Chiesa e Monastero di S. Chiara

  Monastero e Chiesa di Santa Chiara
  (Vasi at work in the Grand View of Rome)

Links to this page can be found in Book 8, Map C2, Day 4, View C7 and Rione Pigna.

The page covers:
The plate by Giuseppe Vasi
Today's view
S. Chiara
Casa di S. Caterina
S. Maria sopra Minerva
Convento della Minerva
Obelisco della Minerva (and Palazzo Fonseca)
Accademia Ecclesiastica

The Plate (No. 156)

In many of his etchings Giuseppe Vasi did not hesitate to enlarge and twist streets in order to show an interesting corner of Rome; it is surprising that in 1758 he did not do this when dealing with the nunnery of S. Chiara because the very important church of S. Maria sopra Minerva is situated at the end of the street; the church is not shown in other plates and therefore it is missing in the ten books of Magnificenze di Roma Antica e Moderna by Vasi.

Giovan Battista Falda - View of Piazza di S. Maria della Minerva - 1665

The building to the right of the church is Palazzo Fonseca which Vasi partly shows in his view which is taken from the green dot in the 1748 map below. In the description below the plate Vasi made reference to: 1) Casa di S. Caterina; 2) Palazzo Fonseca. The small map shows also 3) S. Chiara; 4) S. Maria sopra Minerva; 5) Convento della Minerva; 6) Obelisco della Minerva; 7) Accademia Ecclesiastica.

Today

The view in April 2009: (left) Casa di S. Caterina; (right) S. Chiara

Two floors have been added to Casa di S. Caterina. The church and the nunnery of S. Chiara were entirely redesigned in 1890 and in the process the coats of arms which are visible in the plate were lost. Vasi showed the church bathed in sunshine; today this is unlikely to occur because it faces north and the buildings on the other side of the narrow street are taller than they were in 1758.

S. Chiara

(left) Interior; (right) late XIXth century painting portraying St. Louis IX, King of France

S. Chiara was built in the XVIth century, after the design of Francesco da Volterra; but its front is by Carlo Maderno. Its interior is lofty and not inelegant; but it contains no object of antiquity or art worthy of particular attention.
Rev. Jeremiah Donovan - Rome Ancient and Modern - 1843
In 1855 the roof of the church collapsed and for some time the building was abandoned. The complex was acquired by the Society of the Sacred Heart of Mary, a French congregation founded by Fran�ois Libermann and it was entirely rebuilt in 1883-1890 by Luca Carimini in a neo-Renaissance style which is very unusual in Rome. Carimini designed in the same style S. Ivo dei Brittoni and a funerary monument at S. Niccol� de' Perfetti. Today the nunnery houses the French Seminar in Rome and the church is not usually open to the public.

Casa di S. Caterina

(left) Entrance to the Chapel; (right) main altar with a painting by il Cavalier d'Arpino

Towards the end of the XVIth century the house where St. Catherine of Siena died in 1380 was included by Pope Gregory XIII in an institute for newly converted people. In 1637 Pope Urban VIII built Collegio de' Neofiti in Rione Monti to this purpose. The walls and the floor of the room where the saint died were relocated to nearby S. Maria sopra Minerva and to the nunnery adjoining SS. Domenico e Sisto; a chapel was built on the site of the room and the complex was assigned to Arciconfraternita della SS. Annunziata (see below), a brotherhood founded in 1464 by Cardinal Juan de Torquemada to provide poor brides with a minimal dowry. The building was modified in the XIXth century and for a time it housed a small theatre. Today it is used as a venue for private parties and conferences.

(left) Ceiling stucco depicting the Annunciation; (right) sarcophagus containing relics of St. Eraclius, a Roman martyr of the IIIrd century

S. Maria sopra Minerva

The church and the obelisk

I went to the Dominicans Convent, called La Minerva, because it's built upon the place where antiently stood the Temple of Minerva. Hence also the Church is called Santa Maria supra Minervam: in this Church I saw many neat Tombs: (..) the Tomb of Cardinal Pimentel, a modern Cardinal.(..) St. Thomas of Aquin's lies buried under a plain stone. Out of humility he would not be buried within the Church, but out of it.
Richard Lassels' The Voyage of Italy, or a Compleat Journey through Italy in ca 1668
The present church and the annexed spacious convent were completed by the munificent piety of several distinguished personages, the Orsini, the Savelli, the Caetani, the Palombara family, Card. A. Barberini, Card. Torrecremata (Torquemada), Card. Capranica, and Card. Scipio Borghese, who also presented the church with its two organs. Donovan
The reference sopra Minerva is misleading because the church was not built above a lost Temple to Minerva, but in the vicinity of it (see a fragment of Forma Urbis, a marble plan of Ancient Rome showing the temple).
A coat of arms of Francesco Orsini who built the fa�ade in 1453 and its portal which was restored by a Capranica are shown in the historical section.

(left) 1725 project for a new fa�ade by Ferdinando Fuga; (right) 2015 proposal esquisse by Niki J. Covington (it opens in another window)

S. Maria sopra Minerva was designed in the XIII/XIVth centuries by Dominican friars; the upper part of the 1453 fa�ade was modified in the XVIIth century (you may wish to see it in a 1588 Guide to Rome). The papal coat of arms belongs to Pope Pius V, a member of the Dominican Order and titular cardinal of the church in 1557-1561. Six tablets on the fa�ade indicate the levels reached by the River Tiber during major floods. In 1725 Pope Benedict XIII, a former Dominican friar, examined projects for a new fa�ade, but he eventually limited himself to cover the red bricks with a white paint. The fa�ade continues to prompt artists to develop new projects.

(left) Detail of the interior before its redecoration; (right) the main nave in a 1905 painting by Alberto Pisa (you may wish to see other paintings by Pisa showing interiors of churches)

Nothing recalling the sublime cathedrals of Germany, France, and England, is to be found in Rome. The only specimen of Gothic architecture - and that an indifferent specimen - is the Church of Sta. Maria sopra Minerva.
George Stillman Hillard - Six Months in Italy in 1847-1848
The interior is in form of a Latin cross , and consists of a nave two aisles and a transept, divided by pointed Gothic arcades with Gothic pillars; and its appearance is simple and austere. Donovan
In 1848-55 it was redecorated with tawdry imitation marbles, which have only a good effect when there is not sufficient light to see them.
Augustus J. C. Hare - Walks in Rome - 1873
The interior of the church had neat Gothic features which were poorly modified in 1855, so that the main interest of a visit to S. Maria sopra Minerva lies in its chapels and its many funerary monuments and works of art. Similar to S. Maria del Popolo it is a museum inside a church.

Cappella dell'Arciconfraternita della SS. Annunziata with a painting by Antoniazzo Romano portraying the Annunciation and Cardinal Juan de Torquemada with the poor brides he helped. It is dated 1500 and it is the last known work of this painter; you may wish to see the Annunciation he painted at S. Onofrio

There are many charities dealt publicly in this church, especially at the procession on the Annunciation, when I saw his Holiness, with all the Cardinals, Prelates, etc., in "pontificalibus"; dowries being given to 300 poor girls all clad in white. The Pope had his tiara on his head, and was carried on men's shoulders in an open arm-chair, blessing the people as he passed.
John Evelyn's Diary and Correspondence - 1644-1645
March 25, The Annunciation, the Pope goes in grand gala to the church of the Minerva, in which a Papal chapel is held; a collection is made for the Conservatory of the Annunziata and dowries are assigned to some of the poor inmates, who do homage, on the occasion, to the Holy Father. Donovan
The chapel was redesigned in ca 1600 by Carlo Maderno at the initiative of Cardinal Benedetto Giustiniani whose bronze bust is shown in the lower right corner of the image (the other bust portrays Cardinal Torquemada). His uncle Cardinal Vincenzo Giustiniani was Master General of the Dominican Order in 1558-1570. They both are buried in S. Maria sopra Minerva.

Cappella del Rosario (or Capranica)

The next chapel is that of the Rosary, beneath the altar of which repose the remains of S. Catharine of Sienna: (..) the lateral frescos, illustrative of the life of S. Catharine, are by G. de Vecchi; and the altar piece of the Madonna del Rosario is, according to Titi, by the B. Angelico da Fiesole. On the wall to the right is the monument of Card. D. Capranica, erected in the XV. century. Donovan
Many of the chapels were modified in the second half of the XVIth century and in the first half of the next century. That next to the apse contained the tomb of St. Catherine, but the chapel was dedicated to Madonna del Rosario, which was greatly worshipped after Pope Pius V declared she had protected the Christian fleet in the 1571 Battle of Lepanto.

(above) Tomb of St. Catherine under the main altar; (below) Tomb of Cardinal Domenico Capranica (also his nephew Cardinal Angelo is buried there) - school of Andrea Bregno

The tomb of St. Catherine was removed from the Chapel of the Rosary and placed under the main altar in 1855. The monument is the work of an unknown early XVth century Roman sculptor. The statue of the saint was placed above a sarcophagus which imitated the ancient Roman ones (see one near Colosseo). The worship of St. Catherine has grown over time and in 1939 she was proclaimed Patron Saint of Italy (see a 1962 monument to her near Castel Sant'Angelo).
Cardinals Domenico and Angelo Capranica held important positions as ambassadors of the Popes or governors of provinces and towns during the XVth century. They were not particularly linked to the Dominican Order.

Cappella Carafa: (left) Monument to Pope Paul IV; (right) overall view of the chapel

The next spacious chapel belongs to the Caraffa family, and is dedicated to S. Thomas of Aquino. It is enclosed by a high marble balustrade, the rails of which are of pavonazzetto and its floor is of opus Alexandrinum. The altarpiece represents the angel Gabriel, the B. Virgin, St. Thomas and Card. Caraffa, the founder of the chapel, who is being presented to the B. Virgin by St. Thomas and the painting is ascribed by some to the B. Angelico da Fiesole, by others to Filippino Lippi (see it in the historical section with some information about Cardinal Carafa). (..) To the left is the sumptuous monument of Paul IV Caraffa, well designed by P. Ligorio. It is adorned with four large columns of verde antique, with basements of African marble; and in the centre is an urn, on which is enthroned the Pontiff, in the act of imparting his benediction, by G. Casignola. Donovan
The sculptors Jacopo and Tommaso Casignuola have made in the Carafa Chapel the tomb of Pope Paul IV, and, besides other ornaments, a statue formed of pieces which represents that Pope, with a mantle of veined brocatello marble, and the trimming and other things of veined marbles of various colors, which render it marvelous. And so we see added to the other industries of our modern intellects this new one, and those sculptors proceed with colors in their sculpture to imitate painting.
Giorgio Vasari - Lives of the most eminent painters, sculptors & architects - transl. by Gaston Du C. De Vere
Giacomo and Tommaso da Cassignola were most likely advised on the execution of the statue by Pirro Ligorio, an architect who had a deep knowledge of antiquities and who might have suggested to portray the head of the Pope as philosopher Chrysippus was depicted in an ancient statue and to use coloured marbles.

Cappella Carafa: Disputation of St. Thomas by Filippino Lippi (cardboard panel at a 2024 temporary exhibition at Musei Capitolini)

Lippi also executed the Disputation of St. Thomas, which occupies the entire wall to the right, and is a work of great merit. Donovan
St. Thomas Aquinas on a throne holds in his hand a book in which is written: "Sapientiam sapientum perdam", which means "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise", sentence taken from the writings of St. Paul. Before him there is a figure of a nasty person who represents the sin with a sign that reads: "Sapientia vincit malitiam", "Wisdom conquers evil". The four female figures represent Philosophy, Theology, Dialectic and Grammar. The books on the floor are those of the heretics who are portrayed in bizarre costumes in the foreground. The fresco depicts two very interesting details of late XVth century Rome: the equestrian statue of Emperor Marcus Aurelius at the Lateran and Porto di Ripa Grande, which are shown in other pages.

Apse: Monuments to the Medici Popes: Leo X (left) and Clement VII (right)

Pope Leo X was initially buried in S. Pietro, but his cousin Clement VII left instructions that his and Leo's tombs should be placed in the apse of S. Maria sopra Minerva. The latter was modified by Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, who most likely designed also the triumphal arches which house the statues of the Popes by Raffaello da Montelupo (Leo X) and Nanni di Baccio Bigio (Clement VII). The reliefs are attributed to Baccio Bandinelli. The monuments have a rather bare appearance considering the rank of the Popes and of their family and are without inscriptions. It is possible that they were dismantled in the XVIIth or XIXth centuries when the apse was again modified and that parts of them were lost. Both Leo and Clement, when cardinals lived near S. Maria sopra Minerva at Palazzo Medici Lante.

(left) Cappella dell'Arciconfraternita della SS. Annunziata: Monument to Pope Urban VII by Ambrogio Buonvicino (1614), a sculptor who worked at the decoration of S. Pietro; (right) Cappella di S. Domenico: Monument to Pope Benedict XIII designed by Carlo Marchionni (you may wish to see a detail of it)

S. Maria sopra Minerva, because S. Pietro Nuovo was not yet completed, was chosen also for the Monument to Pope Urban VII who is best known for having been pope for only 13 days (he died of malaria). He bequeathed a very important sum to Arciconfraternita della SS. Annunziata.
In 1730 Pope Benedict XIII decided to be buried at S. Maria sopra Minerva because he had been a member of the Dominican Order (which was depicted in his coat of arms - it opens in another window).

(left) Monument to Cardinal Astorgio Agnesi (d. 1451) in the cloister, school of Andrea Bregno; (right) Monument to Francesco Tornabuoni from Florence (d. 1480) by Mino da Fiesole, a Florentine sculptor who was active in Rome in the late XVth century (see the reliefs he made at S. Maria Maggiore)

The chapels of S. Maria della Minerva were very sought after by the wealthiest and most influential families of Rome. This led some Renaissance monuments to be demolished or removed from their original location (e.g. that to Cardinal Matteo Orsini, a patron of the church) to make room for those of the new owners of the chapel, among them the Aldobrandini, the family of Pope Clement VIII whose father and mother are buried in very interesting monuments in a richly decorated chapel and the Naro.

Cloister: Details of the Monument to Cardinal Pedro Ferris or Ferrici by Mino da Fiesole

Cardinal Ferris from Valencia enjoyed the full trust of two popes (Paul II and Sixtus IV) and rendered them so many services that he was called Dextera Pontificum, the right hand of the pontiff. He was Protector of the Dominican Order and he died in 1478; his monument was placed next to the main altar; later, it was moved to the cloister. You may wish to see similar Renaissance monuments at S. Gregorio al Celio.

(left) Monument to Andrea Bregno by Luigi Capponi, his favourite assistant; (centre) monument to Giovanni Vigevano by Gian Lorenzo Bernini; (right) Charity by Antonio Raggi (it is part with Justice by Antonio Mari of a Monument to Cardinal Domenico Pimentel which was designed by Bernini)

Funerary monuments were placed not only in the chapels as in most other churches, but also on the huge pillars which support the vaults of the naves. Some of them are works by Andrea Bregno (1418-1503) or by sculptors of his school, but the majority are by Bernini and other baroque artists.
Andrea Bregno himself chose to be buried at S. Maria sopra Minerva; this sculptor and architect had a leading role in Rome at the end of the XVth century. He was born near Como, a town in northern Lombardy with a long tradition of stone-cutting and sculpture. According to the inscription his art could be compared to that of Polykleitos, the Greek sculptor renowned for his statues of athletes (you may wish to see the Diadumenos found at Delos) and amazons (see one from Villa Adriana). Bregno had a collection of ancient Roman statues (often copies of Greek originals), including Torso del Belvedere, a fragment of a nude male statue which was studied by all Renaissance artists. Neither the inscription, nor the monument have any religious references: at that time Italian upper classes were very remote from religious thoughts. The monument is decorated with candelabra (chandeliers), the name given to details of ornamental paintings uncovered in those years inside Domus Aurea and with symbols of Bregno's trade (compasses, plumb-lines).
The monument to Giovanni Vigevano is a very early work by Bernini together with that to Giovan Battista Santoni at S. Prassede. The dead was portrayed with a hand outside the cloak similar to what the ancient Romans did (see Sepolcro dei Rabirii for a comparison). You may wish to see the monument to Maria Raggi, a later and very innovative work by Bernini in this church.
Antonio Raggi from Como was among the many sculptors who worked for Bernini. He is regarded as one of the most talented followers of his style (see the angel he sculpted for Ponte S. Angelo).

(left) Monument to Carlo Emanuele Vizzani by Domenico Guidi; (centre) monument to Alessandro Valtrini, school of Bernini; (right) monument to Fabio and Ippolito de' Amicis designed by Pietro da Cortona

Domenico Guidi was not a member of Bernini's inner circle, but rather a competitor. He began his career in the workshop of Alessandro Algardi and the lower part of the monument to Carlo Emanuele Vizzani recalls that to Alessandro Santarelli by Algardi at S. Maria Maggiore. The upper part is characterized by a rather gruesome skeleton embracing the portrait of the dead; many baroque monuments had such references to death (see a page on Memento Mori - Representation of Death in Baroque Monuments).
The use of coloured marbles was very much in fashion during the XVIIth century and in several monuments Bernini and his scholars mitigated the impact of skulls and bones with the liveliness of precious stones (see a page with other examples of this tendency and the monument to Ottaviano Ubaldini della Gherardesca by Giovan Battista Calandra in S. Maria sopra Minerva) .
Pietro da Cortona was a great painter of the XVIIth century and also an architect, but he was rarely involved in designing funerary monuments.
The 1588 Guide to Rome showed also a statue initiated by Michelangelo and poorly completed by one of his assistants.

Sacristy with a door leading to the Room of St. Catherine

Sacristy: the altar piece of the Crucifixion is a good painting by Andrea Sacchi; on the ceiling is S. Dominic in glory, by G. Bastaro and behind the sacristy is the cell inhabited by S, Catharine of Sienna, transferred thither, with its paintings by Pietro Perugino, by order of Card. A. Barberini. Donovan
Cardinal Antonio Barberini iuniore was Protector of the Dominican Order, his uncle Cardinal Antonio Barberini seniore of the Franciscan one. The access to the sacristy is from a passage between the church and the cloister.

(left) Rear entrance which was opened for the 1600 Jubilee Year (Via Beato Angelico, a dead end narrow street off Via di S. Ignazio); (right) bell tower seen from the cloister

One characteristic and beautiful feature of the Roman churches is the brick campanile. One finds these towers in all parts of the city. They date from the 12th century for the most part.
Thomas Graham Jackson - Byzantine and Romanesque Architecture - 1920
The majority of the Roman churches of the Renaissance and Baroque periods do not have prominent bell towers, including the large churches of the great religious orders, e.g. S. Ignazio, il Ges�, S. Andrea della Valle and S. Maria in Vallicella. The finest example of Baroque bell towers is that of S. Agnese in Agone. The small bell tower of S. Maria sopra Minerva is visible from the Janiculum and from the top of the Monument to Victor Emmanuel, but not from Piazza della Minerva.

Convento della Minerva

(left) Cloister adjoining the church; (right) two palms, most likely the tallest ones of Rome

The monastery which housed the headquarters of the Dominican Order was a very huge building. It bordered on the "Jesuit block" (i.e. Collegio Romano, S. Ignazio and Seminario Romano) so that these two very influential (and somewhat competing) orders lived side by side.
A larger cloister was named after a cistern where rainwater was collected (it is shown in the small map of Plate 165 - N.4).

(left) Southern (left) and eastern (right) sides of the cloister which were less affected by changes

Ecclesiastical Congregations: Indice. Its object is to examine books and publish an index of such as offend against faith or morals and it also grants permission to proper persons to read and retain prohibited works. It is composed of several Cardinals, one of whom is prefect; of several consulters and of a secretary and the master of the sacred palace is, ex officio, perpetual assistant. It meets when necessary in the Pope's palace but its segreteria is in the Dominican convent of the Minerva, where its secretary, who is generally a Dominican, resides. Donovan
The convent housed also sessions of the Tribunal of the Inquisition and in particular those of the trials of Giordano Bruno and Galileo Galilei. In the early XVIIIth century a very large public library (Biblioteca Casanatense) was inaugurated in the side facing Collegio Romano.

Cloister: illusionistic ceiling with Cupids

The very beautiful cloister of the convent, which has a vaulted roof richly painted in arabesques, contains grand fifteenth century tombs, - of Cardinal Tiraso (Ferris) and of Cardinal Astorgius. Hare
The cloister was rebuilt in 1559-1569 at the initiative of Cardinal Vincenzo Giustiniani. It replaced a smaller one of the XIIIth century. In origin the headquarters of the Dominican Order in Rome were established at S. Sabina, where some of the General Masters were buried, but the remoteness of that location from the centre of Papal Rome led in 1557 to the decision of promoting S. Maria sopra Minerva to the rank of titular church, i.e. a church assigned to a cardinal. The first titular cardinal was Michele Ghislieri, a Dominican, who became Pope Pius V in 1566.

Cloister: (left) ceiling with grotesques and the Carafa coat of arms; (right) partition between frescoes portraying two satyrs

The decoration of the cloister began in 1603 and several painters were involved in it. Some of the frescoes were replaced by new ones at the end of the century or at the beginning of the following one. The decoration of the vaults give a rather festive appearance to the whole cloister. It brings to mind that of XVIth century villas (e.g. Villa Giulia) or palaces (e.g. Palazzo Farnese at Caprarola). Some elements of the decoration are definitely secular.

Cloister: (left) Guillaume Arnaud, a Dominican inquisitor who was massacred in 1242 at Avignonet near Toulouse; (centre) Nicolaus from Toulouse (one of four identical portraits); (right) St. Catherine of Siena

The decoration of the cloister occurred at approximately the same of that of Convento dei Minimi where all the Kings of France were portrayed. At S. Maria sopra Minerva the choice fell on Dominican saints and martyrs some of whom were killed during the Crusades promoted by the Popes against the Cathars in Southern France in the XIIIth century. According to tradition six Dominican inquisitors were beheaded at Toulouse; they came back to their convent carrying their detached head (see a page on the depiction of martyrs in Rome).

Cloister: Scenes from the life of St. Thomas Aquinas: (left) St. Paul and St. Peter give advice to St. Thomas (the same scene is depicted in a mosaic at S. Pietro); (right) Canonization by Pope John XXII

Ecclesiastical functions: March 7, the feast of S. Thomas of Aquino at the Minerva, where the College of Cardinals attend High Mass. Donovan
At his death in 1274, Thomas Aquinas was already thought of as the highest Christian theologian and Dante placed him in Paradise where Thomas introduced a number of savant saints and then clarified some doctrinal controversies. His canonization however was opposed by the Franciscans and it occurred only in 1323. The Order regarded him as second only to St. Dominic. A fresco and a bust celebrate St. Thomas also at Biblioteca Casanatense.

Cloister: (left) Vision of the Virgin Mary by St. Catherine and portrait of Giovanni Ungaro, a Dominican inquisitor who was killed in Hungary; (right) Pope Pius V, the Virgin of the Rosary and a depiction of the Battle of Lepanto (see a larger one in the Vatican)

The adjoining Dominican monastery, formerly the residence of the chief of the order, now contains the offices of the Minister of Education.
Karl Baedeker - Rome and its environs - 1883
In 1870 the Dominican convent was confiscated by the Italian Government and eventually the Dominicans moved their headquarters back to S. Sabina. The cloister was returned to the Dominicans in 1930. Today the confiscated part of the convent, known as Palazzo San Macuto, houses offices of the Italian Parliament.

Museo di Palazzo Venezia: part of a late XVth century altar from Convento della Minerva depicting Jesus Christ and scenes from the life of St. Sebastian

Obelisco della Minerva

(left) The obelisk and behind it Palazzo Fonseca; (right) elephant by Ercole Ferrata (with a mysterious mask)

In 1665 a small obelisk belonging to Iseo Campense was found in the cloister of the Dominican monastery. The obelisk was originally erected at Sais, a town in Lower Egypt, by Apries, a pharaoh of the VIth century BC who is remembered for having lost all the wars he waged.
Bernini was asked by Pope Alexander VII to submit projects for its erection in the square in front of the church. The Pope preferred not to endorse an idea by Bernini to place the obelisk in an askew position (it opens in another window) and eventually the approved project had a rather traditional design. The choice of placing it on top of an elephant is explained in one of the two inscriptions on the pedestal: it roughly says that in the same way that the obelisk, a symbol of Egyptian wisdom, is supported by an elephant, the strongest of all animals, a robust mind is required to achieve wisdom. You may wish to see all the obelisks of Rome in one page and Fontana dell'Elefante, a very similar monument at Catania.
Palazzo Fonseca is a XVIth century building which was modified in the XIXth century and turned into a hotel. You may wish to learn more about the Fonseca and their imposing castle at Coca in Castile.

(left) Another view of the obelisk and behind it the rear side of the Pantheon; (centre) one of the heraldic symbols of Pope Alexander VII at the top of the obelisk; (right) views of the hieroglyphs

The image used as background for this page shows the back of the elephant. The fact that the elephant turned its back towards the entrance to the monastery was interpreted as a mockery of the Dominican Order. In the XVIIIth century Monsignor Ludovico Sergardi wrote this satiric sentence: Vertit terga Elephas, versaque proboscide clamat: Kiriaci fratres hic ego vos habeo (The Elephant turns its back and screams by its proboscis: I have enough of you, Dominican brothers).

Accademia Ecclesiastica

(left) XIXth century fa�ade; (right) XVIIIth century window

The palace opposite S. Maria sopra Minerva housed Accademia Ecclesiastica, an institution which provided high level education to the children of the richest families. It still belongs to the Holy See, but the fa�ade shows a XIXth century face-lift. The XVIIIth century decoration survives in two windows on the side of the building opposite the Pantheon and the remains of Basilica di Nettuno.

Next plate in Book 8: Monastero della SS. Annunziata.
Next step in Day 4 itinerary: Chiesa di S. Eustachio.
Next step in your tour of Rione Pigna: Collegio Romano.

Excerpts from Giuseppe Vasi 1761 Itinerary related to this page:

Chiesa e Convento di s. Maria sopra Minerva

Nella strada a destra del Panteon corrisponde questa chiesa colla sua piazza, nella quale si vede un piccolo obelisco egizio trovato nel giardino del convento, ed era uno di quelli del suddetto tempio di Iside. Dal Bernini fu alzato sul dorso di un elefante per ordine di Alessandro VII. l'anno 1667. alludendo alla prudenza della ss. Vergine. Questa chiesa porta un tal nome, perch� edificata sopra il tempio di Minerva, e fu posseduta insieme con il convento, bench� in forma assai pi� piccola, dalle Monache, come dicemmo, venute dalla Grecia, subito che capitarono in Roma; ma poi passate in quella di campo Marzio, circa l'anno 1370. la cederono ai frati Domenicani, i quali coll'elemosine de' benefattori la riedificarono con magnificenza, bench� alla gotica. Sono bens� in questa delle pitture, e sculture di somma considerazione, e per� se non rincresce al gentilissimo mio Lettore vorrei farne una ricerca particolare. Nella prima cappella a destra il s. Lodovico Domenicano � del Baciccio; la cappella, che siegue di s. Rosa, � tutta dipinta da Lazzaro Baldi, ed il s. Pietro mart. � di Ventura Lambert; le pitture laterali per� sono di Batista Franco, e le superiori del Muziano. La cappella passata la porticella, dedicata alla ss. Nunziata � tutta dipinta da Cesare Nebbia; la statua per� di Urbano VII. � di Ambrosio Malvicino, la cappella, che siegue dell'Aldobrandini tutta ornata di marmi, e statue, � disegno di Giacomo della Porta: il quadro sull'altare � l'ultima opera fatta da Federigo Baroccio; le pitture sulla volta sono di Cherubino Alberti; la statua del Papa colla giustizia, ed il s. Pietro, ed il s. Paolo sono d'Ippolito Bazio; la statua della Religione ed un putto assai bello sono di Stefano Mariani; li due Angioli sull'altare, del Malvicino; le sculture nell'altro deposito sono di Stefano Maderno, e gli altri d'altri.
Il ss. Crocifisso di rilievo nella cappelletta della crociata, � opera di Giotto Fiorentino, e li due putti di metallo nel deposito vicino sono di Taddeo Landini; la cappella, che siegue � dipinta da Filippo Lippi; la volta per� � di Raffaellino del Garbo, e la ss. Nunziata si crede opera del B. Gio. da Fiesole Domenicano. La statua di Paolo IV. di marmo fatta di vari colori � di Giacomo, e Tommaso Casignola; il quadro nella cappella, che siegue � di Carlo Maratti, e le pitture in alto sono del Baciccio, e li busti di marmo di Cosimo Fancelli. Li 15. misteri dipinti nella cappella del Rosario sono di Marcello Venusti, e li fatti di santa Caterina da Siena, di Giacomo de' Vecchi; la Coronazione per� � di Carlo Veneziano, e l'immagine della ss. Vergine sull'altare si crede del suddetto B. Gio. da Fiesole. Perch� s. Caterina da Siena, in vita spesso visitava con devozione questa santa Immagine, il di lei corpo fu posto sotto l'altare medesimo. La statua della ss. Vergine, che sta appoggiata al pilastro dell'altare maggiore � opera di Francesco Siciliano; li depositi di Leone X., e di Clemente VII. posti nel coro sono di Baccio Bandinelli; la statua per� di Leone � di Raffaello di monte Lupo, e quella di Clemente di Baccio Bigio.
L'ammirabile statua di Ges� Cristo in piedi posta nell'altro pilastro � opera del Buonarroti. Nella cappella, che siegue, perch� serve di passagio, solamente vi sono tre depositi ai Cardinali, ma ornatissimi; quello sopra la porta � disegno del Rinaldi, la statua di mezzo � di Ercole Ferrata, la Carit�, di Filippo Romano; la Religione di Mons� Michele, l'altra di Francesco allievo del Ferrata, e quelle a sedere del Fancelli, e del Rossi; l'altro deposito colla statua a giacere � disegno di Giacomo della Porta, e la statua fu scolpita da Silla da Vingi�; l'altro incontro � disegno del Bernino; la statua per� della Carit� � di Antonio Raggi, l'altra del Mari, ed il resto di Ercole Ferrara, e d'altri. Il quadro della Maddalena nella cappella, che siegue � di Francesco Pavone, ed il s. Giacinto nella cappelletta incontro, di Ottone Padovano. La cappella di s. Domenico ornata di maravigliose colonne fu terminata dal Raguzini per ordine di Benedetto XIII. la statua, e bassorilievo del cui deposito sono opere di Carlo Melchion. Il s. Pio V. dipinto nella cappella, che siegue, � di Andrea Procaccini, ed il deposito, che sta incontro, � disegno del Bernini; quello per� nella nave con due medaglie � disegno di Pietro da Cortona; il s. Giacomo nell'altra cappella � del Venusti; il s. Vincenzo Ferrerio di Bernardino Castelli; il san Gio: Batista del Nappi; la Maddalena nell'ultima cappella del suddetto Venusti, e i depositi ne' pilastri della nave di varj. Nella sagrestia vi � un Crocifisso dipinto da Andrea del Sarto, e varie pitture dello Speranza, e d'altri sono nella volta. Le pitture a fresco nel chiostro sono di Gio. Valesio, cio� la santissima Nunziata, il s. Pio V., e la battaglia; Giuseppe Paglia vi dipinse la Presentazione; e la Visitazione, Gio. Antonio Lelli; le altre pitture sono del Nappi e d'altri. E' maravigliosa dopo la Biblioteca Vaticana, la libreria di questi Religiosi e si tiene aperta per pubblico comodo delli studiosi, e letterati: la statua di s. Domenico nel dormitorio � opera in stuco dell'Algardi.
Incontro a questa chiesa evvi il nobilissimo collegio dell'Accademia Ecclesiastica, volgarmente detto de' Pizzardoni.

Chiesa e Monastero di s. Chiara

Fu questo monastero eretto circa l'an. 1563. da Pio IV. per le donne convertite a penitenza; ma poi nell'anno 1628. trasferire queste al monastero nella lungara, quivi succederono le fanciulle oneste e civili sotto la regola di s. Chiara. La chiesa fu fatta col disegno del Volterra, e fu dedicata alla Santa fondatrice. In questo monastero si vedono altre rovine dell'accennate terme di Agrippa; ed incontro l'

Oratorio di s. Caterina da Siena

Perch� qu� abit� per alcuni anni s. Caterina da Siena, e vi mor� fuvvi eretto un piccolo monastero di religiose Domenicane, e vi dur� fino al Pontificato di s. Pio V. sotto il quale fu principiato il monastero sul monte Magnanapoli, ed essendo quelle ivi trasferite, fu quivi istituito il collegio per i Neofiti; ma essendo poi anche questo passato presso la chiesa di s. Maria ai Monti, la Confraternita della santissima Nunziata vi eresse l'archivio e residenza per li ufiziali della grande opera pia, che esercita, cio� di dare ogni anno la dote a centinaja di zittelle povere. Si conserva per� la memoria della Santa in una nobile cappelletti ornata di marmi e pitture, della quale tiene cura la medesima confraternita. Nel cortile si vede un antico sarcofago di marmo molto grande.