CHAPTER XII.

Clement VIII. and Art.

 

Jest as was the case with religion and politics, the long pontificate of Clement VIII was a period of transition in the field of art, during which the older tendencies gradually gave way to new ones. Clement VIII. himself was inclined to the former, and among architects, besides Giovanni Fontana, he at first employed almost exclusively Giacomo della Port; it was only when the latter died, in the autumn of 1602, that Carlo Maderna took his place.

In painting the Pope favoured, in the person of Giuseppe Cesari, known as the Cavaliere d’Arpino, the traditional classical school, while the naturalist Caravaggio was just beginning his career. D’Arpino enjoyed the Pope’s favour to such an extent that the painters whom he recommended, no matter how mediocre they were, received innumerable orders. It is still a mystery why Clement VIII neglected to avail himself of the services of Caracci, whose talent was greater than that of all the rest. It is supposed that the strained relations between the Pope and the Farnese prejudiced him in this respect. A contributory factor may have been that Clement VIII, unlike Sixtus V, was not a man with much initiative, so that even in artistic matters he always took into account the predominant greatness cl his predecessor.

Immediately at the beginning of his pontificate Clement VIII declared his intention of completing all the constructions begun under Sixtus V. Among these the first place was taken by the bridge over the Tiber near Borghetto, which was of the greatest importance for the communications of Rome with the north. It is known that in connexion with this the enemies of Domenico Fontana accused the latter of irregularity in his account of the expenses. In May, 1592, it was reported that a revision of all the accounts of the celebrated and favourite architect of Sixtus V had been ordered, and it was asserted that many of Fontana’s constructions, in order to gain money, had been badly carried out. Sixtus V. too was undoubtedly responsible for certain defects of construction, as he was always urging haste. It is easy to understand how it was that Fontana, who was deeply offended, retired, and then left Rome in order to go in 1596 to Naples. His place, as the real architect of the new Pope, was taken by Giacomo della Porta, who in the time of Sixtus V had successfully completed the cupola of St. Peter’s, and had thus acquired a great reputation.

One of the principal cares of Clement VIII was the completion of the basilica of St. Peter’s. It was characteristic of the skilled jurist that the Pope should have set his hand to the reorganization of the commission of the Fabbrica di S. Pietro set up by Clement VII for the administration of the revenues of the basilica. As the clumsy system of a college of sixty members had not been found practicable, Clement VIII dissolved it, and following the example of the Congregation created by Sixtus V, he set up a special “Congregazione della rev. Fabbrica di S. Pietro,” which was given judicial powers for carrying out its duties.

After the lantern of the cupola of St. Peter’s had been placed in position in the time of Gregory XIV, Clement VIII, before anything else, had the whole of the immense construc­tion covered, in order to protect it from the weather, with strips of lead, joined at the edges by bands of gilt bronze.

Sebastiano Torrigiani, who from the lime of Gregory XIII had superintended the Papal foundry, was ordered to cast the colossal metal ball, in which there is room for sixteen persons, and the great cross connected with it, which, richly gilt, was to crown the summit of the cupola of St. Peter’s. This work was completed in the autumn of 1593. According to the original intention of the Pope, the sign of the triumph of Christianity was to have been erected on the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (September 14th), but in the end Clement VIII. decided upon the day of the Dedication of the basilica (November 18th). On that memorable morning the Pope, accompanied by Cardinals Gesualdo, Medici, Toledo and Cinzio Aldobrandini, went to St. Peter’s. After a prayer before the altar of the Blessed Sacrament, and at the Confession, he went to the Gregorian Chapel, where the bronze cross had been erected at the Gospel side of the high altar. There he first consecrated two caskets intended for the arms of the cross, containing relics and Agnus Dei, and then blessed the cross itself with the prayers of the ritual. He then celebrated mass. After the Pope had retired to his own apartments, the workmen set to work on erecting the cross. When towards evening the work was completed, all the bells were rung and the roar of the cannon of the Castle of St. Angelo burst forth. In the piazza of St. Peter’s, where the Capella Giulia intoned hymns, ‘‘he canons and all the other clergy of the basilica were assembled. The singing of the Te Deum completed the ceremony.

The internal decoration of the dome had at first been assigned by the members of the Fabbrica of St. Peter’s to Cristofano Roncalli, but Clement VIII entrusted it to the Cavaliere d’Arpino. The latter had already been in the service of Sixtus V, and after the death of that Pope in that of Cardinal Santori. With Clement VIII his period of celebrity began; the Pope conferred many distinctions on him and took him with him to Ferrara. D’Arpino designed for the interior of the dome of St. Peter’s a scheme of decoration that was as beautiful as it was suitable. The sixteen spaces of the dome, which rise in diminishing width between the great gilt ribs, were each divided into four large rectangular spaces, and two smaller round ones; these were filled with mosaic pictures on a gold ground, the subjects of which form a magnificent “Sursum corda.” In the topmost ring there are beautiful heads of angels; in the next, angels in adoration ; then more heads of angels, and then angels with the instruments of the Passion of Our Lord; below these, on a larger scale, are Christ, the Blessed Virgin, St. John the Baptist, and the choir of the Apostles, and lastly half-figures of the Popes and saints whose relics are preserved in St. Peter’s. In the vault of the lantern is the figure of God the Father in the act of benediction, and on the ring which completes the dome the inscription : S. PETRI GLORIAE SIXTUS P.P. V. ANNO 1590, PONTIFICATUS V.

It is a striking proof of the strong sense of justice of Clement VIII, that though he was as a rule keenly anxious to immortalise his own name, in this case he left to his predecessor the honour that belonged to him; this he also did in another way; the ribs, which are covered with gold stars on a blue ground, end in a lion’s head in bronze, the arms of Sixtus V.

Quite a large number of artists, among them Francesco Zucchi, Cesare Torelli, Paolo Rossetti, and Marcello Provenzale were employed in executing the mosaics designed by d’Arpino, a work which was only completed under Paul V. Cartoons by Giovanni de’ Vecchi and Cesare Nebbia served as models for the enormous mosaic pictures of the Evangelists in the angles of the four pilasters. To all this there was added, as a completion of the dome, as dignified as it was huge, on the gold ground of a frieze two metres in height, and in letters of dark blue mosaic, the words of institution of the Papacy : TU ES PETRUS ET SUPER HANC PETRAM AEDIFICABO ECCLESIAM MEAM.

Contemporaneously with the decoration of the cupola, the pavement of the new basilica was raised, thus forming the crypt, or the so-called “Grotte Vaticane.”

From the autumn of 1592 work was in progress on the erection of a new altar under the dome, and over the tomb of St. Peter. Giacomo della Porta employed ancient marbles for this, and the consecration took place with great solemnity. This was on June 26th, 1594, after the old and the new basilica had been richly adorned. All the Cardinals assisted and a great part of the Roman clergy, together with the confraternities of the city. The Pope himself consecrated the altar, in which was enclosed that erected in 1123 by Calixtus II, and granted a plenary indulgence on that occasion. On the feast of St. Peter and St. Paul he celebrated high mass at the new altar.

During the course of the work on the new pavement, archaeological discoveries of great interest were made near the Confession. Some ancient inscriptions were found, as well as some ancient Christian memorials. The vague statement of Francesco Maria Torrigio, that in 1594 the Pope and several Cardinals had seen, through an opening made by chance, the bronze tomb of St. Peter with the gold cross above it, is quite improbable. But what was seen at that time was quite another matter ; at the altar of Calixtus II. openings were made beyond which there was another still older altar, enclosed within it, which was ascribed to St. Sylvester. Clement VIII. had these openings closed, so reports the contemporary writer, Giacomo Grimaldi.

A monument that undoubtedly belonged to the ancient Christian era came to light in October, 1597, when, under the new altar, it was intended to erect another still deeper down, in the Confession, which was to open directly upon the tomb of the Prince of the Apostles. On this occasion an ancient sarcophagus in Parian marble, richly adorned with sculpture, was discovered. This contained the bones of the Prefect of the City, Junius Bassus, who, according to the inscription, “went to God while still a neophyte under the consulate of Eusebius and Hypatius” namely in the year 359.

Clement VIII followed with the greatest interest the works in St. Peter’s. So as to be able to visit the Confession undisturbed and pray there, a subterranean passage was excavated from the Vatican, which was afterwards walled up. In the spring of 1595 he twice visited the works in St. Peter’s. In June, 1598, the wood-work of the roof of the ancient basilica, which was still standing, and which threatened to fall over the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament, was repaired. The Pope went to see the completion of this work in October, 1601.

The large lateral chapel in the right hand nave, facing the Gregorian Chapel, was richly adorned at this time with marbles, mosaic and stucco, and given the name of Clement VIII. Giacomo della Porta superintended the work, to the satisfaction of the Pope, whose arms in mosaic appear in the vaulting of the cupola there. The mosaic figures were designed by Christofano Roncalli. These works were substantially completed in the Holy Year, 1600; in the mosaic of the pavement may be read the year 1601.

Later on the Pope had the idea of translating the relics of St. Clement to the Clementine Chapel, which, like that corresponding to it, is as large as an imposing church. At the beginning of 1596 he had given another precious relic to the basilica of St. Peter’s, namely the head of St. Damasus.

The Aldobrandini Pope, under whom the regular meetings of the Accademia of painting of St. Luke had been begun on November 14th, 1593, must also be given the credit of having begun the decoration of the basilica of St. Peter’s with altar-pieces. Cardinal Baronius, who appears to have been the artistic adviser of Clement VIII, suggested the subjects for these. In order to obtain works worthy of the size and dignity of the place, the various painters of Rome and central Italy were consulted. None of these, however, were able to equal the simple and grandiose art with which Muziano had discharged his task in the two gigantic paintings in the Gregorian Chapel. Cristofano Roncalli depicted the punishment of Ananias, Francesco Vani the fall of Simon Magus, Domenico Passignano the crucifixion of St. Peter, Lodovico Cigoli the lame man cured by St. Peter, Bernardo Castelli St. Peter leaving the ship and adoring the Redeemer, Giovanni Baglione the raising to life of Tabitha. All these pictures were later on replaced by copies in mosaic.

It was a serious loss to the Pope when in 1602 Giacomo della Porta died, the master who had opened out the way to the earliest baroque. Then Giovanni Fontana and his nephew Carlo Maderno, became the architects of the basilica of St. Peter’s. Maderno, who soon afterwards appears as the official state architect, did not follow the severe and rather harsh taste of his uncle and master, but continued to develop the style of Giacomo della Porta.

After the basilica of St. Peter’s, it was above all that of the Lateran to which Clement VIII. devoted his attention. It is a matter for congratulation that Giacomo della Porta, to whom this task was entrusted, proceeded with such careful consideration for architectural forms that these were still preserved. The work was begun in the summer of 1592. With this restoration was connected also a sumptuous decoration of the basilica. First of all the chapel of the Confession was constructed in 1594, the altar of which was decorated. In the same year the ceiling of the transverse nave was gilt. In July, 1596, still grander plans for the decoration of the basilica were under consideration, on which 40,000 scudi were to be expended. In 1597 the decoration of the transverse nave with paintings, gilding and statues was begun; the appearance of that part of the church was. however, so greatly changed that it was henceforward known as the “Nave Clementina.” The supreme direction was in the hands of d’Arpino.

The view of contemporaries as to the position of this artist is characterized by an anecdote left to us by Joachim Sandrart. This states that the Pope, having once received as a gift from a Dutch, merchant a barrel of beer, offered his protege a glass of this beverage, then almost unknown in Italy. After a few sips d’Arpino refused the glass with thanks, whereupon Clement VIII finished it at a draught.

The monumental frescoes with which the transverse nave was decorated were planned in the form of tapestries, the walls below being decorated with plastic figures in small niches surmounted by a tympanum. Everywhere may be seen the name and arms of Clement VIII. D’Arpino employed very second-rate painters to execute the frescoes. Christofano Roncalli painted the Baptism of Constantine, Giovanni Baglione the Donation of that Emperor, Giovan Battista da Novara the laying of the first stone of the basilica. D’Arpino himself, in addition to other decorations and the putti with garlands of fruit near the figures between the windows, painted on the south wall of the transverse nave, on a gigantic scale, the Ascension of Jesus Christ.

In the place of the doorway leading into the cloister, there was erected from the designs of Pier Paolo Olivieri, the majestic altar of the Blessed Sacrament. It was in February, 1598, soon after the Te Deum in thanksgiving for the acquisition of Ferrara had been sung in the ancient basilica, that the Pope gave orders for the construction of this work of art, which was to be great and imposing. He insisted on its being speedily completed. Already by the middle of March, one of the gigantic fluted columns of gilt bronze, which were to support the tympanum, which v.as also of metal, had been  erected. These columns had originally stood between the apse and the high altar, and it was said that they had been erected by the Emperor Constantine. They were in any case very ancient, though the statement given in an inscription of the time of Nicolas IV, that they had been brought to Rome with the rest of the booty taken from the Holy Land by Titus, is not proved.

The altar of the Blessed Sacrament is itself composed of precious marbles; the two columns at the sides are of verde antique, and the tabernacle being very richly decorated. The designer of the whole was the Roman, Pompeo Targone. Clement VIII, with significant symbolism, had the niches at the sides of the altar filled with statues of Melchisedech, Moses, Aaron and Elias, as “types” of the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. The two first named were executed by Dutch artists, and the statute of Elias, which was begun by Pier Paolo Olivieri, was completed by Camillo Mariani. Above the niches were placed reliefs of scenes from the Old Testament, also relating to the Holy Eucharist.

At the beginning of 1599 all was completed, but the Pope was not entirely satisfied, a proof that he was not lacking in artistic perception. He found fault with the architectural construction, and with the fact that the altar was placed at the south end of the transverse nave, so that it was not possible to see it on entering the church. He also made other criticisms, rightly seeing that the variegated and busy background of the marbles killed the effect of the magnificent structure of the columns.

The decoration of the altar of the Blessed Sacrament was completed by placing in a niche above it a much venerated relic of the earliest times. This was a table in cedar wood, which it was believed had been used by Our Divine Redeemer at the Last Supper. In front of the relic was placed a bas-relief in silver representing that event, and supported by two angels. This work, in which a thousand pounds of silver were used, was completed in the April of the Holy Year, 1600.

A bull of February 12th, 1600, arranged for the establishment of certain chaplaincies, the patronage of which was reserved to the Aldobrandini family. Two commemorative coins recorded this foundation, by which the Pope gave expression to his veneration for the Holy Eucharist.

The transverse nave of the Lateran Basilica was also furnished with a new pavement in coloured marbles by Clement VIII. In this, as in the rest of the decorations, the material was supplied by the old structure.

In order to balance the altar of the Blessed Sacrament, at the other end of the transverse nave, over the entrance door, Clement VIII. caused to be built, by the Perugian Luca Blasio, a new organ, which surpassed in size and magnificence all others in Rome. The Milanese Giovan Battista Mantano executed the gallery, with artistic decorations and rich gilding.

This rested upon two antique columns, between which was the entrance door, adorned with the arms of Clement VIII. Over the two side doors were placed half busts of David and Ezechias, executed by another Milanese artist, Ambrogio Buonvicino.

The Pope contributed to all the expenses from his privy purse. The ceiling of the canons’ sacristy was also adorned with frescoes by Giovanni Alberti, who endeavoured to relieve the gloomy character of that place. Yet another decoration of the Lateran Basilica which was projected by Clement VIII, according to what we are told by Baglione, was prevented by the slowness with which the paintings in the transverse nave progressed. The Pope showed great delight with the Ascension of Christ by d’Arpino, which was finished in the summer of 1600, and gave expression to this by the gifts which he bestowed upon the artist. A gold coin and other medals immortalized the decoration of the Lateran Basilica, which was further supplied with costly sacred vessels. As a mark of their gratitude the canons set up a bust of the Pope in bronze, which is still preserved.

Inscriptions and coats of arms show that Clement VIII. also devoted his attention to the restoration and embellishment of the two side chapels in the Lateran Baptistery, erected by Pope Hilary, and dedicated to St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist. Fortunately the mosaics were still intact. The decoration in grotesque was carried out by Giovanni Alberti. D’Arpino supplied the two pictures for the altars, taking their subjects from the history of St. John the Evangelist.

At St. Mary Major’s Clement VIII. restored the mosaics in the principal nave, and the organ, and to balance this had the wall of the church, above the tomb of Nicolas IV, decorated. He also gave the ancient picture of the Madonna, attributed to St. Luke, a crown of brilliants, which was placed there in his presence.

In 1600 he restored to the ancient cardinalitial deaconry of S. Cesareo, called in Palatio from the neighbouring Baths of Caracalla, the titular dignity which had been taken away by Sixtus V. This church was in such a ruinous condition that Clement VIII had almost entirely to reconstruct it, as is attested by the inscription in an ornate frame placed over the entrance. The canonical visitation of the churches of Rome, and later on the Holy Year, prompted the restoration of S. Maria della Rotonda (the Pantheon), S. Angelo in Pescheria, S. Nicolo de’ Lorenesi, and SS. Cosma e Damiano, which was done at the expense of the Pope, who also provided the endowment for the monasterY of the Carthusians in Rome.

The church of the Dominicans, S. Maria sopra Minerva, was adorned with a beautiful work of filial piety. In the fifth chapel of the left-hand nave were buried the parents of Clement VIII, and in the spring of 1600 the Pope formed the plan of adorning this tomb more richly. The direction of the work, in which were employed many coloured marbles taken from ancient monuments, was entrusted to Giacomo della Porta, who also designed the beautiful monument which Clement VIII erected at S. Maria sopra Minerva to his “old friend” Emilio Pucci, commandant of the Papal fleet, who died in 1595. Painters were also employed for the decoration of the family chapel : Cherubino Alberti represented in the vaulting of the ceiling the triumph of the Holy Cross, while Federico Barocci painted the altar-piece, the Last Supper. In the niches at the side of the altar were placed statues of the Princes of the Apostles, executed by Camillo Mariani of Vicenza.

The tombs of the Pope’s parents were executed by Guglielmo della Porta, a son of the architect. These show a like composition, though without repeating each other. Four precious columns, which support an architrave adorned with figures of angels, form the frame, and in the middle the sarcophagus with the half recumbent figures of the deceased; at the base there are inscriptions inspired by filial piety, and between the columns on either side a statue symbolizing one of the virtues. The figure of the Pope's mother, Luisa Deti, represents a venerable matron, holding in one hand a prayer book, and in the other a rosary. It was a sculptor from Lorraine, Nicolas Cordier, who created this masterpiece. He too was responsible for the statue of Love, with charming children. The corresponding statue, Religion, the extraordinary beauty of which is extolled by Baglione, is the work of Camillo Mariani. Opposite, on the right-hand side, is the tomb of Silvestro Aldobrandini, a work of art worthy of standing beside that of his wife, together with whom he had brought up his five sons so successfully. Cordier has represented him as a grave old man with a long beard, holding in his right hand a written scroll, while his left arm rests upon two cushions placed upon folio volumes, in allusion to the legal attainments of Silvestro ; at the sides are representa­tions of the two virtues which distinguished the life of this hard-working man, Prudence and Fortitude. The author of these magnificent statues was probably Nicolas Cordier. The heads of the angels in the tympanum were executed by Stefano Maderno, while the statue of the Pope placed in the niche on the wall, to the left of the altar, was the work of Ippolito Buzzi. Clement VIII is represented standing, with his right hand raised blessing the tombs of his dear ones; the tiara lies at his feet. This statue is balanced on the other side of the altar by that of St. Sebastian, the patron of the Aldobrandini family, also executed by Cordier.

Clement VIII took the liveliest interest in the decoration of the chapel to his parents. First in June, and again in October, 1602, he visited the works, which, after the death of Giacomo della Porta, were directed by Carlo Maderno. The first visit which he made, after a serious illness, in March, 1604, was to this chapel; he personally gave directions for the placing of the statues, which he had already inspected in Cordier’s studio. In December he returned once more. Six weeks before his death the Pope was to be seen praying in tears for an hour at his mother’s tomb, which was not yet quite finished.

Two colleges in Rome owe their foundation to Clement VIII; that of the Scots and the “Clementinum;” The former, a national college for the training of priests, was established in the Holy Year, 1600. The establishment of the “Collegium Clementinum” which was intended for the education of youths of the aristocracy, took place in 1595. The first rector of this institution, which was entrusted to the Somaschi, who in 1600 were given a house of their own in the Piazza Nicosia, was the Neapolitan Giulio Cesare Volpino, at that time the Pope’s confessor.

Of the other works carried out in Rome by the Pope, mention must also be made of the column commemorating the return of Henry IV to the Church, the restoration of the beautiful fountain in front of S. Maria in Trastevere, various works at the Castle of St. Angelo, the erection of a larger building for the Monte di Pieta, as well as the restoration of the Ponte S. Angelo and the Ponte Molle.

It was only natural that Clement VIII should have given orders, soon after the beginning of his pontificate, for the completion of the Vatican Palace begun by Sixtus V. The  history of this imposing building can still today be reconstructed from its external appearance. The windows with their coats of arms recall the Pope who planned it, while under the cornice are those of the one who completed it. The ceiling and the roof itself were, according to an inscription, finished in 1595. Since the work of furnishing this five­storeyed edifice, which included eighty-five large halls, lasted until the end of 1596, at first the older parts of the palace had to be used to live in; of these the rooms of Pius IV in the Belvedere were especially adorned.

By the advice of his doctors, and also for the convenience of the Curia, Clement VIII passed the first two summers of his pontificate at the palace of S. Marco, which, however, in its neglected state, was but ill adapted for the purpose. Therefore the summers of 1594 to 1596 were to a great extent passed at the Quirinal, whither the Pope had already gone to live for a time in February, 1593, so that he might rest a little. He there carried on the new building, which he had adorned with paintings by Cherubino Alberti and Paul Bril. In the gardens, grottos, fountains and hydraulic devices were constructed, the latter being greatly in vogue at that time, and among which an hydraulic organ especially attracted attention. Sometimes the Pope received the ambassadors and persons of distinction in the garden, and on those occasions the best musicians of the day performed their compositions.

In February, 1595, Clement VIII gave orders for the hastening of the works at the new Vatican Palace; he wished to see these finished by Easter, but this did not prove possible.6 The halls there gave him the greatest satisfaction, but it was not until the end of October, 1596, that the palace could be made use of as a winter residence. Since, during the summer of 1596 many members of the Pope’s entourage had fallen seriously ill with fever, it became necessary to return once more to the palace of S. Marco during the hot weather, though, in order to enjoy the magnificent gardens, frequent visits were paid to the Quirinal. In 1599 the Pope intended to spend the whole of the summer at the Vatican, but in August all those who were not living on the sunny side fell ill, among them Baronius. The Pope therefore went in September to the Quirinal, but only remained there until the end of October, which he also did in the following years, since the doctors had told him that residence at the Vatican suited him better than anywhere else. The latter then became the principal palace, and visits to the Lateran were only rarely made.

Two of the halls in the Vatican are still preserved in the same state as when they were decorated by Clement VIII. One of these is the Hall of Consistories, finished in November, 1603, which was given a richly gilded ceiling, with the arms of the Aldobrandini Pope, and paintings on the frieze. Paul Bril there represented the most celebrated hermitages of Italy, among them Camaldoli, La Verna and Monte Cassino ; Giovanni Alberti painted the saints who had lived in those places. The spaces between these charming landscapes are adorned with the star of the Aldobrandini.

The other, called the Sala Clementina, which still serves as the antecamera to the apartments of the head of the Church, was decorated with incomparably greater splendour. For the ornamentation of this magnificent hall, which rises through two floors as far as the roof, various painters were employed; above all Giovanni Alberti, who was assisted by his brother Cherubino, and the Netherlander, Paul Bril. A master of perspective, Giovanni Alberti was able to transform the flat vaulting into a marvellous scenic effect, the first example of this illusionary decorative art, afterwards carried to the pitch of perfection by Pietro da Cortona, the Jesuit del Pozzo, Luca Giordano and Tiepolo. With masterly illusion he placed above the cornice a balustrade broken by colossal brackets, and above these graceful colonnades which uphold the vaulting, while in the middle appears the blue sky, in which, surrounded by a circle of angels, and supported on clouds, the saintly Pope Clement ascends to heaven. Resting on a plinth of half the height, highly decorated in colours, the side walls are treated in very simple architectural form, painted on two levels, broken by niches containing allegorical figures, by painted landscapes and real windows. The entrance wall is covered in all its width, and in the upper half of its height by a gigantic fresco by Paul Bril, which is made to look like a picture hanging in a broad gilt frame. This represents the martyrdom of the first Pope of the name of Clement. The spectator sees on the vast stretch of sea a ship with swelling sails, from which the Pope is being thrown into the water. The long waves of the stormy sea break upon the rocky crags of a promontory crowned by a temple, and on which are assembled many witnesses of the cruel spectacle. In the foreground the beach is filled by a magnificent group of trees, to the right ot some storks. In the middle may be read the opening words of the prayer of David. Through the grey clouds with which the sky is covered, the sun breaks, illuminating the whole scene. An inscription at the bottom of the fresco tells how Clement VIII had this painting carried out in the year 1595. The corresponding picture, which is smaller, on the narrower side wall, represents the baptism of Constantine. Under the majestic chimney-piece there is another inscription which tells how Clement VIII. finished in 1595 the building of the palace which had been begun by Sixtus V. On the walls are repeated again and again the devices and arms of the Aldobrandini, balls with rays and indented bends. In the middle of the mosaic pavement, in coloured marbles, is inlaid the coat-of-arms of the family, with the inscription round it : I Clemens VIII. P.M. Pontif. Nostri anno XII.” Baglione extols the whole work as one of the best productions of the art of that time.

Outside Rome, too, Clement VIII. turned his attention to the completion of the works begun by Sixtus V. His first care, as we have already said, was the great bridge over the Tiber near Borghetto, the construction of which involved such vast sums that the city of Rome had to contribute towards it. On this work were employed masters who later on attained to a great reputation : Carlo Maderno, Taddeo Landini, C. Lambardi and G. Fontana, the brother of Domenico. To the latter, who was an expert in hydraulic construction, was entrusted the supreme direction. Although the Pope interested himself in the completion of the construction of the bridge, the work dragged on until the beginning of the new century. A work of no less importance was the bridge over the Nera, begun in 1602.

Of the towers erected for the protection of the sea-coasts, Clement VIII completed the two that had been begun by Sixtus V. He also gave orders for the continuation of the construction of the harbour at Terracina, begun by Gregory XIII and continued by Sixtus V. In 1595 the construction of a harbour at Nettuno was projected, an unfortunate scheme, as the place was not fitted for the purpose. The Pope therefore decided instead to spend considerable sums on improving the harbour at Civitavecchia, and went there at the end of April, 1597, accompanied by Cardinals Pietro and Cinzio Aldobrandini, Farnese, Montalto, Baronius, Cesi and Monte, on his way to Viterbo, also on that occasion paying a visit to the bridge over the Tiber at Borghetto. The Pope wished to see for himself the progress of the works on the harbour, which were absorbing exhorbitant sums, and were continued until the end of his pontificate. Clement VIII frequently tried to revive the trade of the beautiful and convenient harbour of Ancona, which had become greatly diminished, but the measures taken by the officials were not, in the opinion of the inhabitants, sufficient. The jealous anxiety with which the Duke of Urbino and Venice followed these attempts, was therefore proved to be groundless.

In the spring of 1592 the Pope sent Giovanni Fontana to Cervia to re-establish the salt mines there, which had fallen into such a state of neglect that instead of 40,000 scudi they only brought in 10,000. With this was connected the repairing of the harbour of Cervia.

After Giovanni Fontana had successfully accomplished the regulation of the Teverone near Tivoli, the Pope in 1596 appointed him his principal architect. In this capacity he was entrusted with the very difficult task of regulating the Velino. This very chalky stream was constantly depositing strata of lime in its bed, which caused floods, and consequently created marshes in the valleys of Rieti and Terni. As early as the year 271 B.C. the Romans had attempted to avert this danger by means of the drain constructed by Manlius Curius Dentatus. More recently Paul III had turned his attention to the regulation of the Velino. In 1598 Clement VIII. once more opened up the drain of Dentatus. This work, which had the effect of draining 35,000 rubbi of cultivatable land, was recorded by a special commemmorative medal.

The journey to the northern districts of the Papal States in the spring of 1597 was an exception; generally the Pope sought his recreation in the pleasant hills of Albano, for which Gregory XIII had been the first to show a great predilection. Under Sixtus V all this had been changed; only once, when he went to see the Acqua Felice, had that Pope spent a night at the Villa Mondragone. It was very different with Clement VIII, who stayed nowhere so gladly as at Frascati, which was so easily accessible from Rome. This opened out a new period of prosperity for the ancient Tusculum, whose pleasant heights, charming vineyards and olive-groves, and incomparable view of Rome and the wide Campagna, stretching to the silver band of the sea and the imposing range of the Sabine Hills, had long since enchanted the ancient Romans. Indeed, there were few places in the neighbourhood of the Eternal City so well fitted to refresh the mind in the clear mountain air after the bustle and suffocating heat of the dusty capital. Business, which never came to an end, could easily be discharged at Frascati by means of couriers, while it was possible there quietly to think over difficult problems. Baronius, who retired to a small villa at Frascati to devote himself undisturbed to his Annals, had already realized this. Besides the advice of Cardinal Altemps and the physicians, it was probably this scholar, who was so highly esteemed by Clement VIII, who decided him to seek a refuge among the heights of Tusculum. This he did for the first time in the autumn of 1592, when, on September 26th the Pope repaired to that pleasant little city, and took up his residence at the Rocca. At first he had only intended to remain there for eight days, but as the air proved extraordinarily beneficial to him, he prolonged his stay until the middle of October, since, as he told his friends, he found more rest in a single night at Frascati, than in many in Rome. Every morning he made excursions on foot or on horseback to the churches and villas in the neighbourhood ; on returning home he gave audiences with youthful vigour, and in the evening generally visited some church, preferably that of the Capuchins.1

In May, 1593, the Pope again stayed for eight days at Frascati, where he first took up his residence at the episcopal palace, and afterwards at the Villa Mondragone. The anxieties of the French question and the Turkish peril kept Clement VIII in Rome during the whole of 1594, and it was only in the autumn of 1595 that a three weeks’ holiday became possible, which was spent at the Villa Mondragone. The Pope’s confessor, Baronius, Cardinal Toledo and both the nephews were also invited.

A great part of October, 1596, was also devoted to a holiday at Frascati, but this was made impossible in the following autumn by the gout from which the Pope was suffering. In 1598, from May to October, the court was at Ferrara. In February, 1599, the Pope spent The days of carnival at Frascati, and again in May, accompanied by Cardinals Baronius, Silvio Antoniano and Bellarmine, he again went for fourteen days to this place that he loved so much, where he resided at first at the Rocca and then in the Villa Mondragone. He also stayed at the latter place, with a few breaks, during the whole of October. During the Holy Year he gave up all thought of a holiday, but in May and October, 1601, the Pope again went to rest at Frascati. He resided alternately at the Rocca and the Villa Mondragone, but the work on the construction of a villa of his own had already been begun.

This project had been brought forward for the first time in 1592, and its carrying out was made possible when in 1598 the inheritance of Monsignor Paolo Capranica came to the Apostolic Camera. The Pope was left a small villa, called Belvedere on account of its magnificent view, situated to the west of Frascati. As a reward for what he had done in connexion with the acquisition of Ferrara, Cardinal Pietro Aldobrandini had assigned to him, on October 16th, the whole of the hereditaments, including many pictures and some statues.But it was necessary, if the Pope was to live there, that the villa should be rebuilt. Giacomo della Potra drew the designs; this was destined to be the last work of that architect, whom Clement VIII. had always employed by preference. On September 4th, 1602, the Cardinal went with the architect to see the works, but on his return Giacomo had a fit of apoplexy, which caused his death. It was only in September, 1604, that the building, which had been continued by Carlo Maderno, reached a point when the Pope could go and live there.

The Villa Aldobrandini, which was extolled by the contemporary poets, still enjoys today the reputation, although some of its beauties have disappeared, of being the queen among the villas of Frascati. It covers a considerable area, and is traversed by paths with high hedges, so as to conceal the plantations of olives, vines and other trees, thus giving the illusion of being in a park. The building, which is of the true villa type, is of three storeys, and gives a majestic impression of size, although it has little depth. Its site, half-way up the hill, is chosen with great skill. Visible even from Rome, its facade and high roof rise above a green base of oak trees. A shady avenue, and extensive terraces, which conceal the domestic offices, lead to the summit. On the upper terrace, on both sides of the villa, there are small plantations of oaks, and on the right a large flower garden with a graceful basin in the shape of a boat, which was a favourite form for fountains ever since Leo X had reproduced an ancient ship in marble on Monte Celio, in front of the church of S. Maria in Domnica.

The interior of the building gives the impression of a house much larger than the majority of edifices of the kind. Over the hearth of the great hall on the ground floor is the bust of the founder in bronze. D’Arpino painted scenes from the Old Testament on the ceilings of the lower rooms.

Behind the building, Giovanni Fontana, the greatest hydraulic artist of those times, employed all his skill in creating an enchanted poetic scene, combining gems of architecture, sculpture and natural sylvan beauties. From the wooded heights of the hill, against which there stands a nymphaeum in the form of a great semicircular portico with two lateral wings, there leaps a cascade breaking into smaller ones. Statues, busts and pilasters give life to this strange construction. Ionic pillars divide it into niches adorned in the Aldobrandini cascade this architectural style reaches its highest point”. with fountains and mythological statues; in the central one an Atlas with a terrestrial globe surmounts the fountain ; above jets of water gush from the star of the arms of the Aldobrandini. This central group is balanced above by the cascades of the waterfall which appears to gush forth from the ancient walls, and which is flanked by two columns pouring out water; at the two sides are magnificent groups of oaks which were originally surrounded by high hedges. On the frieze of the nymphaeum a Latin inscription records how Cardinal Pietro Aldobrandini, nephew of Clement VIII, after he had restored peace to Christendom and re-acquired the Duchy of Ferrara for the Papal States, had erected this villa as a place of repose after the fatigues of Rome, in 1603, and that the water had been brought from Monte Agido.

The works for the hydraulic effects had proved extraordinar­ily difficult,3 and had involved larger expenditure than the construction of the building itself, as it was necessary to indemnify the losses entailed upon the landowners, and to carry the water underground.

In one of the lateral wings of the nymphaeum there is a chapel with frescoes representing the saints of the Aldobrandini family. Another open space, the Sala del Parnasso, attained celebrity in 1608, when it had been decorated by a great master.

Here was represented in stucco the mountain of the Gods: on the summit Apollo, and before him the nine muses with musical instruments, while below was an organ worked by water power. The deeds of the god, around whom melodies seemed to echo marvellously, were illustrated by Domenichino in ten fine frescoes of exquisite workmanship, which were given, by means of borders and painted fringes, the appearance of tapestries. The backgrounds, carried out by Gian Battista Viola from the sketches of Domenichino, show landscapes harmonizing with the gay rural character of the villa. In this work Domenichino created a new idyllic style, which formed an important stage towards the development of the classical landscape painting of Poussin.

From the majestic hall which occupies the whole width of the principal building of the Villa Aldobrandini, may be seen on one side the enchanting creation of this nymphaeum, and on the other the grand panorama of the Campagna as far as the sea, with Rome enthroned in its midst.

When from this vantage point Clement VIII. looked at the capital of the world, he must have been filled with satisfaction at seeing how greatly it had developed. The Florentine painter, Antonio Tempesta, the pupil of the celebrated Stradanus (Ian van Straet), in his plan of the city has shown with great exactness and artistic taste the appearance of Rome at the time of the accession of Clement VIII.

A glance at this panorama, which is taken from the Janiculum, is enough to show how sparsely inhabited, in spite of the efforts of Sixtus V, the district of the Monti still was. Still, as in the past the life of the city was concentrated in the level ground between the Tiber on one side, the Pincio, the Capitol and the Quirinal. The principal piazzas were all there: Campo di Fiori, the Piazza Navona, the Piazza del Duca (Farnese), the Piazza della Trinita and the Piazza Colonna ; smaller piazzas were to be found in front of the churches and some of the palaces. The central part of the old city, divided into two by the Tiber, still shows its medieval density and irregular arrangement. From this labyrinth, which had an indescribably picturesque fascination, and from the mass of the houses of the old city, there arose supreme the majestic Rotonda of the Pantheon, and the palaces of the Altemps, Monte Giordano, the Cancelleria, Farnese, S. Marco (Venezia), and the Capitol. The campanili which had been erected in the Middle Ages were still to a great extent preserved; while of the towers of the palaces, besides that delle Milizie, there were the Torre Argentina and the Torre Millina, as well as the Torre del Capocci. The clock­tower on the Palazzo Orsini near the Campo di Fiori may also clearly be seen. The Gothic campanili of the Anima and S. Agostino are dwarfed by the many cupolas of the churches of the Renaissance. The columns of Trajan and Antoninus stand out clearly by reason of the gilt statues of the Princes of the Apostles which crown them. New prospects are provided by the obelisks erected by Sixtus V., while the Lateran Palace appears exactly in its present form, and that of the Quirinal substantially so.

As in the past, the Leonine City forms an ensemble of its own. On its periphery there stands on one side the Castle of St. Angelo, as well as the imposing hospital and church of S. Spirito ; on the other the mass of the “ Palace of the Popes,” with the new Sixtine addition already covered with its roof, and in a strange medley new and old St. Peter’s, with the dome now at last completed. Special districts are formed, besides the Borgo, by Trastevere with its numerous convents, the Island with its mills, and the Ghetto, strictly enclosed within walls and gates, and indicated by Tempesta as “La Giudea.”

On the plan there are also clearly shown, besides the new streets of Sixtus V, the old arteries, the so-called Via Papale and the celebrated Via Giulia.

Ever more sparsely covered with buildings as its periphery is approached, the Eternal City still shows, within the circle of the Aurelian Walls, many uninhabited spaces and vast gardens. The Villa Medici, which still ranked as the most celebrated villa of Rome, is marked on the plan as the garden of the Grand Duke of Tuscany (Viridarium magni ducis Hetruriae), while the villa of Sixtus V. has no name. The gardens of the Quirinal were still in their elementary state, and the Farnese gardens on the Palatine are clearly marked. The Palazzo de’ Riarii on the Lungara adjoins a vast garden, and there is a smaller one at the Farnesina, which from its first owner bears the name of Palazzo Chigi.

While Tempesta was recording the transformation of Rome by means of a drawing, others, Netherlands and Germans, who were living there either permanently or temporarily, were also devoting themselves to that work. Drawings published in engravings show the many-coloured whirlpool of public life with its ecclesiastical and secular festivals, and its variegated street scenes. Productions of great historical interest are given us among others by Brambilla in his folio “cries of itinerary vendors in Rome,” by Giacomo Franco, who depicts Clement VIII. on a journey, by Villamena with his typical Roman beggar, and lastly by Bril, with his illustrations to the “Dolce far niente.” Sadeler, Willem van Nieulandt, and one of the young Breughels give us good topographical material in their engravings ; Valckenborch, De Vries and Sebastian Vrancz in their paintings.

The guide-books and books of travel form a useful supplement to the illustrations. Among the most sought for guides for tourists and pilgrims an the Holy Year were the itineraries of Hieronymus Johanninus Campugnanus (died 1604) and Franz Schott (died 1622), which appeared in various editions after the Holy Year of 1600. The Deliciae Italiae of Cyprian Eichhov was also in great demand. A learned and exhaustive work was the book Romanae Urbis topographiae et antiquitates cum tab. a Theod. de Bry in aere incisis by the celebrated French archaeologist Jean Jacques Boissard, in which he collected inscriptions with special interest.

The accounts of illustrious travellers who came from the north also described the splendour of Rome and its art treasures. Besides the Netherlanders Arend van Buchel and Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, mention must also be made above all of the state architect of the Duchy of Würtemberg, Heinrich Schickhardt, which is of special importance on account of his artistic appreciation of works of art. All the visitors to Rome at that time, not only the many artists, among them Mander and Rubens, but the princes as well showed a special interest in the gardens and incomparable villas of the Eternal City and its environs.

Even in 1595 the revival of the Papal capital filled the Venetian ambassador, Paolo Paruta, with admiration. The great development in building works led to the discovery of many antiquities, and from the many accounts of excavations we learn in what abundance the inexhaustible soil of Rome continued to reveal marbles and sculptures. It was especially on the Esquiline that a rich harvest was gathered. There, near the Arch of Gallienus, was discovered the ancient fresco known as the Nozze Aldobrandine, which was bought by Cardinal Cinzio Aldobrandini. His brother Cardinal Pietro issued an edict as Camerlengo for the protection of antiquities in April, 1600. Ordinances of 1599 and 1604 were directed to the preservation of the catacombs, in which an ever increasing interest was being taken, thanks to Baronius, Chacon, Bosio and Philip von Winghen.

The use of ancient materials for new buildings continued, as has been said, in the pontificate of Clement VIII. Permission from the government, however, was required, both for excavations and for the exportation of works of art. In spite of this prohibition so many antiquities were sent abroad, especially to the courts of Florenceand Mantua, that the representatives of the city as well as the Pope himself com­plained that Rome was being robbed of its best treasures.

Many pictures were also exported, not a few of which went to Mantua; if the originals could not be acquired, they had perforce to be satisfied with copies, which were specially made, from works of art which hitherto had not been allowed to be copied.

Like the Duke of Mantua, Rudolph II also sought to obtain reason why the lisenza to export works of art from Rome, a thing in which he was not successful, owing to his want of money.

The exportation of works of art was to some extent compensated by those which arrived in the Eternal City, either by way of purchase or donation.

Princes and nobles wished to show their gratitude to their hosts by giving them pictures, while others were collected by prelates who were travelling.

Some of the Cardinals, as for example Sfondrato and Bonelli, had valuable collections of pictures. The collection of important engravings on wood and copper, especially by Diirer, which Cardinal Scipione Gonzaga had acquired during a space of thirty years, was very celebrated. In Rome almost all private men of wealth possessed antiquities, and rooms, courtyards and gardens were everywhere adorned with them.

Of great importance to the Eternal City, especially from the point of view of health, was the care which Clement VIII devoted to the maintenance of the streets. In the frescoes of the time of Sixtus V we can see how the profitable swine, which were to be found in every country house in Italy, were pastured in the piazzas and streets of Rome. An ordinance of 1599 put an end to this abuse, and it was forbidden to keep swine in the inhabited part of the city. At the same time a weekly cleansing of the streets was ordered. Other edicts related to the paving of the Piazza Navona, and the maintenance of the water channels and the fountains.1 Some new streets were also constructed.

The long period of peace was extremely favourable for the material development of Rome, and the consequence was that splendour and luxury increased to an extraordinary degree. The Venetian Paolo Paruta noticed this even in 1595. The sumptuous manner of life, which had hitherto been the exclusive privilege of some of the more prominent Cardinals and barons, he wrote, had spread in a surprising way; he lays special stress upon the luxury of apartments and their extraordinarily sumptuous furniture. The envoy of Urbino, Battista Ceci, also mentions this development in his report of 1605. He describes how the aristocracy dressed with the greatest splendour, and kept large numbers of retainers in elaborate liveries and many horses and carriages; he tells how all the nobles lived beyond their means, and how the citizens tried to follow this bad example. He complains how the merchants dressed their wives as gentlewomen, and permitted themselves all pleasures, no matter what they cost ; what wonder then that their profits, even though they sold everything at a high price, were not sufficient for their extravagant expenditure? It is not surprising therefore that in these circumstances moral conditions left a great deal to be desired. This state of affairs was also contributed to by the fact that foreigners of all nations flocked to the capital of the world, so that the real Romans formed a minority.

Even though Ceci dwells upon these darker aspects of the times, he also clearly brings out the brighter side of the picture, and above all the rivalry in building magnificent churches, and the activity in works of charity. He points out how the Pope took the lead by his example in the last-named; every month he distributed 400 scudi among the secret poor, and the convents and hospitals; at Christmas and Easter, on the feast of St. Peter and St. Paul, and on the anniversary of his coronation, 2,000 scudi, and another 1,000 for extraordinary alms. He also maintained the ancient custom of feeding the poor at the Campo Santo near St. Peter’s every Friday. Ceci describes in detail the innumerable charitable institutions in Rome, which were all excellently organised and served by the confraternities. These cared for every class and for the sick of every kind. The lepers had a special hospital outside the city, while the others were so skilfully distributed that help was nowhere lacking.

The civic hospitals were accessible to all foreigners, but besides these there had been from remote times many national hospices for foreign visitors to Rome, where pilgrims received gratuitously for three days lodging and food, and in case of illness help of other kinds. Those institutions, too, such as the Bohemian and Swedish hospices, which owing to the religious schism no longer had many coming to them, were also maintained. The number of hospitals and hospices was forty in all.

However worthy of condemnation the luxury was, it was very advantageous for art. Among the Cardinals who were conspicuous as lovers of art, besides Frederick Borromeo, Bonelli and Colonna, Odoardo Farnese held the first place. Not content with his magnificent family palace, which was richly adorned with profane and religious paintings, antique statues, medals and a valuable library, he caused a splendid pictorial work to be carried out between the years 1595 and 1603. On the first floor, on the side facing the Tiber, the ceiling and walls of the so-called gallery were adorned with magnificent frescoes by Annibale Caracci, assisted by his brother, Agostino and Domenichino, the subjects of which were drawn exclusively from pagan mythology. Of the three central pictures, one, the triumph of Bacchus and Ariadne, was intended to portray the reign of love upon the earth, the second, Aurora and Cephalus, its power in the air, and the third, a Nereid embraced by a Triton, the dominion of love in the waters, just as Guarini had sung in the prologue to his Pastor fide. This masterpiece of the Caracci is of the highest importance in the history of culture. Men realized the paradox of a great prince of the Church, just as though he were still living in the days of Leo X, having his palace adorned with such erotic subjects, and at the same time trying to make those subjects more acceptable to the most rigid censors by means of allegories and interpretations, attempting thus to reconcile the Christian conscience with representations of scenes of loves of the gods and pagan heroes, which went beyond all due limits. Moreover this is a crushing retort to the unfounded assertions that the artists of the period of the Catholic restoration were hampered in their freedom and activities; in fact they were free to select their subjects from ancient mythology as before. Even in the matter of the representation of the nude in profane art they were by no means restricted. The rigorous principles which were applied after the Council of Trent, only referred to pictures in churches, as is shown by an edict of the Cardinal Vicar, Borghese, in 1603. Even the man who had ordered the frescoes of Caracci conformed to these enactments; in 1595 Cardinal Odoardo Farnese had the nude figure of Justice on the tomb of Paul III covered with a garment of thin metal.

The increase of luxury was also shown in the fact that the Aldobrandini, in addition to their orginal house in the Via de’ Banchi, which the Pope had given to Olimpia Aldobrandini in 1601, also possessed other palaces in Rome; one in the Piazza Colonna (afterwards the Palazzo Chigi), another near S. Luigi de’ Francesi, and a third, with a garden, on the southern slope of the Quirinal (the Villa Aldobrandini of today). In 1601 Clement VIII also acquired for Olimpia the palace of the Duke of Urbino in the Corso (afterwards the Palazzo Doria), the chapel of which was decorated by Annibale Caracci and his pupils, among them Albani, with frescoes of the life of the Madonna.

During the pontificate of Clement VIII. there was at last undertaken, as the result of his insistence, the carrying out of Michelangelo’s plans for the Capitoline palaces. A young architect, Girolamo Rinaldi, constructed the facade of the Senators, so that this was given the character of severe grandeur which distinguished the design of the great master. All this was done on the initiative of Clement VIII so that he deserves the place of honour that is assigned to him in the great inscription of 1598, placed over the principal door and enumerating all the outstanding events of his pontificate. Girolamo Rinaldi also directed the works on the third palace designed by Michelangelo on the Capitol, of which the Pope laid the first stone on June 27th, 1603. He did not live to see its completion, but on the other hand was able to delight in the decoration of the Palace of the Conservatori with monumental frescoes of the ancient history of Rome. On these the president of the Academia S. Luca, Tommaso Laureti, and the Pope’s favourite, d'Arpino, were employed. Among the frescoes by the latter mention must be made of the battle between the Horatii and the Curiatii as a valuable work of art.

The artistic activity whichprevailed during the pontificate of Clement VIII was of great advantage to the churches, to which greater attention was now paid, partly on account of the canonical visitations and partly because of the Holy Year. Although the number of existing churches was already very large, several new ones were built ; for example, S. Maria della Scala in Trastevere, S. Niccolò da Tolentino,S. Giuseppe a Capo le Case, and S. Bernardo alle Terme. The national church of the Florentines, S. Giovanni de’ Fiorentini, the masterpiece of Jacopo Sansavino, was finally completed in 1600, only the facade being left unfinished. The church of the Sicilians, S. Maria in Constantinopoli, was also completed in 1593.

The church of the Theatines, S. Andrea della Valle, promised to become a splendid edifice of the first rank, worthy to rival the Gesfi. Cardinal Gesualdo had since 1596 expended 40,000 scudi in this church, the first stone of which was laid on March 12th, 1591. After his death in 1603 Cardinal Peretti undertook the expense. The superintendence of the building was in the hands of Pietro Paolo Olivieri, who had also made the designs: a nave in the form of a Latin cross, with four deep chapels on either side. When Olivieri died on July 6th, 1599, his place was taken by Carlo Maderno ; he carried out the tribune and the dome, the largest in Rome after St. Peter’s, and drew a design for the façade. This large and spacious temple, almost the only one of the Roman churches of the XVIth century which has retained its original appearance, was until 1902 a perfect example of the Renaisances. The restoration undertaken in that year has greatly impaired the grave, tranquil and solemn effect of the interior, as the vaulting of the central nave was covered with stucco and paintings, the plain pilasters fluted, and the capitals gilt.

Not far from this, in the great church of the Oratorians, S. Maria in Vallicella, great activity was shown under Clement VIII in carrying on the decoration of the interior, and a noble rivalry with the church of the Jesuits in constructing altars and chapels of a like magnificence. A richly decorated chapel was prepared to receive the body of Philip Neri, and another was founded by Cardinal Silvio Antoniano. The solemn consecration of this third great church belonging to religious communities was made by Cardinal Medici on May 23rd, 1599.

By the command of Cardinal Rusticucci Carlo Maderno turned his attention to S. Susanna, and gave it a noble façade. Other Cardinals as well restored and adorned churches, as for example, Giustiniani S. Prisca, Albert of Austria S. Croce in Gerusalemme, Madruzzo S. Onofrio, Salviati S. Giacomo degli Incurabili and S. Gregorio in Celio, Cesi S. Maria in Portico, Medici and Caetani S. Pudenziana.6 Just as Caetani erected in the latter church a magnificent sepulchral chapel, so did Santori in Lateran Basilica. Cardinal Bernerio at S. Sabina founded a chapel to St. Hyacinth, the altar of which was consecrated on May 23rd, 1600. Cardinal Domenico Pinelli restored the paintings in the upper part of the central nave of S. Maria Maggiore. Some relics which were discovered at S. Bartolomeo all Isola gave Cardinal Tarugi an opportunity for erecting a magnificent altar. The officials of the Curia, too, such as Gabriele Bombasio and Tiberio Cerasa, founded chapels and altars. The chapel of S. Diego, of the Spaniard Enrico d’Errera at S. Giacomo degli Spagnuoli, was decorated by Francesco Albani with frescoes of the life of the saint.

An important work of that period was the restoration carried out by Cardinal Baronius in his titular church, which was in a very dilapidated state, of SS. Nereo and Achilleo, at a cost amounting to 7,000 scudi. This learned expert and admirer of antique Christian art ordered that as far as possible the original character of the building should be preserved. In an inscription he prayed his successor to leave in its ancient condition this little church dedicated to the holy eunuchs of Flavia Domitilla, a relative of the Emperor Domitian. The translation by Cardinal Baronius to his titular church of the relics of these saints, which had been discovered in S. Adriano a Campo Vaccino, took place with great solemnity on May 12th, 1597.Three new altars, for which C. Roncalli painted a picture, were not finished for another three years.

Baronius also restored the two venerable chapels at S. Gregorio, and adorned them with paintings by Antonio Viviano and with statues of St. Gregory I, and his mother St. Sylvia, executed by Nicholas Cordier. In the actual church of St. Gregory Cardinal Salviati founded a beautiful chapel and a magnificent altar, adorned with a picture by Domenichino, the Prayer of Gregory I, for the miraculous and much venerated image of the Blessed Virgin which had spoken to St. Gregory. Giovan Battista Ricci of Novara represented in the vaulting of the dome the triumph of Mary. A new chapel of the Madonna was erected in S. Lorenzo in Lucina, one of the many proofs of the fervent veneration of the Mother of God in Rome at that time. When in January, 1594, the Pope visited the church of the Gesu, he suggested to Cardinal Rusticucci that he should build a chapel to match that of the Savelli. Towards the end of the pontificate of Clement VIII we are told of the grandiose plans being entertained by Cardinals Sandoval and Peretti for S. Anastasia and the SS. Apostoli. Cardinal Peretti had already shown his interest in art by his erection of the great sepulchral monument to his uncle Sixtus V. at St. Mary Major’s.

We are not surprised to learn that Cardinal Pietro Aldobrandini too did not allow himself to be outdone in this rivalry. At S. Maria in Via he had a chapel painted by d’Arpino; at Avignon he ordered the restoration of the church of S. Chiara, which had been founded by one of his ancestors; in Rome he gave orders for the restoration and decoration of his titular church, S. Niccolò in Carcere. But his principal attention was devoted to his abbey of Tre Fontane. The third of the churches on that spot, S. Paolo alle Tre Fontane, owed its erection to the Cardinal; this was a simple building in the form of a portico, exactly adapted to the site of the three recently discovered springs, and which stood upon the site of the more ancient church built in memory of the place where the Apostle of the Gentiles had been beheaded. The façade, adorned with Doric pilasters bears the arms of the Cardinal; on the attic may be seen those of Clement VIII. Inscriptions on the façade and in the interior mention 1599 as the year of the building; a third, on the pavement, mentions 1601. Giacomo della Porta made the designs both for this and for the second church, a rotunda, which, in accordance with a vision of St. Bernard, bears the name of S. Maria Scala Coeli; this had been begun by Cardinal Farnese. Pietro Aldobrandini undertook its completion, and gave the high altar and the mosaics in the tribune, which show the Madonna being crowned by angels, surrounded by St. Bernard and other saints, and with Clement VIII. and the founder kneeling before them. This splendid work was executed by the Florentine, Francesco Zucchi, from the designs of Giovanni de’ Vecchi. The Pope was so greatly interested in the building of S. Paolo alle Tre Fontane, begun in February, 1599, that he twice paid a visit to it during the following year.

Clement VIII also took an active part in the discoveries which Cardinal Sfondrato, who was living a life of strict asceticism, devoted solely to works of piety and charity, had made in Trastevere during the restoration of his titular church of S. Cecilia. There, on October 20th, 1599, during the course of the works near the high altar, two white marble sarcophagi came to light, in which the Pope, on the strength of an inscription of Paschal I. in the church, came to the conclusion that they had discovered the bones of St. Cecilia and of SS. Valerian, Tiburtius and Maximus, who had been converted by that noble Roman lady and martyred with her. Sfondrato had the sarcophagi opened in the presence of witnesses. When the cover was removed, there was seen the cypress-wood casket, still in a good state of preservation, in which Paschal I in 821 had had the virgin martyr translated from the catacomb of St. Callixtus. The Cardinal himself opened it. The mortal remains of the martyr were found in the same position in which they had been placed eight centuries before. Through the silk gauze veil there shone the dress of the saint, embroidered in gold; at her feet were the small cloths stained with blood, mentioned by Paschal I. The Cardinal resolved at once to inform the Pope, who was at Frascati, of his discovery. When he got there he found Clement VIII confined to his bed with a bad attack of gout, so that the Pope, who would have liked to have gone at once to Rome, sent Cardinal Baronius instead. The latter’s report, and that of Antonio Bosio, the indefatigable explorer of the catacombs, tell us what happened. It may be clearly seen from their accounts how deeply they were moved when Sfondrato opened the casket of cypress wood, and they saw the reverently covered body. Cecilia’s stature was extraordinarily small, and as nothing could be seen of her head, it was thought that the face was turned towards the ground; but from a holy reverence no further investigations were made. Bosio expresses the opinion that the saint was found in the same position as when she had yielded her last breath, but Baronius says nothing as to this.

The casket was taken to a chapel in the right nave used for the confessions of the adjoining convent of nuns; there the relics were quite safe, and could be seen through a window by the faithful who flocked thither from all parts of Rome. The relics were to remain exposed there, so Clement VIII ordered, until the feast of St. Cecilia (November 22nd). As soon as his health permitted the Pope came to Rome, and immediately upon his arrival, on November 10th, he went to show his veneration for the relics of the martyr.1 He gave further proof of this by having a silver covering placed over the cypress wood casket, at a cost of more than 4,000 gold scudi. The Pope refused to allow a more detailed examination, and the body was to be buried in the same place where it had been found; all that was taken out was a small piece of the gold-embroidered dress and of blood-stained linen, together with a splinter of bone from the skull, which, with the heads of SS. Valerian, Tiburtius and Maximus, taken from the other sarcophagus, were preserved in precious reliquaries.

In the meantime Sfondrato had made further excavations, in the course of which a third sarcophagus was discovered; it was believed, from the inscription of Paschal I, that this contained the bones of Popes Urban and Lucius.

Now it was evident what a change of sentiment had taken place. When, a century before, the body of a girl belonging to the days of antiquity, had been found on the Appian Way the Romans of the Renaissance had been filled with so great enthusiasm that Innocent VIII. had thought it necessary to interfere.1 Now Clement VIII. could not do enough to satisfy the cultus of St. Cecilia. The youthful martyr was celebrated in poetry, the casket containing her relics was adorned with candles and flowers, and the Romans flocked thither inces­santly to venerate Cecilia and to implore her intercession. The crowds were so great that it was necessary to call in 1he assistance of the Swiss Guard. Cardinal Sfondrato remained the greater part of the day in the church, where the solemn burial took place on November 22nd, 1599. So as to prevent any accident among the vast throng of people, the passage of vehicles was forbidden in the Trastevere that morning. At the appointed hour the Pope appeared, accompanied by all the dignitaries of the court and the Roman Senate. There were also present all the Cardinals, forty-two in number, as well as the diplomatic representatives of France, Venice and Savoy. The Pope went first to the chapel where the cypress wood casket was exposed and blessed the silver coffer which he had had made for the purpose, and which was adorned with a short inscription and his arms. The casket was then taken to the high altar, where Clement VIII celebrated high mass. The burial took place after the communion. The Cardinal Deacons, Farnese, Aldobrandini and Cesi, assisted by the Pope himself, carried the casket to the small confession below. There it was placed in the silver coffer, and this was lowered into a new and larger sarcophagus of marble, which was closed by the Pope himself. After a short prayer Clement VIII returned to the altar, where the mass was continued. The Romans flocked thither until dusk, to pray at the new tomb, to the decoration of which, as well as to the further adornment of the church, Cardinal Sfondrato, who was so fond of art, continued to devote himself.

After the restoration of the roof, Sfondrato intended to introduce a ceiling in gilt wood, but gave up this project when the architects declared that the central nave, which was very broad but rather low, would appear too heavy. He therefore contented himself with adorning the old ceiling with paintings. The walled-up windows of the central nave were re-opened, and the frescoes which were found there were restored, their ancient and venerable character being carefully respected. On the other hand the two ancient ambos were removed, and the side naves were adorned with pictures and new marble altars, containing pictures by Roman and foreign artists.

The Netherland master, Paul Bril, decorated the corridor leading to the second chapel on the right with representations of the saints: Francis, Sylvia, Mary Magdalene, Mary of Egypt, Paul the Hermit, Jerome, Antony, Onofrio, Spiridion, Eulogius and Hilary. As these were shown among rocks and crags, Bril was able to introduce landscapes of romantic ruggedness, which revealed that painter’s great understanding of the beauties of nature, and at the same time a change of style. This elaborate decoration was chosen for this corridor, because it led to one of the most celebrated sanctuaries of Rome. Here were to be found the remains, already carefully preserved by Paschal I, of an ancient Roman bathroom, in which it was supposed that St. Cecilia had triumphantly survived her first martyrdom (suffocation by hot steam). Cardinal Sfondrato carefully preserved all these remains; the pipes from which the steam came, and the leaden channels for the draining of the water and restored the ancient chapel, for which Guido Reni, who came to Rome in 1602, painted as an altar-piece, the martyrdom of the saint.

The Gothic marble tabernacle over the high altar of S. Cecilia, the work of Arnolfo di Cambio, was also preserved, as well as the medieval candlestick for the Paschal candle. Both of lhese were carefully restored. The Cardinal also sumptuously decorated the confession in front of the high altar with many-coloured marbles, onyx, lapislazuli, and ornaments in gilt bronze. The altar itself was richly decorated by Stefano Maderno with candelabra, vases, lamps, six statues of saints and two bronze angels. The angels are holding up a crown over the white marble statue of St. Cecilia, which lies in a niche of black marble immediately in front of the high altar, as though in an open sarcophagus. In this Maderno created a new form of altar, which was often imitated later on. The statue of the saint, carved in the finest marble, and almost transparent, is one of the most celebrated and best known of Italian works of art. The master drew his inspiration from the legend that the saint expired in her bath-room, three days after receiving the mortal blow of the axe. Maderno did not therefore represent her lying as one who was dead, but reclining on her right side, with her knees drawn up, her hands half folded, her head covered with a veil, and her face turned towards the ground, her neck showing the stroke of the executioner’s axe. Cecilia lies in the noblest simplicity, a picture of virginal purity, like a flower that has been plucked. If in the catacombs the spirit of the first centuries of Christianity appeals directly to the heart of the visitor, it has nowhere found a more sublime artistic expression than here.

Cardinal Sfondrato, who at the end of 1600 had already expended more than 25,000 scudi on the restoration and decoration of the church of S. Cecilia, visited it almost every day, and chose it for his place of burial. Clement VIII too, had a special predilection for it. In the latter years of his life he regularly offered the Holy Sacrifice at the tomb of the martyr on St. Cecilia’s feast. It is easy to understand this predilection, because among the countless tombs of the saints there is hardly any other so graceful and so touching as that of this noble Roman scion of the family of the Cecilii.

It was no mere coincidence that, at the moment when Baronius was reviving the study of Christian antiquity, and when Bosio, Philip von Winghen and Ciaconius were exploring the subterranean sepulchral city from which the universal kingdom of the Church had sprung, a great-hearted Cardinal and a Pope should have set before the eyes of the faithful of the period of Christian restoration, in the revival of the cultus of one of the most noble martyrs of Christ, an idea drawn from the heroic days of Christendom, thus pointing out the way by which the Church, purified in the fires of tribulation, has ever attained to her greatest triumphs.