Bell Tower - Santa Maria in Trastevere - Roma, Italy
Posted by: 
denben
N 41° 53.369 E 012° 28.196
33T E 290096 N 4640601
Santa Maria in Trastevere is a 12th century minor basilica of ancient foundation in the rione Trastevere, and is also a parish and titular church.
Waymark Code: WM114CM
Location: Lazio, Italy
Date Posted: 08/14/2019
Views: 3
The Basilica was probably the first official place of Christian worship in Rome. According to the legend, it was built by Pope Callistus I in the 3rd century and was finished by Saint Julius I in 340.
Rebuilt in 1140 during the pontificate of Pope Innocent II, it later had decorations and restorations including those promoted by Pope Clement XI (1702) and by Pope Pius IX (1870), without the church suffering substantial alterations.
Many parts of the church date back to the 12th century; the mosaics, especially those of the façade and those of the apse made by Pietro Cavallini and depicting the "Life of the Virgin", are important. Outside, built in the twelfth century, stands the Romanesque bell tower with a mosaic depicting the Virgin and Child, in a niche located near the top.
The bell tower is in brick and of four storeys above the aisle roofline. The storeys are separated by decorative cornices, and the tower is also decorated with small roundels of purple porphyry and green verde antico. The clock has been in the second storey for about 250 years. Oddly, there is a bell in a wire frame on top of the tiled pyramidal cap which rings the hours.
Source: (
visit link)