Santa Maria in Trastevere, which you've seen a shot or two of before is a minor basilica in the Trastevere area of Rome. It may have been the first church to openly celebrate the Christian mass.
According to legend, in 38 BC a spout of oil appeared out of the ground on this site. The Fons olei (meaning oil spring) was interpreted by Trastevere's Jewish community as a sign that Christ was coming. The spring caused this to become a meeting place for converts to Christianity. (St. Jerome in the 4th century 
mentions this legend).
The church was founded by Pope Callixtus I and was built sometime between his papacy and that of Pope Julius I. (Texts vary on how early the church was constructed). And it was the first church in Rome dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
mentions this legend).The church was founded by Pope Callixtus I and was built sometime between his papacy and that of Pope Julius I. (Texts vary on how early the church was constructed). And it was the first church in Rome dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Under Pope Innocent II (c 1140) the church was rebuilt. Pietro Cavallini added mosaics (mostly scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary) around 1291 and Pope Clement XI had the portico rebuilt by Carlo Fontana in 1702.
The mosaics on both the interior and exterior of Santa Maria are amazing. (The apse mosaic shows the Coronation of the Virgin Mary. She sits on Christs right hand surrounded by the saints.) If you get the opportunity to go into Santa Maria, definitely pay to light the apse. (Like most churches in Rome, the church is very dark with minimal lighting. However, for a euro (it may even be less, if varies from church to church), you can light the apse for about a minute and see the full brilliance of the images. It's definitely worth it to do that when you have the opportunity. And donation is very minimal and helps the churches with their many expenses. Here are a couple quick shots we took after we dropped our coin in. The Facade mosaic shows Mary feeding baby Jesus and 10 women on either side of her holding lamps. The lamps 
are lit on eight of the women, symbolizing virginity, but the lamps of two of the women have gone out - these women are likely widows. (It's easier to see these in the images at the top).
are lit on eight of the women, symbolizing virginity, but the lamps of two of the women have gone out - these women are likely widows. (It's easier to see these in the images at the top).Located quite close to our apartment, I find that we end up at Santa Maria quite often. Besides being a gathering place in Trastevere (and therefore perfect for people watching!), we all really enjoy looking at the basilica. Celia loves the images of the Virgin Mary - in
particular Mary and Jesus 
located at the top of the bell tower.So it was not surprising that yesterday afternoon after a walk around the City we ended up in the Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere. Celia insisted we take a few shots, so here are a few I took just after the sun had sent.
In this last one you can see
Celia standing on the octagonal fountain in the center of the piazza (this was a 17th century contribution) taking some shots.
In this last one you can see
Celia standing on the octagonal fountain in the center of the piazza (this was a 17th century contribution) taking some shots.Here are two of the images she captured:
No comments:
Post a Comment