It is difficult to find within the Old and New WorldAn architectural structure that could be comparable to this grandiose temple. As for its visual outlines, and for the spiritual significance for the entire human civilization, St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome has no analogues. He shakes his imagination with his power. Several generations of the greatest masters who built it, this is exactly what they expected. They knew what they were building. They did it.
St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome
It is located exactly in the same place, where inAncient Rome was the gardens and circus of Emperor Nero. Here the apostle Peter, the closest disciple and follower of Christ, was executed on the cross and buried. The grave of St. Peter is in the altar part of the cathedral. This is one of the greatest shrines of the entire Christian world. St. Peter's Basilica in Rome is essentially only the final, final version of the temple, it was to replace in this sacred place the previous buildings, which alternately replaced one another, came to a dilapidated state and clearly did not correspond to the unique status of this place.
The decision to build a grand temple,which would have no analogues either in the Christian or pagan world, was adopted in the early sixteenth century by Julius II. St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome was designed and built throughout this century, but in general it was completed in the second half, after the erection of a grandiose dome over it. At the same time, there was an urgent need to bring all the surrounding space around the cathedral into a single harmonious whole. This task was brilliantly handled by Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini. The area around the cathedral is his work. Here and today, believers from all over the world gather in anticipation of the papal blessing.
Visit to the Vatican
This is a mandatory part of the program.To be in Rome and not to be here is simply impossible. It does not even matter which religious denomination a person identifies with himself. You can be an atheist, but just pay tribute to the human genius that created the Cathedral of St. Peter. Photos from the square in front of him habitually decorate many tourist sites and advertising posters at the entrance to travel agencies on all continents. This is such a sight, which is unacceptable to miss.