St. Peter's Basilica

St. Peter's Square, surrounded by Bernini's Colonnade, with St. Peter's domed Basilica in the background. The colonnade is arranged in a quadruple row of 284 columns and split into two huge semicircles to the left and right of the square, symbolizing the out-stretched arms of the church. The colonnade is crowned by 140 statues of the saints.

St . Peter's Basilica with the Pope's residence on the right. The basilica was built by Emperor Constantine over the grave of St Peter, and was inaugurated in the year 326 A.D. by Pope Sylvester I.

We enter the basilica through the great central portal. This is made up of five bronze doors. The central one is depicted here. It was made for the old St. Peter's in 1445 by Filarete of Florence.

I t is adorned with six bas-relief panels showing variuos saints as well as the Crucifixion of St. Peter.

The interior is a lot larger than it first appears. The length including the portico is 690 feet. The vaulted ceiling is 144 ft high. At the far end is the central nave. Beyond that is the High Altar.

The central nave was built by Michelangelo. With the corridors running off to the left and right of the central nave, the floor is meant to represent that of a Greek Cross.

The walls of the basilica are lined with many fine works of art and eloquent statues. This statue is the monument to Pope Gregory XIII created by Rusconi. He is the pope who reformed the old Roman Julian Calendar.

The immense dome over the central nave was begun by Michaelangelo and had been completed up to the height of the drum before his death. It was completed by Della Porta and Maderno.

The dome suggests the idea of the sky being inseparable from the Cross.