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Anchor 1 ▼ ◀ Main Altar Artist: Bernardino Cametti Date: 1725 • The statue is St. Rasius • St. Anastasius and St. Rasius, the statues on either side of the altar, were Roman martyrs. They are both wearing priestly vestments although little is known of their lives • In 1675 it was determined that of all the bones of the saints that were originally brought to the pagan pantheon to reconsecrate it as a Christian church, only the bones of these saints were identifiable because they were in a unique casket. Pope Clement X (1670-1676) placed them in the main altar and gave these aedicules to honor them

Anchor 1 ▼ ▶ ◀ Cesi Chapel Date: Before 1568 • The tomb is of Cardinal Paolo Emilio Cesi • Cardinal Paolo Cesi lived 1481-1537

Anchor 1 ▼ Left Aisle

Anchor 1 ▼ ▶ ◀ Cesi Chapel Date: Before 1568 • The Tomb of Cardinal Federico Cesi • Cardinal Federico Cesi (1500-1565) was the benefactor for this chapel

Anchor 1 Cesi Chapel ▲ ▶ ◀

Anchor 1 ▼ ▶ ◀ Tomb of Raphael Artist: Lorenzo Lotti (Lorenzetto) Date: 1523-1524 • The statue is Madonna del Sasso (Madonna of the Rock). The name refers to her foot pressing on a rock • In his will Raphael asked his friend Lorenzetto to make the statue for his tomb

Anchor 1

Anchor 1 ▼ ▲ ◀ St. Wenceslaus • The right oval is St. Methodius. St. Cyril (826-869 ca.) and St. Methodius ((815-885 ca.) were missionaries to the Slavs who even created an alphabet for them. They are consider co-patrons of Europe

Anchor 1 ▼ ◀ Blessed Sacrament Chapel Artist: Unknown Date: 1300-1400s • The wooden statue is of St. Paul. The damaged face is from pilgrims taking splinters as mementos

Anchor 1 ▼ ▶ ◀ Far Left Aisle

Anchor 1 ▶ ◀ Caffarelli Chapel • This chapel was dedicated to St. Dominic in 1498 by the Caffarelli family. A descendant of the family, Cardinal Scipione Borghese was the patron for the chapel including a painting of St. Dominic by Cavalier d'Arpino in 1620, now lost. After St. Louis Bertrand was canonized in 1671 the chapel was rededicated to him • The frescoes on the left and right walls of the chapel are by Celio and were uncovered during modern restorations • The Baptismal Font Chapel is to the right ▼

Anchor 1 ▼ Presbytery and Choir • The patron Alessandro de' Medici had the Gothic choir altered in 1536-1540 by Antonio da Sangallo il Giovane to create space for the two tombs of the Medici Popes. In the 1600s the choir was again altered by Giovanni Fontana and then Carlo Maderno. These Baroque additions were later removed in the 1848-1855 with the neo-Gothic renovation

Anchor 1 ▼ ▲ ▶ Holy Family Chapel

Anchor 1 ▼ Second Courtyard • The painting has the Quattro Coronati above, with Augustinian nuns, on the left, and orphan girls, on the right, asking for their prayers • Augustinian nuns were given the church in 1560 by Pope Pius IV and still reside here today. Their original work was to help orphans

Anchor 1 ▼ ▲ ▶ ◀ Colonna Chapel Artist: Lazzaro Baldi Date: 1668 • The painting over the altar is St. Rose of Lima • St. Rose of Lima (1586-1617) is the patron saint of the Americas • During the canonization ceremony of St. Rose of Lima in 1671, this painting was displayed in St. Peter's Basililca ▶

Anchor 1 St. Lawrence Chapel & St. Benedict Chapel ▲ ▶ ◀

Anchor 1 ▼ ◀ ▶ Bust of Innocent XII Artist: Giuseppe Mazzuoli • Innocent XII was Pope from 1676-1689

Anchor 1 ▼ ▲ ▶ ◀ Right Transept

Anchor 1 Right Transept ▲ ▶ ◀

Anchor 1 ▼ St. Helena Artist: Andrea Bolgi Date: 1630-1639 • The statue is St. Helena. St. Helena was the mother of Constantine who legalized Christianity in 313. St. Helena traveled to Jerusalem in order to find the cross that Jesus was crucified on • Each of the four piers are dedicated to an important relic that is housed in the balcony area above each statue. The statues are all 16 feet 6 inches high. The relic for this pier is the true cross of St. Helena. The piece of the cross was given to St. Peter's by Pope Urban VIII (1623-1644)