St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica
Perhaps one of the most mysterious, yet magnificent, buildings ever, St. Peter’s Basilica has amazed people for hundreds of years. Its massive size can be seen for miles, and the dome is simply stunning. Inside, it contains famous work by Michelangelo, Giotto, and Bernini. St. Peter’s Basilica is basically a masterpiece.
However, before the “new” St. Peter’s Basilica was created, there was an “old” one before it. In the early 4th century, around 330, emperor Constantine decided to erect a basilica dedicated to St. Peter on the Vatican Hill on the south side of the River. It was very difficult to do this considering it was on the sloping side of the hill, so therefore, the floor was extend outward away from the hill. Once built, it was richly decorated with gold and mosaics inside, and marble and bronze outside. Because of its odd location, people soon believed that beneath the basilica, lay the spot where St. Peter himself was buried. It was the only logical reason for emperor Constantine’s choice of where to build the basilica.
In the 16th century, Constantine’s basilica was starting to fall apart. It was finally demolished in 1425, leaving only the floor to mysteriously be preserved. However, it did not take long for kings, popes, and artists to design a new basilica for St. Peter. In 1450, Nicholas V was the first to take on the task. He quickly conceived a plan that would call for something 10 times as large as anybody had ever contemplated. It would include a great dome over a central Greek cross, and be a crowning achievement of the Renaissance arts. After 96 years of construction, Nicholas V knew that in order to get the best, you needed to hire the best, so he called for the best architects around to come and share ideas.
Unfortunately, after 100 years of construction, and an expenditure of $48,000,000, things were not looking good. It became of problem of compromise, as different people wanted different things. In addition, they were having trouble finding a way to support the “proposed” great dome. As the years pasted, construction went through a quite a number of architects, such as Raphael, Bramante, and Sangallo. When the final architect was, Paul III, was chosen, he quickly went to action and called for Michelangelo. Old, and tired of all the fuss, Michelangelo unwillingly agreed to help. This time,...