San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro
The Basilica minor San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro in the northern Italian city of Pavia is architecturally a Romanesque basilica and is largely made of brick . The additional designation Ciel d'Oro is related to a gold-plated ceiling , be it an initial coffered ceiling of the main nave or the gold-plated half-dome of the main apse.
history
Based on a remark made by King Aripert I, who ruled from 653-661, in a diploma issued in favor of the Church of San Pietro, it can be assumed that the church was built in the 6th century over the grave of Severinus Boethius , who was venerated as a saint after the Ostrogoth king Theodoric the Great had him executed around 525.
The monks Beda Venerabilis and Paulus Diaconus reported that Liutprand , King of the Longobard Empire from 712 to 744, had founded a monastery next to the church. This foundation is associated with the transfer of the bones of the church father Augustine of Hippo from Sardinia to Pavia. He had bought the relic for dear money in order to protect it from access by Saracen pirates. However, it was initially housed in the church of Sant'Adriano, which was built under King Claimant (* 660/661, † 712). It was not until centuries later, between 1169 and 1180, that it found its place in a marble shrine in San Pietro.
The monastery was exempted in the 10th century and was therefore directly under the control of the Roman Church and at the same time enjoyed royal protection. In 987 Abbot Maiolus of Cluny reformed the rules for the monks of the monastery .
Twenty-four days after the death of Emperor Otto III. Arduin of Ivrea had himself crowned King of Italy by the Bishop of Pavia in 1002 in the Church of San Michele Maggiore . In order to break the opposition organized by Arduin, the German king (and pretender to the Roman imperial crown) Henry II had himself crowned King of Italy by the Archbishop of Milan in the same place in 1004 . The ceremony was ended by a bloody popular uprising organized by Arduin, in which San Michele Maggiore went up in flames. Twenty years later the imperial palace was demolished and San Pietro was the seat of the court.
Pavia lost its royal residence status when the Lombard Basilica of San Pietro began to be replaced with the present one. By stylistic comparisons with Milan, some suspect that construction began in the last decade of the 11th century. Between 1102 and 1106 there was a popular uprising against the exempt monasteries and the governor Guido II over the baptism rights granted to the monasteries by Pope Paschal II . On January 3, 1117, Pavia was struck by a severe earthquake. A (renewed?) Start of construction is reported for 1120. On May 8, 1132, Pope Innocent II was able to consecrate the completed church.
In the 12th century, the main nave may have had a flat wooden ceiling with gilded coffers. In any case, it was newly vaulted in 1478.
After the two main communities, the canons' monastery in 1781 and the monastery in 1785, were closed, the church began to fall into disrepair. In 1877 the south aisle and the two westernmost bays of the main aisle collapsed. As a result, the builders Brambilla, Caffi and Zuradelli not only rebuilt the collapsed parts, but also restored the crypt and apses and removed stucco from the 18th century.
building
The building has a crossing dome , but the transept arms are slightly lower than the nave of the nave and do not protrude laterally over the aisles. The main apse adjoins the crossing, without an interposed choir - yoke . The structure thus resembles the patriarchal basilicas in Rome from early Christian times . Side apses on the east side of the transept arms emphasize the longitudinal direction. The west facade is mostly made of brick, resembles those of San Michele Maggiore in proportions and layout , but has only one portal and no corner pillars.
Graves
- A sarcophagus of Boethius is in the crypt.
- The sarcophagus of St. Augustine was financed by Gian Galeazzo Visconti (1351–1402), is decorated with 95 figures and 50 marble reliefs and stands as an altar in the middle of the main apse.
- The grave of the Lombard King Liutprand is set into the rearmost pillar of the right aisle.
Individual evidence
Web links
Sister projects
Coordinates: 45 ° 11 ′ 28.9 ″ N , 9 ° 9 ′ 16.5 ″ E