San Biagio della Pagnotta

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Basic data
Patronage : St. Blaise
Consecration day : ? 1072
Address: Via Giulia , 61

00186 Roma

The facade

San Biagio della Pagnotta , also San Biagio degli Armeni , is a small church in Rome . It comes from the 11th century and was partially redesigned in the first half of the 16th century. Today it is the Church of the Roman Congregation of the Armenian Apostolic Church .

Location and naming

The church is located in the 5th Roman Rione Ponte , about 150 meters southeast of the Church of San Giovanni dei Fiorentini . It owes its nickname to small rolls - Italian: " Pagnotta " - which were consecrated on February 3, the patron s feast day, and distributed to the needy. It has another nickname, in canto secuto , in the Middle Ages often in a wide variety of forms - gasta secuto, monte secuto, cantu securo , etc. -. It is not entirely clear where this nickname comes from. Buchowiecki assumes most likely a derivation from caput secutae . This expression comes from the debris that the Tiber left behind in this area, more than in other places along the river.

History and building history

It is not known when the first church was built on this site. An inscription, which is located in the vestibule today, provides information about a new building in 1072. Pope Alexander II and an abbot named Dominicus are mentioned in this inscription . The church and the associated monastery were in the following centuries several times as Coming awarded and recovered, even on cardinals . In the 15th century, the patron's throat , which had hitherto been venerated as a relic in this church, was brought to St. Peter's Basilica on the orders of Pope Eugen IV . Donato Bramante was involved in plans in the 16th century to include the church in the new building of the Palazzo dei Tribunali . The plans have been partially preserved, they are in the Codex Coner , a copy of which is in Sir John Soane's Museum in London . Bramante planned a cross-shaped floor plan and a dome over the crossing. The plan was never implemented, and the palazzo was only started on the lowest floor, the heavy stone blocks that are now in the block of houses surrounding the church are the remains of this construction work. In 1836 it was transferred to the Armenian community by Pope Gregory XVI. , in the same year the church was restored, the last time in 1933.

facade

View through the nave to the raised apse

The facade, which looks a bit “jammed” because of the neighboring buildings, is three-axis and single-storey. The wall is structured by four high-pedestal pilasters with stepped pilasters with capitals of the composite order. The capitals have small festoons . The actual portal is covered by a blown volute arch. Above this is a framed fresco , it represents the patron of the church. The fresco is attributed to Giovanni Antonio Versetti . The cranked segment gable of the central axis rises above the strongly cranked cornice, designed as a triangular gable on the side axes . Four flame vases crown the facade.

Interior and outfit

Today the church is a single-nave building. The nave and the inner portal side are separated by a single-bay vestibule. The apse is raised compared to the nave. It is separated from the nave by two columns of Ionic order ; the pilasters of the apse vault are also executed in this order. The two pillars support the architrave bent up in the middle . The tiered pilasters of the nave themselves follow the Corinthian order .

The church contained an early work by Pietro da Cortona that had been lost , it represented an angel adoring the Most Holy Place . The frescoes by Andrea Sacchi are also lost , they were in the apse vault.

The painting above the high altar depicts the church patron and may date from the 18th century. The two flanking paintings show a vision of St. Blaise on the left and Tobias with the angel on the right .

literature

  • Walter Buchowiecki: Handbook of the Churches of Rome . 1st volume, Brothers Hollinek publishing house, Vienna 1967.
  • Mariano Armellini: Le Chiese di Roma . Roma 1891.
  • Christian Hülsen : Le Chiese di Roma nel Medio Evo . Firenze 1927, pp. 214-216 ( online ).

Web links

Commons : San Biagio degli Armeni  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Buchowiecki: Handbook of the Churches of Rome , p. 457.
  2. ↑ a b Buchowiecki: Handbook of the Churches of Rome , p. 458.
  3. ↑ a b c d Buchowiecki: Handbook of the Churches of Rome , p. 459.
  4. ↑ Alternative spelling : Perfetti , Buchowiecki: Handbuch der Kirchen Roms , p. 459.

Coordinates: 41 ° 53 '53.9 "  N , 12 ° 27' 57.9"  E