Santa Caterina a Magnanapoli is a

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

church dedicated to St.

Catherine of Siena Caterina di Jacopo di Benincasa (25 March 1347 – 29 April 1380), known as Catherine of Siena, was an Italian mystic and pious laywoman who engaged in papal and Italian politics through extensive letter-writing and advocacy. Canonized in 1461, ...

on Largo

Magnanapoli Magnanapoli is a name given to part of the Quirinal hill in Rome, literally meaning ''Great Naples''. The two most common explanations are that this is a corruption of: *''Balnea Pauli'' (Baths of Paul), name given to the nearby Trajan's Market whe ...

on the slopes of the

Quirinal Hill The Quirinal Hill (; ; ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome, at the north-east of the city center. It is the location of the official residence of the Italian head of state, who resides in the Quirinal Palace; by metonymy "the Quirinal" has c ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

History

A group of Dominican tertiary nuns, living in a small house in via Santa Chiara where St. Catherine had died, were looking for larger premises. Led by Porzia Massimo whose late husband was a Conti,Raissa Teodori
''Porzia Massimo''
in: Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 72 (2008). from 1574 they successively acquired parts of properties belonging to the Conti family at Magnanapoli to establish their

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

there, financially assisted by

Pope Gregory XIII Pope Gregory XIII (, , born Ugo Boncompagni; 7 January 1502 – 10 April 1585) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 May 1572 to his death in April 1585. He is best known for commissioning and being the namesake ...

. The originally small community thrived and quickly expanded from 27 nuns in 1574 to 108 in 1626,Alberto Zucchi, ''Roma domenicana, note storiche'', Florence 1938, pp. 226 ss. many of whom from important noble families. The construction of a church began in 1608, initially at expense of Cardinal

Scipione Borghese Scipione Caffarelli-Borghese (; 1 September 1577 – 2 October 1633) was an Italian cardinal, art collector and patron of the arts. A member of the Borghese family, he was the patron of the painter Caravaggio and the artist Bernini. His legac ...

to a design by

Carlo Maderno Carlo Maderno or Maderna (1556 – 31 January 1629) was an Italian architect, born in today's Ticino, Switzerland, who is remembered as one of the fathers of Baroque architecture. His façades of Santa Susanna, St. Peter's Basilica, and Sant ...

, but stopped in 1613. Meanwhile, the monastery acquired the

Torre delle Milizie The Torre delle Milizie ("Tower of the Militia") is a fortified tower in Rome, Italy, located between Trajan's Market in the Imperial fora to the southwest and the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, or Angelicum, to the east. Hi ...

in 1619. In 1628, the building of the current church was begun to a design by Giovanni Battista Soria. In 1631 the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

and two adjacent

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

s were completed. Building then came to a halt until the final portion of the church took shape from 1636 and concluded with the facade in 1641. The

consecration Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects ( ...

of the church by cardinal

Alessandro Cesarini Alessandro Cesarini (died 13 February 1542), bishop of Pistoia, was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Life Born in Rome, the son of Agabito Cesarini, he became close to the Medici family, particularly Cardinal Giovanni di L ...

took place in 1640. Another Dominican nuns' convent,

Santi Domenico e Sisto The Church of Santi Domenico e Sisto is one of the titular churches in Rome, Italy in the care of the Roman Catholic Order of Preachers, better known as the Dominicans. It is located at No. 1 Largo Angelicum on the Quirinal Hill on the campu ...

, is just a stone's throw away. When the Via Nazionale was laid out in the 19th century, the street level was lowered. This raised the church entrance to a considerable height above the street. To allow access, a double

staircase A stairwell or stair room is a room in a building where a stair is located, and is used to connect walkways between floors so that one can move in height. Collectively, a set of stairs and a stairwell is referred to as a staircase or stairway ...

leading to the

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cu ...

was built. Under the stairs is the entrance to the ''Crypt of the Fallen'', constructed in 1934 and dedicated to the priests who were killed in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. The crypt contains a bronze crucifix by

Romano Romanelli Romano Romanelli (14 May 1882 – 25 September 1968) was an Italian artist, writer, and naval officer, known for his sculptures and his medals. Romanelli was born in Florence, the son of sculptor Raffaello Romanelli. Romano's works occupy an impo ...

. Most of the convent was demolished in 1924. The Military Ordinariate, whose headquarters are adjacent to the church, took over the church, and it is now served by diocesan clergy. A restoration occurred in 1992. File:Santa Caterina a Magnanapoli (Rome) - interno.jpg, Interior. File:Chiesa di S. Caterina di Siena col' Monastero delle Monache di S. Domenico a Monte Magnanapoli by Giovanni Battista Falda (1667-1669).png,

Engraving Engraving is the practice of incising a design on a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a Burin (engraving), burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or Glass engraving, glass ar ...

of c. 1667-1669 by

Giovanni Battista Falda Giovanni Battista Falda (Valduggia 7 December 1643–22 August 1678, Rome) was an Italian people, Italian architect, engraving, engraver, and artist. He is known for his engravings of both contemporary and antique structures of Rome. Biograp ...

showing the church at the original street level.

Interior

The interior is a single nave with a

barrel vault A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are ...

and three chapels on each side. The rich decoration, although carried out over a long period of time, appears very homogeneous.

Chancel

Main altar

The massive main altar's architecture to the design of the

Maltese Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * Maltese culture * Maltese language, the Semitic language spoken by Maltese people * Maltese people, people from Malta or of Maltese ...

sculptor

Melchiorre Cafà Melchiorre Cafà (1636–1667), born Melchiorre Gafà and also known as Caffà, Gafa, Gaffar or Gafar, was a Maltese Baroque sculptor. Cafà began a promising career in Rome but this was cut short by his premature death following a work acciden ...

is shaped similar to church facades. It creates an elaborate frame for the large marble relief, also by Cafà and finished by the time of his untimely death in 1667, aged only 31.Gerhard Bissell, ''Melchiorre Cafà at S. Caterina a Magnanapoli'', in: Keith Scriberras (ed.), ''Melchiorre Cafà. Maltese Genius of the Roman Baroque, Valletta (Midsea Books) 2006, pp. 84-88. The relief, ''St Catherine in Ecstasy'', shows the saint in a very indeterminate stance on a cloud pushed by an angel and some

putti A putto (; plural putti ) is a figure in a work of art depicted as a chubby male child, usually naked and very often winged. Originally limited to profane passions in symbolism,Dempsey, Charles. ''Inventing the Renaissance Putto''. University ...

, all in white

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

(some of the flattest parts of the cloud are in plaster). The scene is embedded in a smooth, polychrome background which forms a

concave Concave or concavity may refer to: Science and technology * Concave lens * Concave mirror Mathematics * Concave function, the negative of a convex function * Concave polygon A simple polygon that is not convex is called concave, non-convex or ...

curve through which it underlines the

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a ...

's statuesque appearance, seemingly detached from it. Its pieces of differently coloured marble are arranged in such a way that they suggest dematerialised dark clouds opening up to let St. Catherine ascend to heaven. With her floatingly light posture and upwards gaze this ascend seems inevitable, she seems to be drawn heavenwards. Cafà's work is something new in Roman baroque sculpture. It incorporates lessons learned from

Bernini Gian Lorenzo (or Gianlorenzo) Bernini (, ; ; Italian Giovanni Lorenzo; 7 December 1598 – 28 November 1680) was an Italian sculptor and architect. While a major figure in the world of architecture, he was more prominently the leading sculptor ...

, in particular his '' Memorial to Maria Raggi'' (1647) and the ''

Ecstasy of St Theresa The ''Ecstasy of Saint Teresa'' (also known as ''Saint Teresa in Ecstasy''; or ) is a sculptural altarpiece group in white marble set in an elevated aedicule in the Cornaro Chapel of the church of Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome. It was des ...

'' (ca. 1652) as well as the use of a polychrome marble background at the relic balconies in the pillars of the crossing of Saint Peter's (1630s). In addition, Cafà pulls together recently finished or contemporary solutions from within the workshop of

Ercole Ferrata Ercole Ferrata (1610 – 10 July 1686) was an Italian sculptor of the Roman Baroque. Biography A native of Pellio Inferiore, near Como, Ferrata initially apprenticed with Alessandro Algardi, and became one of his prime assistants. When hi ...

of which he himself was an essential part, in particular the ''Statue of St. Catherine'' for

Siena Cathedral Siena Cathedral () is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary. Since the early 13th-century the Siena Cathedral has been an important pa ...

, ''St. Agnes on a Pyre'' and the concave shaped relief ''Martyrdom of Sant'Emerenziana'' (both in

Sant'Agnese in Agone Sant'Agnese in Agone (also called Sant'Agnese in Piazza Navona) is a 17th-century Baroque church in Rome, Italy. It faces onto the Piazza Navona, one of the main urban spaces in the historic centre of the city and the site where the Early Christ ...

). From these ingredients and his own artistic power, Cafà produces a highly emotive pictorial solution unseen before, neither neatly definable as a relief nor as a statue nor as a picture.

Other works

In the chancel's dome are four medallions depicting Dominican saints surrounded by a multitude of putti, all possibly also by Cafà, and the

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

''The Glory of the Eternal Father'' by Francesco Rosa in the

lantern A lantern is a source of lighting, often portable. It typically features a protective enclosure for the light sourcehistorically usually a candle, a oil lamp, wick in oil, or a thermoluminescence, thermoluminescent Gas mantle, mesh, and often a ...

. The decoration of the chancel was completed in the 18th century with the marble reliefs of St

Rose of Lima Rose of Lima, TOSD (born Isabel Flores de Oliva; 20 April 1586 24 August 1617) (, ), was a member of the Third Order of Saint Dominic in Lima, Peru, Spanish Empire, who became known for both her life of severe penance and her care of the pover ...

and St Agnes of Montepulciano by

Pietro Bracci Pietro Bracci (June 16, 1700 –1773) was an Italian sculptor working in the Late Baroque manner. He is best known for carving the marble sculpture of Oceanus at the center of Rome's Trevi Fountain, based on a plaster '' modello'' by Giovann ...

on the side walls (1755). The

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

in the shape of a ciborium, made from

lapis lazuli Lapis lazuli (; ), or lapis for short, is a deep-blue metamorphic rock used as a semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense color. Originating from the Persian word for the gem, ''lāžward'', lapis lazuli is ...

agate Agate ( ) is a banded variety of chalcedony. Agate stones are characterized by alternating bands of different colored chalcedony and sometimes include macroscopic quartz. They are common in nature and can be found globally in a large number of d ...

, and gilded bronze, and the high altar on which it sits was designed in 1785 by the architect Carlo Marchionni.

Nave and chapels

The nave's ceiling fresco, ''Glory of St. Catherine'', one of the masterpieces of

Luigi Garzi Luigi Garzi (1638–1721) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period whose style was strongly influenced by the work of the Bolognese painter Guido Reni. Biography He was born in Pistoia. He started learning from a poorly known landscape paint ...

, shows St. Catherine arriving in heaven and concludes the narrative started by Cafà. It was first mentioned in 1713 and is retained by some scholars to be from around that period while others date it considerably earlier.Elisa Debenedetti, ''Garzi, Luigi'', in: ''

Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon Thieme-Becker is a German biographical dictionary of artists. Thieme-Becker The dictionary was begun under the editorship of Ulrich Thieme (1865–1922) (volumes one to fifteen) and Felix Becker (1864–1928) (volumes one to four). It was compl ...

'', vol. 59, de Gruyter, Berlin 2006, p. 496. Garzi had already painted an altarpiece with the subject ''

All Saints All Saints' Day is a Christian holiday. All Saints, All Saints Day or Feast of All Saints may also refer to: Art and entertainment * ''All Saints'' (film), a 2017 Christian drama film * ''All Saints'' (TV series), an Australian hospital drama * ...

'' in 1674 for the second chapel on the right. This second chapel on the right was decorated in fresco from 1700-1703 by

Giuseppe Passeri Giuseppe Passeri (12 March 1654 – 2 November 1714) was an Italian painter of the Baroque period, active in his native city of Rome. Born the nephew of the painter Giovanni Battista Passeri, Giuseppe trained in the studio of Carlo Maratta. A ...

who also painted two other altar paintings, ''Three

Archangel Archangels () are the second lowest rank of angel in the Catholic hierarchy of angels, based on and put forward by Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 5th or 6th century in his book ''De Coelesti Hierarchia'' (''On the Celestial Hierarchy'') ...

s'' as well as ''Madonna of the Rosary''.Stefan Albl, ''Passeri, Giuseppe'', in: ''

'', vol. 94, de Gruyter, Berlin 2017, p. 400. The latter, one of Passeri's best works, is in the third chapel on the left which also contains the tomb monuments to ''Giuseppe Bonanni'' (1648) and ''Virginia Primi Bonanni'' (1650) by

Giuliano Finelli Giuliano Finelli (1601–1653) was an Italian Baroque sculptor who emerged from the workshop of Bernini. He was born in Carrara to a family of marble masons in a town associated with mining of the stone, and he initially trained with Michelange ...

. In the first chapel on the right,

Benedetto Luti Benedetto Luti (17 November 1666 – 17 June 1724) was an Italian Baroque painter, draftsman, and pastelist. Early life Luti was born in Florence on 17 November 1666. He trained under Anton Domenico Gabbiani before moving to Rome in 1690. Career ...

painted a fresco of ''Putti'' in the ceiling and carried out its altarpiece, '' Communion of St.

Mary Magdalen Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cr ...

'' (1706-1708).

Corridor

In the corridor leading to the sacristy are remains of frescoes by

Antoniazzo Romano Antonio di Benedetto Aquilo degli Aquili (c. 1430 – c. 1510), known as Antoniazzo Romano, was an Italian Early Renaissance painter, the leading figure of the Roman school during the latter part of the 15th century. He "made a speciality of ...

which came from the original house of the nuns in via St. Chiara. Some time after 1637 they became part of the room of St. Catherine in the Magnanapoli convent. When this was demolished the frescoes were relocated to this corridor. Among the saints shown are St

Bridget of Sweden Bridget of Sweden, Bridgettines, OSsS ( – 23 July 1374), also known as Birgitta Birgersdotter and Birgitta of Vadstena (), was a Swedish Catholic Mysticism, mystic and the founder of the Bridgettines. Outside Sweden, she was also known as the ...

and St

Catherine of Alexandria Catherine of Alexandria, also spelled Katherine, was, according to tradition, a Christian saint and Virginity, virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the emperor Maxentius. According to her hagiography, she was both a ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Santa Caterina A Magnanapoli Caterina a Magnanapoli Roman Catholic churches completed in 1641 16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Caterina a Magnanapoli Cathedrals of military ordinariates