Sant'Andrea al Quirinale is a splendid Baroque church designed by Bernini in Rome. It is a tender scene to imagine: the great Baroque architect, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, in his last years, sitting for hours in this gem of a church, admiring the wondrous space he had created. A painter, sculptor, architect, playwright and stage designer, Bernini fashioned a visually integrated masterwork, which tells the story of Sant'Andrea's martyrdom and ascension into heaven.
The novel elliptical worship space, with the entry on the long side, thrusts one immediately into the action, and one can sit for hours admiring the church's spectacular features, from paintings to sculpture, from the rich coffered dome to the sumptuous pink marble columns. This church truly is a sight for sore eyes, and must have been even more so before our electronic age.
History
Sant'Andrea's origins are tied to the Pamphilj family, which produced four cardinals and a pope, Innocent X, who reigned from 1644-55. Innocent's sister-in-law was Olimpia Maidalchini, who scholars suspect of having poisoned her husband. She is said to have been the brains behind Innocent X and had him make her son, Camillo Francesco Maria Pamphilij, a cardinal when he was just 22.
Camillo Pamphilj's heart wasn't in the job, and he resigned his cardinalate three years later to marry a Borghese heiress, who came with a huge dowry. A student of the liberal arts, philosophy, mathematics and architecture, Camillo Pamphilij became an avid art collector, and his collection (which includes the famous portrait of Innocent X by Velasquez) is now in the Palazzo Doria Pamphilij.
In 1658 the Jesuit order, to which Bernini was devoted, commissioned him to build the church, which Camillo Pamphilij bankrolled. The third church dedicated to the newly founded Jesuit order (after Il Gesu and San Ignazio de Loyola), it was to serve as a base for inductees, known as novices, into the order.
Bernini demolished an existing 16th century church on the Quirinale hill to build Sant'Andrea, and chose an elliptical floor plan. This was not without precedent. Several years earlier Bernini's rival, Borromini, had built a small church, San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, just down the road. This church was elliptical in shape and austere on the inside, with the entrance on the long axis. Bernini turned his ellipse sideways to fit the small lot, and decorated the interior in multimedia splendor, which some say was intended to thumb his nose at his rival. Bernini was a devout catholic and took no payment for his efforts, except for a daily donation of bread from the novitiate's oven.
What to See
Exterior and Façade
For Sant'Andrea, Bernini created one of the most unique façades in the city. First, he chose not to hide the elliptical shape of the church behind a large façade. Instead, he created a narrow but tall entrance, which he flanked with two huge pilasters (flattened columns) topped by Corinthian capitals.
Atop these, he placed a triangular pediment, and at the bottom, a semi-circular staircase that seems to cascade down from the entrance like flowing water. At the top of the stairs, Bernini created a semi-circular porch, using two Ionic columns, which he topped with the Pamphilij coat of arms, containing the family's symbol, the dove.
Interior
When you walk into Sant'Andrea al Quirinal, you can quickly see why Bernini considered this his most perfect work. It may take a moment to orient yourself, as you are immediately enveloped the curving walls and decorations that might make you feel like you're inside a gigantic Easter egg. Chapels sweep around you. Ornate, carved marble abounds. The inlaid mosaic on the floor mirrors elliptical dome overhead. Architectural molding running around inside wall divides the space into an upper and lower church.
Some scholars have said the lower part of the church represents the earthly realm, filled with sorrow and suffering. And indeed, here we find the main altar, opposite the entrance, containing a large painting Saint Andrew in agony as he is crucified on an X-shaped cross. It is set in a frame made from the same pink, mottled marble as the four columns on either side of the altar. (This marble, by the way, has been likened to prosciutto with its red meat and streaky fat.) The saint's passion is illuminated by golden light from a small hidden window. Sculpted rays of divine light shine down on the saint to show the way to his heavenly reward. Bronze angels fly down on the rays waiting to carry Saint Andrew heavenward, while cherubs look on.
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