Santa Maria Maggiore - Roma, Italy
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denben
N 41° 53.841 E 012° 29.936
33T E 292527 N 4641404
The Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore (Basilica of Saint Mary Major) is a 5th century papal basilica located at 27 Via Liberiana in Rome, Italy. The main entrance is on the Piazza di Santa Maria Maggiore.
Waymark Code: WM110RC
Location: Lazio, Italy
Date Posted: 07/25/2019
Views: 7
"The mostly Romanesque campanile or bell-tower is the highest one in Rome, at 75 metres. It was rebuilt between 1370 and 1378 on the orders of Pope Gregory XI on his return to Rome from Avignon, replacing an earlier one damaged in an earthquake. It is over the first bay of the right hand side aisle, and rests on the ancient foundations there. The steep pyramidal cap was added when Pope Paul V had the tower restored, and there was another restoration under Pius VII (1800-23). A major problem was lightning strikes, and this pope ordered a lightning conductor fitted.
The red brick tower has six storeys, but only four are visible above the façade. Each of these four upper storeys used to have arched openings on each face, but the lower two have had theirs blocked and the second one up now contains the basilica's public clock. Above the clock face is the heraldry of Pope Paul V again.
The storeys are separated by decorative cornices, formed from modillions in marble in between dentillations in brick. A matching string course connects the arch springers in each storey. Originally, each face of each storey had a row of five coloured ceramic dishes set into the fabric above the arches, each surrounded by a recessed circular frame, with two others flanking the arches and one in between them. Many of these dishes have perished, and some are obscured. Most were green. The idea was to provide a cheap alternative to the old practice of sawing decorative discs from ancient columns of rare stones, usually porphyry or green serpentine.
The first visible storey has two blocked Gothic (that is, pointed) arches on each face -that is why the campanile is "mostly" Romanesque. The second storey has a pair of double arches, blocked up. The third storey has these arches in their original state, each pair being separated by a marble column. The top storey has these two pairs of arches set within two larger arches, the tympani of which have each a stone quatrefoil opening (another Gothic hint).
The oldest bell that the campanile had was a famous one called La Sperduta, dated 1289. It is no longer used, but has been in the Vatican Museums since the early 20th century. The story is that the odd name, "The Lost One", derives from its having been donated by a pilgrim who was lost in the vicinity on a dark night and who oriented himself by means of the basilica's bells being rung. (This is interesting evidence about how dangerous a wilderness this part of the city was in the 13th century.) The tradition has been maintained through the centuries of ringing this bell (now its replacement) at 21:00 each evening." (
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