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  • July 8, 1865
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The Freemasons' Monthly Magazine, July 8, 1865: Page 5

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    Article RESTORATION OF CHURCHES IN ROME. Page 1 of 2 →
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Restoration Of Churches In Rome.

RESTORATION OF CHURCHES IN ROME .

The restoration of the St . Lorenzo Basilica on the Tiburtine Way has been carried out by the architect Vespignani in better taste and style than many such processes to Avhich Rome ' s churches have been subjected in modern times , though not , indeed , Avithout some prejudice to olden details , of interest . Absolutely Vandalic Avas one proceeding- that sacrificed a lateral porch Avith columns and mosaic decoration—one of those

beautiful monuments of the thirteenth century , by the Avell-knovra . Cosimati family , whose Avorks are among the finest examples of the Mediasval Gothic in Rome , this construction having been unscrupulously destroyed in order to form a sacristy in place of the lateral entrance it had so Avell

adorned . We cannot commend the filling of the narrow-arched Avindovps along the southern aisle , nor the opening of another I - , much Avider , though of similar form , along the lower part of the same A \ r alls ; nor can Ave see , Avithout regret , the complete repainting of the curious series of

frescoes carried , in two files , along the Avails of the atrium , attributed to the Romano-Greek school of the thirteenth century , and illustrating the life and martyrdom of SS . Stephen and Laurence , besides other strangely romantic legends , as the contest between Demons and Angels for

the soul of the Emperor Henry II . ; the phantom High Mass , seen in this church at midnight by a pious sacristan of the Benedictine community , once occupying its cloisters ; and the story ( In several acts ) of the transfer of St . Laurence ' s body from Constantinople to Rome in the year o 57 .

The history of St . Lorenzo is singular and complicated . Ifc appears that tAvo churches , both beautiful and famous in ancient times , existed on this side anterior to the conspicuous buildings of Honorius III ., AA ^ I IO added the nave and aisles , Avith the portico and colonnade supporting a

mosaic inlaid architrave under a hea \ y pent-roof . One of these churches existed in the fifth century , when it was enriched by some donations from Pope Hilary . Another is spoken of as ancient in the eighth century ; for Ave read in Anastasius that Hadrian I . constructed the major basilica to

which it Avas annexed—the Avriter in the sequel explaining Avhat he here means by constructedmerely the renewal of the roofing , which had been quite ruinous . The church ascribed to Pelagius , and in which the body of St . Laurence Avas laid , is shown by notices in ancient Avriters to have

been a building of earlier date , renewed and amplified by that pope in the seventh century , afterwards styled spniciosior-nova , on account of the splendour with , which Pelagius invested it . That "major" basilica AA'hich Avas newl roofed b

y y Hadrian , and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin , was the edifice to which pertained the great triumphal arch ( UOAV adorned Avith the mosaics of the seventh century ) , Ayhich , from having terini- j

nated the nave of the original church , became the boundary betAveen that compartment and the presbyterium , when the whole primitive structure Avas converted into the choir of the much larger basilica , brought to its present development under Honorius III ., about A . D . 1216 . This ancient portion

( two churches , in fact ) is on two levels—the lower like a crypt , Avith its altar before the tomb of the the martyrs Stephen and Laurence ; the upper , an elevated choir , paved with rich marbles , with double colonnade of antique shafts , divided by a richlychiselled architrave , and reached by several steps

from the nave of Honorius ' s building . In the course of time ( Avhat period is uncertain ) , the crypt became in the greater part filled Avith soil ; and the tomb-chapel consequently accessible but on one side—that Avhere stands its altar ; the magnificent antique colonnade of fluted Avhite marble , with

Corinthian capitals , some beautifully adorned with military trophies amidst the acanthus leaves—the spoils , no doubt , from some edifice of classic antiquity—being still preserved , like a connecting link betAveen the upper and lower churches . Those shafts rising hih around the actual choirtheir

g , basements , at much lower level , are looked CIOAATI upon from the parapet w-alls enclosing thafc sanctuary . It is the restoration of this primitive crypt to its original state , and the dismembering of the

sepulchral chapel under the high altar of Pelagius ' s church , so as to leave ifc accessible on every side , that constitute the most meritorious part of the project recently carried out by the architect of Pius IX . Before entering , Ave notice the bronze statue of St . Laurence leaning on the instrument

of his martyrdom , that UOAV stands on a column of red granite , Avith lofty pedestal and basement of marble ; the statue about life-size , and therefore too small for effect at its hi gh situation . The novelty that most strikes the eye on this church ' s front is the clothing of the Avhole upjDer facade

above the portico-roof , Avith frescoes in imitation of mosaic on a gold ground ( to be ultimately executed in that more enduring art ) by Caponari , a young artist , tho pupil of Podesti , representing the colossal figures of the Emperor Constantine , and the Popes Honorius III ., Pius IX ., Sixtus III .,

and Hadrian I ., the first tAvo holding small models of this basilica . The figure of the present pontiff is at once a recognisable and speaking likeness ; above , along a heavily projecting frieze , half-lengths ofthe Saviour ( AV ! IO is blessing Avith uplifted hand ) , SS . Stephen and Laurenceand four other saints

, , male and female—the general composition good ; but in the very vivid tints of the painting thus placed on trial , rather too jarringly contrasted wifcli the venerable and sombre aspect that distinguishes the Avhole exterior . The same artist is UOAV

engaged on another series of colossal figures in fresco over the triumphal arch , on the side toAvards the nave , only tAvo of several saints yet appearing in the group begun . Another Avork still in progress is the colouring of the hitherto bare rafters thafc

“The Freemasons' Monthly Magazine: 1865-07-08, Page 5” Masonic Periodicals Online, Library and Museum of Freemasonry, 2 July 2025, django:8000/periodicals/mmr/issues/mmr_08071865/page/5/.
  • List
  • Grid
Title Category Page
FREEMASONRY IN POLAND. Article 1
Untitled Article 2
THE ABOLITION OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT. Article 2
THE WEATHER DEPARTMENT OF THE BOARD OF TRADE. Article 3
RESTORATION OF CHURCHES IN ROME. Article 5
CHILDHOOD OF THE BARBARIAN. Article 6
MASONIC NOTES AND QUERIES. Article 7
Untitled Article 8
THE MASONIC MIRROR. Article 8
MASONIC MEMS. Article 8
GRAND LODGE. Article 8
METROPOLITAN. Article 8
PROVINCIAL. Article 9
Untitled Article 11
ROYAL ARCH. Article 12
MARK MASONRY. Article 12
IRELAND. Article 12
Untitled Article 13
CHANNEL ISLANDS. Article 14
INDIA. Article 14
Untitled Article 15
Poetry. Article 15
NOTES ON MUSIC AND THE DRAMA. Article 16
LITERARY EXTRACTS. Article 16
THE WEEK. Article 17
TO CORRESPONDENTS. Article 20
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Restoration Of Churches In Rome.

RESTORATION OF CHURCHES IN ROME .

The restoration of the St . Lorenzo Basilica on the Tiburtine Way has been carried out by the architect Vespignani in better taste and style than many such processes to Avhich Rome ' s churches have been subjected in modern times , though not , indeed , Avithout some prejudice to olden details , of interest . Absolutely Vandalic Avas one proceeding- that sacrificed a lateral porch Avith columns and mosaic decoration—one of those

beautiful monuments of the thirteenth century , by the Avell-knovra . Cosimati family , whose Avorks are among the finest examples of the Mediasval Gothic in Rome , this construction having been unscrupulously destroyed in order to form a sacristy in place of the lateral entrance it had so Avell

adorned . We cannot commend the filling of the narrow-arched Avindovps along the southern aisle , nor the opening of another I - , much Avider , though of similar form , along the lower part of the same A \ r alls ; nor can Ave see , Avithout regret , the complete repainting of the curious series of

frescoes carried , in two files , along the Avails of the atrium , attributed to the Romano-Greek school of the thirteenth century , and illustrating the life and martyrdom of SS . Stephen and Laurence , besides other strangely romantic legends , as the contest between Demons and Angels for

the soul of the Emperor Henry II . ; the phantom High Mass , seen in this church at midnight by a pious sacristan of the Benedictine community , once occupying its cloisters ; and the story ( In several acts ) of the transfer of St . Laurence ' s body from Constantinople to Rome in the year o 57 .

The history of St . Lorenzo is singular and complicated . Ifc appears that tAvo churches , both beautiful and famous in ancient times , existed on this side anterior to the conspicuous buildings of Honorius III ., AA ^ I IO added the nave and aisles , Avith the portico and colonnade supporting a

mosaic inlaid architrave under a hea \ y pent-roof . One of these churches existed in the fifth century , when it was enriched by some donations from Pope Hilary . Another is spoken of as ancient in the eighth century ; for Ave read in Anastasius that Hadrian I . constructed the major basilica to

which it Avas annexed—the Avriter in the sequel explaining Avhat he here means by constructedmerely the renewal of the roofing , which had been quite ruinous . The church ascribed to Pelagius , and in which the body of St . Laurence Avas laid , is shown by notices in ancient Avriters to have

been a building of earlier date , renewed and amplified by that pope in the seventh century , afterwards styled spniciosior-nova , on account of the splendour with , which Pelagius invested it . That "major" basilica AA'hich Avas newl roofed b

y y Hadrian , and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin , was the edifice to which pertained the great triumphal arch ( UOAV adorned Avith the mosaics of the seventh century ) , Ayhich , from having terini- j

nated the nave of the original church , became the boundary betAveen that compartment and the presbyterium , when the whole primitive structure Avas converted into the choir of the much larger basilica , brought to its present development under Honorius III ., about A . D . 1216 . This ancient portion

( two churches , in fact ) is on two levels—the lower like a crypt , Avith its altar before the tomb of the the martyrs Stephen and Laurence ; the upper , an elevated choir , paved with rich marbles , with double colonnade of antique shafts , divided by a richlychiselled architrave , and reached by several steps

from the nave of Honorius ' s building . In the course of time ( Avhat period is uncertain ) , the crypt became in the greater part filled Avith soil ; and the tomb-chapel consequently accessible but on one side—that Avhere stands its altar ; the magnificent antique colonnade of fluted Avhite marble , with

Corinthian capitals , some beautifully adorned with military trophies amidst the acanthus leaves—the spoils , no doubt , from some edifice of classic antiquity—being still preserved , like a connecting link betAveen the upper and lower churches . Those shafts rising hih around the actual choirtheir

g , basements , at much lower level , are looked CIOAATI upon from the parapet w-alls enclosing thafc sanctuary . It is the restoration of this primitive crypt to its original state , and the dismembering of the

sepulchral chapel under the high altar of Pelagius ' s church , so as to leave ifc accessible on every side , that constitute the most meritorious part of the project recently carried out by the architect of Pius IX . Before entering , Ave notice the bronze statue of St . Laurence leaning on the instrument

of his martyrdom , that UOAV stands on a column of red granite , Avith lofty pedestal and basement of marble ; the statue about life-size , and therefore too small for effect at its hi gh situation . The novelty that most strikes the eye on this church ' s front is the clothing of the Avhole upjDer facade

above the portico-roof , Avith frescoes in imitation of mosaic on a gold ground ( to be ultimately executed in that more enduring art ) by Caponari , a young artist , tho pupil of Podesti , representing the colossal figures of the Emperor Constantine , and the Popes Honorius III ., Pius IX ., Sixtus III .,

and Hadrian I ., the first tAvo holding small models of this basilica . The figure of the present pontiff is at once a recognisable and speaking likeness ; above , along a heavily projecting frieze , half-lengths ofthe Saviour ( AV ! IO is blessing Avith uplifted hand ) , SS . Stephen and Laurenceand four other saints

, , male and female—the general composition good ; but in the very vivid tints of the painting thus placed on trial , rather too jarringly contrasted wifcli the venerable and sombre aspect that distinguishes the Avhole exterior . The same artist is UOAV

engaged on another series of colossal figures in fresco over the triumphal arch , on the side toAvards the nave , only tAvo of several saints yet appearing in the group begun . Another Avork still in progress is the colouring of the hitherto bare rafters thafc

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