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Churches, cathedrals and basilicas are a dime a dozen in Rome.
Most are beautiful. Some, not so much. Aside from these two differences, what sets many of them apart?
As I was walking down Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, it was getting dark and I had plans to meet a friend for dinner still some distance away. As I glanced at the building I was passing, I noticed that it was the Basilica of Andrea della Valle.
It would have to be a quick visit, but I was willing to walk back to my hotel a little faster or risk being a bit late for dinner with my friend, just to take a quick peak at this basilica.
The Basilica of Andrea della Valle’s origins date back to the Theatines, a religious order founded in the 1524. In 1582, the order was bestowed a palace and a small church with the obligation of building a large church dedicated to St. Andrew, the patron saint of Amalfi. The construction of this church was begun in 1590 and it was the desire of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti for the basilica to have the second largest dome in the city, behind St. Peter’s Basilica.
As the decoration of the basilica was undertaken, the decision of which artist would ornament the grand dome was a difficult one. Two artists were selected due to the inability of the Cardinal and the Pope to choose one over the other, with Dominichino assigned to the apse half dome and Giovanni Lanfranco to the main dome. The beautiful frescoes on the apse half dome leading to the main dome are what stopped me in my tracks when I entered the church. This is what truly sets this church apart from others.
There are exquisite chapels on each side of the basilica with works of art by important sculptors and painters, some, the pupils of masters, Bernini and Michelangelo. In fact, the Strozzi Chapel was probably designed by Michelangelo, although executed by Leone Strozzi. There are many Cardinals buried within these chapels as well as the bishop of Carcassone, France, Annibale Rucellai. The church also houses the tombs and cenotaphs of Popes Pius II and Pius III, the tomb of Giovanni della Casa, author of Il Galateo and the tomb of the martyr Saint Fortunatus in the Chapel of the Madonna della Purita.
It is important to check out the antique wooden crucifix in the Chapel of the Crucifix and the thirty-six stop pipe organ housed in the gallery. Built in 1845, it is still in use and can often be heard on weekday afternoons, when its organist practices.
And that was it.
As quickly as I came, I went.
Was worth being late for dinner? Absolutely!
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Sant’Andrea della Valle
- http://santandrea.teatinos.org/
- Address: Vidoni Square, 6, 00186 Rome
- Hours: 0730-1930, daily
- Admission: free
- Getting There: Metro, Spagna, walk 17 minutes, Metro, Barberini, walk 19 minutes