Did Peter sit here? Dizzying but unified, light and gold glorify this sacred place.
Location: St. Peter’s Basilica
Central to the Counter Reformation, Bernini’s double colonnades activate St. Peter’s and reach out into the city.
Gian Lorenzo Bernini, St. Peter’s Square
Can stone be that soft? Contrast defines this sculpture. Mary is sweet but strong, and Christ, real yet ideal.
Michelangelo, Pietà
The greatest minds of the High Renaissance worked on this vast church. Construction took more than a century.
Saint Peter’s Basilica
Made for a member of the Roman elite, this early tomb features Old and New Testament scenes in a classical style.
Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus
Over 60 feet tall, this daunting bronze canopy is part architecture, part sculpture—and part beehive.
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