The Sancta Sanctorum (Italian : Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Palatio ad Sancta Sanctorum) is a Roman Catholic chapel entered via the Scala Sancta (Holy Staircase) of the Lateran Palace in Rome. It was the original private chapel of the papacy before it moved to Avignon, and later to the Vatican Palace. The chapel is the only building from the old Lateran Palace that was not destroyed during its reconstruction.
The chapel acquired the Sancta Sanctorum sometime in the ninth century. [1] The spelling is Sancta, the neuter plural form of the Latin adjective "holy": this is a reference to the multiple relics preserved there (i.e. "the most holy things") and to the Holy of Holies in Jerusalem, traditionally called in Latin both sanctum sanctorum (the singular form) or sancta sanctorum.
The founder of the chapel is unknown. It was originally dedicated to Saint Lawrence, and served as the pope's private oratory until the Renaissance. It is located at the top of the Scala Sancta, ("Holy Stairs"). The first mention of the chapel is found in the Liber Pontificalis, during the tenure of Pope Stephen III (†772). The antiquarian Marangoni along with Onofrio Panvinio quote documents that cite the acquisition in 583 by Pope Gregory of relics from Constantinople, including an arm of St Lawrence, that were housed in the church of St Lawrence in Lateran palace. [2]
It formed part of the Lateran Palace, headquarters of the public offices of the papal court throughout the Middle Ages. Gregory IV (†844) had a private apartment built near the chapel to allow him to pray there. [1] Later Pope Alexander III is mentioned as presiding here over the ceremony of the washing of the feet. It later became part of the Palace and Holy Steps complex commissioned by Sixtus V in 1586. [3] [4]
The chapel is relatively small and rectangular, with a nave seven meters long and an apse nearly 6 meters wide. rectangular apse measuring 2.73 by 5.85 metres.
The main altar contains a cypress wood reliquary box, placed under the altar by Pope Leo III (†816). [5] [6] [7] It supposedly houses the bones of at least 13 saints (whereof the chapel derives the name "holy of holies"). The reliquary box itself is taken to represent the Ark of the Covenant in Solomon's Temple.
Over the course of time, other relics were added, including the cloisonné enameled cross commissioned by Paschal I (†824). [3]
The opus sectile floor dates from 1278. This style of intarsiated pavement was created in the 12th century by the Cosmati family of stonecutters and widely copied throughout Rome in the 13th century.
The chapel also houses the Uronica or Acheiropoieta Lateranese icon of Christ Pantocrator, known as the Veronica, that was supposedly begun by Saint Luke and finished as an acheiropoieta (which translates to "images not made by human hands") since finished by an angel. [8] [9] Other acheiropoieta include the image of Christ’s face that miraculously imprinted itself on the sudarium of Veronica. [10]
Saint Lawrence or Laurence was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the persecution of the Christians that the Roman Emperor Valerian ordered in 258.
The Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran, also known as the Papal Archbasilica of Saint John [in] Lateran, Saint John Lateran, or the Lateran Basilica, is the Catholic cathedral church of the Diocese of Rome in the city of Rome, and serves as the seat of the bishop of Rome, the pope. The archbasilica lies outside of Vatican City proper, which is located approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) to the northwest. Nevertheless, as properties of the Holy See, the archbasilica and its adjoining edifices enjoy an extraterritorial status from Italy, pursuant to the terms of the Lateran Treaty of 1929. Laterano (Lateran) comes from an ancient Roman family (gens), whose palace (domus) grounds occupied the site; the Lateran Palace was the primary residence of the pope until the Middle Ages.
The Apostolic Palace is the official residence of the pope, the head of the Catholic Church, located in Vatican City. It is also known as the Papal Palace, the Palace of the Vatican and the Vatican Palace. The Vatican itself refers to the building as the Palace of Sixtus V, in honor of Pope Sixtus V, who built most of the present form of the palace.
The Holy Prepuce, or Holy Foreskin, is one of several relics attributed to Jesus, a product of the circumcision of Jesus. At various points in history, a number of churches in Europe have claimed to possess Jesus's foreskin, sometimes at the same time. Various miraculous powers have been ascribed to it.
A number of alleged relics associated with Jesus have been displayed throughout the history of Christianity. While some individuals believe in the authenticity of Jesus relics, others doubt their validity. For instance, the sixteenth-century philosopher Erasmus wrote about the proliferation of relics, and the number of buildings that could be constructed from wooden relics claimed to be from the crucifixion cross of Jesus. Similarly, at least thirty Holy Nails were venerated as relics across Europe in the early 20th century. Part of the relics are included in the so-called Arma Christi, or the Instruments of the Passion.
The Basilica of Saint Mary Major, or church of Santa Maria Maggiore, is a Major papal basilica as well as one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome and the largest Catholic Marian church in Rome, Italy.
The Church of the Gesù is the mother church of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), a Catholic religious order. Officially named Chiesa del Santissimo Nome di Gesù all'Argentina, its facade is "the first truly baroque façade", introducing the baroque style into architecture. The church served as a model for innumerable Jesuit churches all over the world, especially in the Americas. Its paintings in the nave, crossing, and side chapels became models for Jesuit churches throughout Italy and Europe, as well as those of other orders. The Church of the Gesù is located in the Piazza del Gesù in Rome.
Lateran and Laterano are the shared names of several buildings in Rome. The properties were once owned by the Lateranus family of the Roman Empire. The Laterani lost their properties to Emperor Constantine who gave them to the Catholic Church in 311.
The Lateran Palace, formally the Apostolic Palace of the Lateran, is an ancient palace of the Roman Empire and later the main papal residence in southeast Rome.
The Latin phrase sanctum sanctorum is a translation of the Hebrew term קֹדֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁים, literally meaning Holy of Holies, which generally refers in Latin texts to the holiest place of the Ancient Israelites, inside the Tabernacle and later inside the Temple in Jerusalem, but the term also has some derivative use in application to imitations of the Tabernacle in church architecture.
Santa Pudenziana is a church of Rome, a basilica built in the 4th century and dedicated to Saint Pudentiana, sister of Praxedes and daughter of Pudens. It is one of the national churches in Rome, associated with Filipinos.
The Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem or Basilica di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, is a Catholic Minor basilica and titular church in rione Esquilino, Rome, Italy. It is one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome.
The Scala Sancta are a set of 28 white marble steps located in an edifice on extraterritorial property of the Holy See in Rome, Italy proximate to the Archbasilica of Saint John in Laterano. Officially, the edifice is titled the Pontifical Sanctuary of the Holy Stairs, and incorporates part of the old Papal Lateran Palace. Replica stairs flank the original staircase, which may only be climbed on one's knees. The Holy Stairs lead to the Church of Saint Lawrence in Palatio ad Sancta Sanctorum or simply the "Sancta Sanctorum", which was the personal chapel of the early Popes.
Cesare Nebbia (c.1536–c.1614) was an Italian painter from Orvieto who painted in a Mannerist style.
This is an index of Vatican City–related topics.
The Abbey of Santa Giustina is a 10th-century Benedictine abbey complex located in front of the Prato della Valle in central Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. Adjacent to the former monastery is the basilica church of Santa Giustina, initially built in the 6th century, but whose present form derives from a 17th-century reconstruction.
Santa Maria della Sapienza is a Roman Catholic church, located on Via Costantinopoli in central Naples, Italy.
The Cybo or Saint Lawrence Chapel is the second side chapel in the right-hand aisle of the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome. For the beauty of its paintings, the preciousness of marble revetments covering its walls and the importance of the artists involved in its construction the chapel is regarded one of the most significant sacral monuments erected in Rome in the last quarter of the 17th century.
The Azienda Ospedaliera San Giovanni Addolorata in Rome (Italy) is one of the largest hospitals in central Italy; the current administrative designation refers to one of the largest and oldest hospitals in the city, commonly designated as San Giovanni hospital.
Giovanni Marangoni (1673–1753) was a Roman Catholic priest and antiquarian.
