Travel Tips

Catholicims most sacred shrine, the sumptuous, marble-caked Basilica of St Peter's draws pilgrims and tourists from all over the world. It holds hundreds of precious works of art, some salvaged from the original 4th century basilica built by Constantine.

The Basilica of St Peter is the biggest church in the world with its enormous size and the magnificent dome which also represents one of the most solemn monuments in Rome. The first basilica was founded in the same place were St Peter was buried in AD 324 by Constantine. The holy building was very sumptuous, decorated with marbles and mosaics but it changed in 1541 when Nicholas V thought to completely renovate it. After him, Julius II thought that it was necessary to pull it down and put Bramante and Giuliano da Sangallo in charge of the reconstruction. When Bramante died, Raphael Sanzio replaced him and in 1546 Michelangelo became in charge of the works; he designed the huge dome, then he was followed by Fontana, Maderno and Bernini who tried to stick to the project of their master. The façade was built by Carlo Maderno in 1614 who put columns and Corinthian pilasters in the lower part, a central porch and two arches at both ends and, on the upper part, nine balconies, the central of which was called the ”Loggia of the Blessings“. The façade finishes with an attic in which windows and pilasters alternate, and a balustrade with 13 statues.

The basilica is the largest church in the world at 186m (615ft) long. There are markings on the floor of the nave that show how other churches compare in length. I think St Paul's cathedral in London is only slightly smaller in length. The Papal Altar stands over the crypt where St Peter is reputedly buried.

Commissioned by Pope Urban VIII in 1624, Bernini's extravagant Baroque canopy stands above the Papal Altar which, in turn, stands over the crypt where St Peter is reputedly buried.

The dome of St Peter's is 136.5m (448ft) high. Designed by Michelangelo, the dome was started in 1546 but was not completed in his lifetime. It was, however, finished by Giacomo della Porta and Domenico Fontana in 1589-1593. It was originally intended to be decorated with mosaics for the 1600 Jubilee, but it could not be finished in time and plans were altered. The mosaics were designed by Cavaliere d'Arpino.

Written at the bottom of the dome are written the words Christ spoke to Peter: TU ES PETRUS ET SUPER HANC PETRAM AEDIFICABO ECCLESIAM MEAM ET TIBI DABO CLAVES REGNI CAELORUM.

St. Peter's Square. This square (actually an oval) is the vast main entrance into Vatican territory. It's one of Bernini's most spectacular masterpieces, completed in 1667 after 11 years' work -- a relatively short time in those days, considering the vastness of the task -- and capable of holding 400,000 people. It is surrounded by a curving pair of quadruple colonnades, which are topped by a balustrade and statues of 140 saints. Look for the two disks set into the piazza's pavement on either side of the central obelisk. If you stand on either disk, a trick of perspective makes the colonnades seem to consist of a single row of columns.

The 85-foot-high Egyptian obelisk was brought to Rome by Caligula in AD 38 and was probably placed in his circus, believed to have been near here. It was moved to its current site in 1586 by Pope Sixtus V. The emblem at the top of the obelisk is the Chigi star, placed here in honor of Alexander VII, a member of the powerful Chigi family who was pope when the piazza was built.