R.A. Scotti "Basilica"

This book follows the construction of St. Peter's Basilica from the decision by Pope Julius II to raze the original St. Peter's built by Constantine to the final touches on the piazza by GianLorenzo Bernini and Carlo Fontana, a journey of nearly two centuries.

Excerpts:

“la fabbrica di San Pietro entered the Italian lexicon as a way of describing a project with no end in sight.” – p. xx

“Named for the vati, or “soothsayers,” who argued there in classical times, the Vatican…” – p. 7

“Before the new Basilica was finished, Magellan’s fleet would sail around the world; Henry VIII would take six wives and dispose of four; Shakespeare would make all the world a stage, the Mayflower would drop anchor off Plymouth Rock, and Europeans would taste chocolate and coffee for the first time.” – p. 11

“Filarete’s bronze doors were added to the first St. Peter’s in 1455. One of the few artworks salvaged from the old church, there were made the central doors of the new Basilica.” – p. 27 footnote

On Julius II…”A battering ram of a man, he possessed a short temper, a powerful mind, and boundless ambition; he was irascible, irreverent, intractable.” – p. 29

“The popes who built St. Peter’s were the Morgans and Rockefellers of their day, and many artists became wealthy working for them.” – p. 42

On Bramante’s measurements…”Laying a mirror on the ground so that the top of the building was reflected in its center and measuring the distance from the base of the building to the mirror, he could calculate the height of the building.” – p. 47

“Bramante imagined the dome of the Pantheon raised on the shoulders of the Basilica of Maxentius.” – p. 51

“As Alberti noted, Vitruvius was the only architectural writer to survive “that great shipwreck of antiquity” and was such a poor stylist “that the Latins thought he wrote in Greek and the Greeks believed he spoke Latin.” – p. 55

“During the pontificate of Paul III, Michelangelo designed new uniforms for the Swiss Guard. Still worn today, the red, blue, and gold striped uniforms were sewn from 154 individual strips of cloth.” – p. 72 footnote

“The metaphysical core of the Basilica was Peter’s grave, the “rock” of the Roman Church. In the Greek cross, it was located at the very center of the building. The dome rose over it, symbolizing the transcendent Christ, and the arms of the Basilica stretched out in equal length from it, representing the church reaching to the four corners of the world.” – p. 76

“The first architectural firm in Rome and very likely the world, Bramante & Co. also employed five sub-architects and the most gifted fresco painters in Italy.” – p. 86

“In art and ideas the Renaissance of Florence emulated Athens. By contrast, the Renaissance of the popes was thoroughly Roman. Where Greeks strove for universal ideal, the Roman Church sought perfection of the individual.” – p. 115

Raphael’s thoughts on architecture plans… “‘to master all the dimensions of a building and see all the parts without distortion.’…Raphael’s three-dimensional renderings [ground plan, elevation, section] would become accepted architectural practice, though not in his life time.” – p. 135

Michelangelo on Bramante’s design… “as skillful in architecture as anyone from the time of the ancients up to now. The first stone of St. Peter’s was laid by him, not as an obscure or confused plan, but in accordance with a design which is clear, comprehensive, and luminous. Those who departed from his thought left truth behind.” – p. 195

“It is one of the ironies of art history that the commissions Michelangelo rejected initially and was badgered, cajoled, and battered into accepting are his masterworks: the ceiling and altar wall of the Sistine Chapel and the Basilica of St. Peter.” – p. 202

“For sheer size, the building was a marvel. It was so high that the entire Pantheon could fit beneath its dome, and it covered an area so large that Notre Dame of Paris and Hagia Sophia in Istanbul could both fit inside it with room to spare.” – p. 240

“He had two inspirations for his Baldacchino: the cloth canopy that protected the Holy Father when he was carried aloft in his sedia gestatoria (today replaced by the pope-mobile), and a twisted column salvaged from Constantine’s basilica. According to legend, the column was the very one that Jesus had leaned against in the Temple of Solomon.” – p. 249

“To achieve realistic effects in his wax designs, he often used actual lizards, bees, and branches, which would then be consumed in the firing. His detractors referred to it as ‘the lost lizard process.’” – p. 250

“No one, with the possible exception of Shakespeare, has ever had a more intuitive understanding of theater than Bernini.” – p. 253

“Bernini believed that ‘an architect proves his skill by turning the defects of a site into advantages.’” – p. 261

“the power of Bramante, the grace of Raphael, the clarity of Michelangelo, and the theater of Bernini.” – p. 268

R.A. Scotti, "Basilica", Plume (Penguin Books Ltd.), 2007.