Santissime Stimmate di San Francesco
From Churches of Rome Wiki
| Santissime Stimmate di San Francesco | |
|---|---|
| | |
| English name: | Most Holy Stigmata of St Francis |
| Dedication: | St Francis of Assisi |
| Denomination: | Roman Catholic |
| Clergy: | Franciscan Capuchin fathers |
| Built: | 18th century |
| Consecrated: | 1721 |
| Architect(s): | Giovanni Battista Contini Antonio Canevari |
| Artists: | Antonio Raggi, Il Lorenzone, et.al. |
| Contact data | |
| Address: | Largo delle Stimmate (off Largo Torre Argentina)
00186 Roma |
| Phone: | 06 67 83 679 |
| Fax: | 06 48 88 06 55 |
Santissime Stimmate di San Francesco is a church dedicated to St Francis of Assisi.
Contents |
[edit] History
The first church on the site was consecrated in 1297. It was dedicated to The Forty Martyrs of the "Calcarario", the patrons of the lime makers who worked their kilns in the area. To Classicists, the lime kilns are one of the tragedies of medieval Rome; a great number of marble statues and architectural elements were burnt to provide lime for construction.
In 1597, Pope Clement VIII gave the old church to the "Archconfraternity of the Stigmata of St Francis", which had been founded in San Pietro in Montorio by Federico Pizzi. Stigmata is a Greek word meaning 'marks' or 'signs', and in a Christian context they refer to the wounds of Christ Crucified. Through the history of the Church, some pious believers miraculously received such wounds, and the Church sees this as a sign of holiness. In some cases, the authenticity of the wounds is contested, but in the case of St Francis the Church has declared that they were true stigmata given by Christ.
It was completely rebuilt by Pope Clement IX in 1713-1717, to a design by Giovanni Battista Contini. In 1721, the present church was consecrated to the Most Holy Stigmata of St Francis.
The church is served by Franciscan Capuchin fathers.
[edit] Exterior
The façade was designed by Antonio Canevari. It has two stories. The lower one has three doorways; the central has a rounded arch. The architrave separating the stories has a dedicatory inscription. The upper level has three large window and is crowned by a triangular tympanon. In the tympanon is a semi-circular niche decorated with the arms of the "Archconfraternity of the Stigmata of St Francis". Above the architrave, covering part of the central window on the upper level, is a statue of St Francis Receiving the Stigmata by Antonio Raggi. Beyond the doorways is an entrance hall with a monument by Adamo Tadolini to Palmira Petrachia and her son Enrico.
[edit] Interior
The nave has a single aisle with three sides chapels on each side. The nave, with pilasters with Corinthian capitals on the side walls, was decorated by Giuseppe Valadier from 1828 to 1829.
The barrel vault ceiling has a fresco of The Glory of St Francis by Luigi Garzi.
The high altar has an altarpiece by Francesco Trevisani, painted in 1719, depicting The Stigmata of St Francis. The stucco angels on the altar are by Pietro Bracci.
On the left side of the presbytery is a monument to Ladislaus Constantine Wasa, son of the King of Poland, by Lorenzo Ottoni (il Lorenzone). A processional standard next to it was made by Ignatius Hugford in 1750, and depicts St Francis Receiving the Stigmata on the front and The Madonna and Child on the back.
In the first chapel on the right is an ivory crucifix by Alessandro Algardi. Below it is The Adoration by Francesco Mancini and on the side walls paintings of scenes from the Passion of Christ, The Flagellation and The Crowning with Thorns. The ceiling has a fresco of The Triumph of the Cross by Giovanni Odazzi.
In the third chapel on the right, you can see the painting of St Joseph Calasanctius by Marco Capriozzi.
The first chapel on the left is dedicated to the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste, to whom the older church was dedicated. They are depicted in the altarpiece by Giacinto Brandi.
In the ceiling of the sacristy is a painting of The Pardon of Assisi by Girolamo Pesci. It refers to a special indulgence granted by Pope Honorius III to those who visit the Chapel of the Porziuncula on 2 August. At the altar in the sacristy is a reliquary of crystal and silver, in which a drop of blood from the wounds of St Francis is encapsuled. It was donated to the "Archconfraternity" by King Francis II of Spain in 1633.
On the upper floor is the oratory of the "Archconfraternity". The ceiling is decorated with a painting of St Francis in Ecstasy by Filippo Lauri. The altarpiece by Giacinto Brandi depicts St Francis with the Stigmata.
[edit] Special notes
The feast of St Francis is celebrated on 4 October. The feast of the Exaltation of the Cross is celebrated on 14 September; this feast has a special twist in the church since it was the day on which St Francis received the stigmata.
