Is that a seagull?
THIS
was the first thought that popped into my mind this morning as I walked through
the giant bronze doors of the Pantheon.
You see, the Pantheon, which is a giant spherical structure, has a large
round hole, or “oculus”, at the top.
Naturally, upon entering the building, the first thing I did was look up
– up toward the light. I was expecting
to see just that – a large round circle of sunlight. I was not expecting to see a large white bird
surfing the breeze just above the oculus.
It was as if the bird was suspended in mid-air. Maybe it was enjoying the cool updraft
issuing from the building, or maybe it was simply trying to catch a glimpse of
all the people crowding the interior.
Who knows.
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| The Oculus of the Pantheon dome |
In
any case, the bird made me think about the longevity of the building I was
standing in. At some point in time, an
ancient Roman probably looked up and saw the same type of bird that I did today
– and the same could be said of medieval and Renaissance church
parishioners.
Now
for some history. The Pantheon is
OLD. It’s been around since 126 C.E.,
when it was commissioned by Emperor Hadrian – you know – the same guy who built
the grandiose vacation villa just outside of Tivoli (see my earlier post on
Regional Travel). It still holds the
title of largest unreinforced concrete dome ever built.
Pantheon
literally
means “of all the gods”. This title was
probably a nickname for the building based on its original purpose as a temple
to the gods. However, the Pantheon has not
been a Pagan temple for well over a millennia at this point.
In
the early 7th century, Pope Boniface IV converted the Pantheon into
the church of St. Mary and the Martyrs – and it retains this title and purpose
today. However, it was also used as a
tomb during and after the Renaissance time period. The famous painter Raphael (1483-1520) was
buried in the Pantheon at his own request.
 |
| Tomb of Raphael (with epigraph written by Pietro Bembo) |
Interestingly,
I started my day with a visit to Raphael’s tomb in the Pantheon, and I ended it
with a visit to one of his most famous paintings. Raphael is famous for his soft portrayal of
human features. The painting below,
which is housed in the Basilica di San Agostino, depicts the Prophet Isaiah.
 |
| Raphael's Isaiah in the Basilica di San Agostino |
The
painting is actually part of a larger group of prophets that line the pillars
of the church. I was immediately reminded
of the Sistine Chapel ceiling upon seeing this grouping– as Michelangelo
painted ten prophets, including Isaiah, as part of the ceiling decoration. Michelangelo’s prophets are the “supporting
cast”, so to speak, of his spotlighted Genesis narrative. Raphael’s Isaiah
is also a kind of supporting cast member – as he’s depicted on top of a
periphery side pillar near the west end of San Agostino.
“Context is key” was the
theme of our class today, and I think the context of the prophet paintings in
BOTH the Sistine Chapel and the Basilica of San Agostino being placed in periphery
positions is highly symbolic. The
prophets in San Agostino are on the periphery of the main focus of religious
procession – which of course is the main altar at the East end of the
church. The prophets line the pillars at
the West end – as if to….prophesize
the grandeur of the exalted main altar in the East. But I digress.
In
between our class visit to the Pantheon this morning, and our visit to San Agostino
this afternoon, we stopped at the Basilica di Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. This church, located just one block behind
the Pantheon, is touted as the only Gothic church in Rome, and one of the few
churches with a Renaissance façade.
 |
| Renaissance façade of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. The small obelisk out front is supported by an elephant sculpture, which was designed by Bernini (both elements are African in origin, and thus complement each other). |
The
site that the current structure sits on was originally a temple to the goddess Isis (misidentified
as Minerva). It was Christianized in the
mid-8th century, and the Dominicans took possession of it in the
year 1275.
 |
| Highly exalted Gothic interior of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva - characterized by stained glass windows, pointed arches |
The
church also houses the sarcophagus of St. Catherine of Siena – who was an
outspoken advocate, along with poet laureate Petrarch, for getting the Papacy
moved back to Rome from its long exile in Avignon. Keeping watch over St. Catherine’s tomb is
Michelangelo’s Cristo della Minerva (1521),
a depiction of a handsome Jesus Christ.
The bronze loincloth was a later addition.
 |
| Michelangelo's Cristo della Minerva (1521) |
On my
way back to Trastevere from San Agostino (about a 25 minute walk), I passed by
the Pantheon once more. This time I
noticed that a large flock of birds was in fact congregating near the top of
the dome on the outside. To the birds, the
Pantheon is just a place of refuge. To me,
the Pantheon IS history, alive and well.
And yet, the Pantheon is BOTH of these things, and so much more at the same time. Incredible.
Context is Key.
Thank you so much for reading! Ciao for now,
Brock
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