San Crisogono, Rome

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Façade of the basilica

San Crisogono is a church in Rome (rione Trastevere) dedicated to the martyr Saint Chrysogonus. It was one of the tituli, the first parish churches of Rome, and was probably built in the 4th century under Pope Silvester I (314–335), rebuilt in the 12th century by John of Crema, and again by Giovanni Battista Soria, funded by Scipione Borghese, in the early 17th century.

The area beneath the sacristy was investigated by Fr. L. Manfredini and Fr. C. Piccolini in 1907. They found remains of the first church (see below). After they had made this discovery, the area was excavated and studied.

The church is served by Trinitarians. Among the previous Cardinal Priests was Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci (1853–1878), elected Pope Leo XIII.

Art and architecture

Intern.

The bell tower dates from the 12th century rebuilding. The interior of the church was rebuilt in the 1620s on the site of a 12th-century church. The 22 granite columns in the nave are reused antique columns. The floor is cosmatesque mosaic, but most of it is hidden by the pews. The confessio in the sanctuary area is from the 8th century. The high altar is from 1127, with a baldachino from (1627 or 1641) by G.B Soria.

The painting in the middle of the Baroque coffered ceiling is by Guercino, and depicts the Glory of Saint Chrysogonus. It is likely a copy of the original, which is thought to have been taken to London, but it is possible the one here is the original and the one in London is the copy.

On the left side of the nave is the shrine of Blessed Anna Maria Taigi, buried here in the habit of a tertiary of the Trinitarians. Blessed Anna Maria Taigi (1769-1837) was a Christian mystic beatified in in 1920. Above the altar is a painting by Aronne Del Vecchio of the Trinitarian Saints in Glory. [1] Visitors can view some of her other belongings in the adjacent monastery, where they are venerated as relics.

The monument at the left of the entrance, dedicated to Cardinal Giovanno Jacopo Millo was completed by Carlo Marchionni and Pietro Bracci. Along the right side of the nave are the remains of frescoes, including a Santa Francesca Romana and a Crucifixion, attributed to Paolo Guidotti and transferred from the Church of Saints Barbara and Catherine. The nave also displays a painting of Three Archangels by Giovanni da San Giovanni and a Trinity and Angels by Giacinto Gimignani, while the altar has a Guardian Angel by Ludovico Gimignani. The presbytery and ciborium (or baldachin), created by Soria, are surrounded by four alabaster columns. The apse has frescoes of the Life of Saint Crisogono (16th century) above a Madonna & Child with Saints Crisogono & James by the 12th century school of Pietro Cavallini. The presbytery vault is frescoed with a Virgin by Giuseppe Cesari.[2]

Excavations

Remains from the first church, possible from the reign of Constantine I, and earlier Roman houses can be seen in the lower parts, reached by a staircase in the sacristy. The ruins are confusing, but you can easily find the apse of the old church and you can see the remains of the martyr's shrine in middle of the apse wall. The church had an uncommon form; rather than the normal basilical plan with a central nave and two aisles on the sides, it has a single nave.

On either side of the apse are rooms known as pastophoria, service rooms of a type uncommon in the West but normal in Eastern churches. The one on the right-hand side is thought to have been used as a diaconium, with functions resembling those of the sacristy in later churches. The other would then probably have been a protesis, where holy relics were kept.

A number of basins were found here during the excavations, including one cut into the south wall. As the plan is so atypical of early Roman churches, some believe that the structure originally had a different function, and the presence of the basins could mean that it was a fullonica, a laundry and dye-house. The area was a commercial district at the time, so this is quite likely. Others think that the basin in the south wall was made for baptism by immersion. As there were other basins too, it seems more likely that it was originally intended for a different use, but it may very well have been used as a baptismal font after the building had been consecrated as a church.

The paintings are from the 8th to the 11th century, and include Pope Sylvester Capturing the Dragon, St Pantaleon Healing the Blind Man, St Benedict Healing the Leper and The Rescue of St Placid.

Several sarcophagi have been preserved here, some beautifully decorated.

Below the first church are remains of late Republican houses.

Liturgy

The shrine was for many centuries the national church of the Sardinians and the Corsicans resident in Rome. Starting with the 16th century, the Corsicans immigrated in the city settled in the Tiber Island and in that part of Trastevere liying between the Port of Ripa Grande and the church. In the interior are buried several commanders of the Guardia corsa, a militia analogue to the Swiss guard, which was active in Rome between the 15th and the 17th century.

The feast day of St Chrysogonus, 24 November, is also the dedication day of the church. Pilgrims and other faithful who attend Mass on this day receive a plenary indulgence.

List of Ordinaries

  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Fabrizio Spada (23 May 1689 – 30 April 1708), elevated to Cardinal-Priest of Santa Prassede
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Filippo Antonio Gualterio (30 April 1708 – 29 January 1724), elevated to Cardinal-Priest of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Prospero Marefoschi (29 January 1725 – 19 November 1725), elevated to Cardinal-Priest of San Callisto
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Giulio Alberoni (20 September 1728 – 29 August 1740), elevated to Cardinal-Priest of San Lorenzo in Lucina
  • Austria Cardinal-Priest Sigismund von Kollonitsch (29 August 1740 – 12 April 1751)
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Giovanni Giacomo Millo (10 December 1753 – 16 November 1757)
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Giovanni Battista Rovero (2 August 1758 – 9 October 1766)
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Filippo Maria Pirelli (1 December 1766 – 10 January 1771)
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Francesco Maria Banditi (18 December 1775 – 27 January 1796)
  • Papal States Cardinal-Priest Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci (22 December 1853 – 20 February 1878), elevated to Papacy
  • Austria-Hungary Cardinal-Priest Friedrich Egon von Fürstenberg (27 February 1880 – 20 August 1892)
  • German Empire Cardinal-Priest Philipp Krementz (19 January 1893 – 6 May 1899)
  • Kingdom of Italy Cardinal-Priest Francesco di Paola Cassetta (22 June 1899 – 27 March 1905), elevated to Cardinal-Bishop of Sabina
  • Kingdom of Italy Cardinal-Priest Pietro Maffi (18 April 1907 – 17 March 1931)
  • Austria Cardinal-Priest Theodor Innitzer (13 March 1933 – 9 October 1955)
  • Uruguay Cardinal-Priest Antonio María Barbieri (15 December 1958 – 6 July 1979)
  • Ivory Coast Cardinal-Priest Bernard Yago (2 February 1993 – 5 October 1997)
  • Taiwan Cardinal-Priest Paul Shan Kuo-hsi (21 February 1998 – 22 August 2012)
  • South Korea Cardinal-Priest Andrew Yeom Soo-jung (2 February 2014 – Incumbent)

References

Media related to San Crisogono at Wikimedia Commons

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  2. Romecity entry.
  • Cigola Michela, "La basilica di s. Crisogono in Roma. Un rilievo critico", numero monografico del Bollettino del Centro di Studi per la Storia dell'Architettura, n. 35, Roma, dicembre 1989, link at [1]


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