St. John Lateran, the Cathedral of Rome, was founded by Constantine as the Basilica of the Saviour, during the papacy of St. Sylvester (314 - 335). It was destroyed and rebuilt several times; the current basilica dates to the 17th century. The imposing facade in travertine was built in 1735 by the architect Alessandro Galilei. The balustrade above the attic holds 15 statues which represent Christ, St. John the Baptist and the Doctors of the Church.
Alas, it was afternoon and the sun no longer illuminated the facade, which thus appears darker than I would like.
The portico of A. Galilei, showing the statue of Constantine which was bought from the Imperial Baths at the Quirinal.
Yet another Holy Door.
Looking down the 130 metre length of the basilica, showing the papal altar, under the canopy.
Detail of the central nave's gilded ceiling, created by Pirro Ligorio in 1562.
Papal altar and canopy. Detail from the canopy shows statues of Sts. Peter and Paul.
Another section of the roof, above the canopy, and a detail view of the face of Christ.
The apse, the result of a project carried out by Francesco Vespignani for Pope Leo XIII during 1884 - 1886. Ordered to extend the apse, the artist moved and restored the Mosaic of the Redemeer, which dates to the original construction of the basilica (4th century), and had been restored almost 1000 years later by Jacopo Torriti and Jacopo da Camerino in 1291.
File matching: NOTHING FOUND A detailed image of the "chair" in the middle of the above image. This is the Bishop of Rome's cathedra from which is derived cathedral, the principal church of the diocese. St. John Lateran is, in fact, the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, who also happens to be the Pope. Why not St. Peter's? Well, it's not in Rome, being in a different country - Vatican City. The bishop is the only person entitled to sit in the cathedra of his cathedral.
This cathedra is made of precious marble and studded with dazzling mosaics. Alas, this fact is not readily apparent in the photo.
The organ and more amazing ceiling.
Statues of the 12 Apostles are placed along the sides of the nave. The pillars were created by Borromini, while the statues were created in the Bernini school during the first 20 years of the 18th century. I don't know which Apostle this represents.
St. Peter's Square
