da Cartona comprises of a loggia and portico (Merz, Blunt & Cortona, 2008). At the same time, this façade does not have a curved shape with its serliana recalling the patters of the late antiquity unlike most facades. This façade was decorated using the heraldic symbols of Pope Alexander VII and the coat of arms. For this chapel to attain its current spectacular design, it utilized the skills of the best architects at the time period. We see this through the fact that Pietro da Cortona was not involved in redesigning the interior of the chapel as this job was left to Cosimo Fanzago who was the best architect in Naples during this time.

References

Merz, J. M., Blunt, A., & Cortona, P. . (2008). Pietro da Cortona and Roman Baroque      architecture. New Haven [u.a.: Yale University Press.

Richardson, C. M. (2009). Reclaiming Rome: Cardinals in the fifteenth century. Leiden: Brill.