Old St. Peter's Basilica

Ziggy Marley once said, “God is like the sun. When the sun shines, it shines for everyone. God is for everyone.” In the same way, Abbot Suger built the Basilica of St. Denis so that sunlight would flood throughout the building and symbolize the power of God inviting visitors into the cathedral. The Basilica of St. Denis was an artistic response to the rise of the Catholic Church’s power for it was modeled to be a physical representation of heaven, which the church heavily preached upon. (Thesis) As the basilica represented the shift from Romanesque architecture to Gothic, Abbot Suger introduced new techniques that transformed cathedrals to look more spacious and “heavenly”. (Map Statement #1-Art History) By allowing sunlight to come

QUINTUS OCTAVIUS exited his litter, having just traversed the winding streets and narrow avenues of the Aventine, and hurried up the steps of the Basilica Julia. He had just concluded some business for his client Lollius Capito, leasing out some empty warehouses to a Sicilian merchant, whilst selling the deed of another to a vintner from Antium, liquidating some of Capito’s vacant properties. It was late afternoon and the Forum was bustling, for it was business as usual here in the great city of Rome; Octavius scarcely arrived at the proposed hour of his appointment for all the pedestrian hubbub and cart traffic afoot. Rome is ever the center of commerce and trade in the Empire, he thought wryly. Alexandria is but a small-time metropolis compared to our fabulous Eternal City!

The Roman basilica was one example of architecture that Early Christians took inspiration from. Old Saint Peter’s was designed based off of it, with similarities in the elevation of the building and design plan. Like most basilicas in Rome, Old Saint Peter’s church has a “wide central nave with flanking aisles and an apse at the end” (Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, 8-2b). The church

The Church is considered one of the most important places you can visit in Christianity. It is believed that this place, the Church was the place where Jesus was crucified, died and was buried. It is significant to the people because they get to feel Jesus' presence, and because even though the Church was destroyed multiple times, it kept getting rebuilt because it was special to the people. We will be visiting the Mount Of Olives because it is very significant to the history of Judaism as well as people of the Jewish faith.

In this essay I intend to compare and contrast the Basilica of St. Sernin and Basilica of St Denis in France with references to how they differ structurally (as Romanesque and Gothic buildings respectively) followed by critical analysis of the advancements in architectural construction methods. The progression in architectural capability from Romanesque to Gothic led to a change in how religious architecture was approached spatially, with far greater emphasis on the use of light and a desire for greater height. To assess this transition one must contextualise the periods the respective basilicas were built in and the physical limitations as well as architectural preferences of the time. One must further assess why previously unfeasible technologies that now elevated the height of buildings and placed a greater emphasis for infiltration of light were required for religious reasons. This need for greater height and light exemplifies the relationship that people wanted between themselves and God in order to achieve a more fulfilled experience of their religion. This essay will attempt to consider and evaluate the dramatic change in the architectural style of Churches and Cathedrals and the transition from Romanesque to Gothic indicating the lasting impact these processes have left on history.

The Church of San Vitale Shows Justinian and his attendants. . The Art Work is a part of collection work which is called Justinian Mosaic and it begun by bishop Ecclesius in affiliation with the Roman Catholic. Its size is really difficult for us to tell because it shows the dome shape design from inside the church... Basilica of San Vitale is the main location in this art work. The artwork done on the walls is permanent. It Tells the Story of Ancient Rome and also tells the Aesthetic values of the Church.

Before Constantine, Christian churches were often not much different than typical domestic architecture (Johnson, 282). After the legalization of Christianity in Rome, large churches known as basilicas sprung up in every major city of the Roman Empire. The basilicas were built with several parallel aisles separated by rows of columns, ending in a semicircular structure could often hold thousands of worshipers (Pollard, 286). Constantine himself was responsible for the construction of churches in Rome including the Church of St. Peter, and churches in the Holy Land including the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, and in Bethlehem, the Church of the Nativity (Johnson,

There was also saint mark church in Venice, Italy. It has central dome over the crossing with other four over the Greek cross.

Rome has figured prominently in the history of the Church from its earliest days. Its Jewish community had close ties to Jerusalem, and Christianity reached Rome even before Paul came there as a missionary in 49-50. Peter and Paul both met martyrdom in Rome, giving the Christian community there special status. Also, Rome was one of the major cities of the empire; its great concentration of political and economic power proved a significant

Peter’s Basilica. According to tradition, the remains of St. Jude were preserved in a monastery on an island in the upper part of Issyk-Kul Lake in Kyrgyzstan until the 15th century, and were then moved to St. Peter’s Basilica. Many people were sad that he passed away; so many people went to visit the location in which his remains laid. Pilgrims also went to visit Saint Jude’s relics and they said, “When we visited the relics, I truly felt the power of Saint Jude...”

Next, we have the Pantheon a wonderful temple in Rome which is now a church called Santa Maria ad Martyres. The Pantheon was built in 27-25 B.C. by magistrate, Marcus Agripa to commemorate the victory of Actium over Antony and Cleopatra. Unfoaryanty, the original temple burned down in 80 AD and it was restored between 193-211 by emperor, Septiums and Caracalla. Later, when Christianity replace paganism in Rome, the temple was give to Pope Boniface IV 608 AD. The Pantheon was the first to be Christianized in Rome. The Pantheon is 142 ft. wide and 142 ft. in height it is shaped as a sphere sitting on a cylinder. The place is resting in a solid ring wall while the outside is covered in cantilevered brick. The porch is made of 16 monolothic Corinituan

A: St. Peter’s Square is the name of the place in Vatican City where thousands of people gather each week to see and hear the pope.

With such support from the state and the Emperor, the church was given a massive financial support, which was invested in the building of the Basilicas. They were used to perform rituals such as worship, baptism, prayers, scripture reading, preaching and recognition of the dead and the after life. The liturgy of the early churches was very plain. They were build on a rectangular classical floor plan. The Basilica floor plan was simple; consisting of a narthex (the outside building short end), apse, transept, and aisle such formation gives the idea of building resembling to the cross. The early Christians were inspiration to represent such building to the cross. Once more this is part of the spiritual journey of Christianity. The other model was the central plan which would consist of a dome in the middle of the church. Were all the activities would take place. Like the worship and the baptismal ritual. This center plan was more common in the Eastern-Orthodox churches. This shows the heritage of Roman Christian art from the early ancestors such as the Greeks and the Middle East. A great example is the San Vitale in Ravenna which was an important Byzantine outpost in Italy. San Vitale was constructed under the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian in 547. This church has a domed central core which

The Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Reims, northeast of Paris near Champagne was the coronation church of the kings of France and was an educational and cultural center. Also built of limestone, the architecture of the Reims Cathedral features Gothic style. It symbolizes an Early Gothic, Radiant Gothic and Flamboyant Gothic. The Reims Cathedral depicts a classic harmonic facade containing four levels. Its interior is defined by its towering heights and narrow proportions, and elaborate sculptural works. Because of the high quality of workmanship and materials used, Reims Cathedral features some of the most beautiful gothic art in existence. Five different cathedrals have been on the site on which Reims cathedral now sits since 401 CE. The current cathedral was built in 1211, after the previous cathedral had burned down. The new building was almost entirely finished by the end of the thirteenth century. 88 gargoyles were counted on the Reims Cathedral and are mainly used to drain off rainwater and are exceptional pieces of work, but do show the slight difference between Gothic and Romanesque styles. The stained glass windows are a beautiful part of Reims despite being damaged or ruined several times in the 18th century; the cathedral still has many 13th century stained glass windows, in the upper parts of the nave, choir and transept. On the opposite side of the great western portal, the Great Rose Window, dating from the end of the 13th century, represents “the Crowning

I learned a large amount of information during my research. I learned about Saint Peter’s basic biography, his accomplishments and what a brave and faithful individual he was. Saint Peter was born at around 1 AD in Bethsaida Gaulanitis. He was a fisherman that got converted into a pure disciple of Jesus. He died for Jesus and is known as the leader of the twelve disciples. In conclusion, Saint Peter was a very special person that devoted his life to make the world a better