Sundial on the church of the Santissima Trinità dei Monti, Rome, Italy
Posted by: vraatja
N 41° 54.365 E 012° 29.005
33T E 291269 N 4642411
Sundial on the church of the Santissima Trinità dei Monti, which stands just above famous Spanish steps in Rome.
Waymark Code: WM9A84
Location: Lazio, Italy
Date Posted: 07/21/2010
Views: 29
The church of the Santissima Trinità dei Monti (often called merely the Trinità dei Monti) is a late Renaissance church in Rome. It is best known for its commanding position above the Spanish Steps which lead down to the Piazza di Spagna. The church and its surrounding area are the property of the French State. The sundials has both Latin and Arabic numbers. It is located on front facade ot the south tower of the church.
History of the church
In 1494 Saint Francis of Paola, a hermit from Calabria bought a vineyard from the Papal scholar and former patriarch of Aquileia, Ermolao Barbaro, and then obtained the authorization from Pope Alexander VI to establish a monastery. In 1502, Louis XII of France began construction of the church of Trinità dei Monti next to this monastery, to celebrate his successful invasion of Naples. Construction began in a cutomarily French style with pointed late Gothic arches. Construction lagged, and a more conventionally Italian Renaissance church, with Carlo Maderno's façade, was finally consecrated in 1585 by the great urbanizer Pope Sixtus V, whose "via Sistina" connected the Piazza below with the Porta del Popolo, the main north entrance to Rome.
The Bourbon kings of France remained patrons of the church. During the Napoleonic occupation of Rome, the church, like many others in Rome, was despoiled of its artwork and decoration. After the Bourbon restoration Louis XVIII, the looted artwork was returned, and the present façade was commissioned in 1816 from Carlo Francesco Mazois.In 1828, under an agreement worked out by Pope Leo XII and Charles X of France, the church and monastery were entrusted to the "Religieuses du Sacré-Coeur de Jésus", a French religious order. The Society of the Sacred Heart, as it is otherwise known, remains headquartered there today.
Sundial Type: Vertical - Wall mounted dial plate
Related Web Site: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Only one log per location per person. You should log your own waymarked sundials as well.
GPS in photo optional.