Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua
| Pontifical Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua | |
|---|---|
Basilica Pontificia di Sant'Antonio di Padova | |
 The Basilica of Sant'Antonio di Padova. | |
 | |
| 45°24′05″N11°52′51″E/ 45.4015°N 11.8809°E | |
| Location | Padua,Veneto,Italy |
| Denomination | Catholic Church |
| History | |
| Status | Pontificalminor basilica,International shrine |
| Dedication | St. Anthony of Padua |
| Architecture | |
| Groundbreaking | 1232 |
| Completed | 1310 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Diocese of Padua |
| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
|---|---|
 Cappella del beato Luca Belludi -Giusto de' Menabuoi | |
| Location | Padua,Veneto,Italy |
| Criteria | Cultural: (ii), (iii) |
| Reference | 1623 |
| Inscription | 2021 (44thSession) |
| Website | www |
| Coordinates | 45°24′05″N11°52′51″E/ 45.4015°N 11.8809°E |
ThePontifical Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua(Italian:Basilica Pontificia di Sant'Antonio di Padova) is aCatholicchurch andminor basilicainPadua,Veneto,Northern Italy,dedicated toSt. Anthony of Padua.
Although the basilica is visited as a place of pilgrimage by people from all over the world, it is not thecathedralof the city, a title belonging to theCathedral-Basilica of St. Mary of Padua.The basilica is known locally as "il Santo".It is one of thenational shrinesrecognized by theHoly See.[1]
History
[edit]Construction of the Basilica probably began around 1232,[1]just one year after the death ofSt. Anthony.It was completed in 1310 although several structural modifications (including the falling of the ambulatory and the construction of a newchoir screen) took place between the end of the 14th and the mid-15th century. The Saint, according to his will, had been buried in the small church ofSanta Maria Mater Domini,probably dating from the late 12th century and near which a convent was founded by him in 1229. This church was incorporated into the present basilica as theCappella della Madonna Mora(Chapel of the Dark Madonna).
Architecture
[edit]
Sant'Antonio is a giant edifice without a precise architectural style. Over the centuries, it has grown under a variety of different influences as shown by the exterior details. It displays a strong influence ofSt Mark's Basilicain Venice.[1]
The new basilica was begun as a single-naved church, like that ofSt Francis of Assisi,with an apsidal chancel, broad transepts and two square nave bays roofed with hemispherical domes like that ofSan Marco, Venice.The exterior style is a mi xing of mainlyRomanesqueandByzantineelements, with someGothicfeatures.
Later in the 13th century, the aisles were added in a moreGothic style,the length of each nave bay being divided into two aisle bays with pointed arches and quadripartite vaults.
The eastern apse was also extended in the Gothic style, receiving a ribbed vault and nine radiating chapels in the French manner. Later also, the Treasury chapel was built in 1691 in theBaroque stylebyFilippo Parodi,a pupil ofBernini.
Externally, the brick facade has aRomanesquecentral section which was extended outwards when the aisles were built, acquiring in the process four deep Gothic recesses and an elegant arcaded balcony which stretches across the broad front of the building. The facade gable shows little differentiation between the nave and aisle, screening the very large buttresses that have the same profile and form a richly sculptural feature when the building is viewed from the side.
The domes, like the domes ofSt. Mark's Basilica,were raised in height externally, giving aByzantineappearance to the building, while the multitude of small belfries which accompany the domes recallTurkish minarets.Externally, at the main roof line each section of the building is marked by a low gable decorated with blind arcading in brick. These gables combine with the domes, the broad buttresses and the little towers to create a massive sculptural form, both diverse and unified in its conglomeration of features. An extra dimension is added to the facade by the huge plinth and dynamicEquestrian statue of GattamelatabyDonatello.[2]
Established in 1396 the Veneranda Arca di S. Antonio is the organisation tasked with the conservation and maintenance of the structure belonging to the Basilica di St. Anthony of Padua and its connected buildings.
Artworks and treasures
[edit]The high altar is by Donatello.[3] The interior of the church contains numerous funerary monuments, some of noteworthy artistic value. The Chapel of theBlessed Sacrament(Cappella del Santissimo Sacramento, also known as Cappella Gattamelata), in the right aisle, houses the tomb of the famous condottieroGattamelataand of his son Giannantonio. The bronzetabernacleis made byGirolamo Campagna.[4]This chapel, with its broad bands of polychrome and carved Gothic details, has had many stages of decoration, the final stage being the creation of an mosaic in the tall rear niche representing theHoly Spiritwith rays of golden light descending against a background of intensely blue sky. This work was created byLodovico Pogliaghibetween 1927 and 1936.
Relics of St Anthony are to be found in the ornate Baroque Treasury Chapel (begun in 1691). The body of the saint, which was in the Madonna Mora Chapel, has, from 1350, lain in a separate transept chapel, the Chapel of St Anthony, the interior decoration being attributed toTullio Lombardo,who also provided the sixth and seventh reliefs depicting the miracles of St Anthony (Miracle of the stingy man's heart,Miracle of the repentant man). The third reliefSaint bringing back to life a man who had been murderedis a masterpiece byGirolamo Campagna.The late-16th century statues are byTiziano Aspetti.[5]
The Basilica contains several important images of the Madonna. TheMadonna Morais a statue of the Madonna with the Christ Child by the French sculptor Rainaldino di Puy-l'Evéque, dating from 1396. Her name refers to her black hair andolive skintone, being interpreted as "swarthy".
TheMadonna del Pilastrois a mid-14th-century fresco byStefano da Ferrara,located on the pier adjacent the left aisle.
Among other sculptural work is the Easter candelabrum in the apse, finished in 1515 byAndrea Brioscoand considered his masterwork. The high altar area features the bronzeMadonna with Childand six statues ofSaintsbyDonatello,who also executed four reliefs with episodes of life of St. Anthony.
To the right hand side of the nave, opposite the tomb of the Saint is the large Chapel of St. James, commissioned by Bonifacio Lupi in the 1370s in Gothic style, with frescoed walls depicting theStories of St. Jamesand theCrucifixionbyAltichiero da Zevio.There are severalfrescoescreated byGirolamo Tessari.
The chin and tongue of St. Anthony are displayed in a goldreliquaryat the Basilica.
Musical history
[edit]The composerFrancesco Antonio Calegariserved asmaestro di cappellain the 1720s.Giuseppe Tartini,the Baroque composer and violinist, also served as maestro di cappella in the 18th century. In 1872Luigi Bottazzowas appointed organist.
Burials
[edit]
- Costanzo Porta
- Edward Courtenay, 1st Earl of Devon[6](His remains were removed from the Basilica at some unknown date to a location unknown.)
See also
[edit]- History of medieval Arabic and Western European domes
- Church of Saint Anthony of Lisbon
- Padua Cathedral
- Church of the Holy Apostles
References
[edit]- ^abc"Major Artworks".Saint Anthony of Padua.Retrieved2023-12-13.
- ^Draper, Authors: James David."Donatello (ca. 1386–1466) | Essay | The Metropolitan Museum of Art | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History".The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History.Retrieved2023-12-13.
- ^Coonin, A. Victor,Donatello and the Dawn of Renaissance Art,2019, Reaktion Books, pp. 184-196ISBN978-1-78914-130-6
- ^Handley, Marie Louise. "Girolamo Campagna." The Catholic EncyclopediaVol. 3. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908
- ^Wilk, S.,La decorazione cinquecentesca della cappella dell'arca di S Antonio,'Le sculture del Santo', iv ofFonti e studi per la storia del Santo a Padova,(G. Lorenzoni, ed.) (Vicenza, 1984), pp. 166–9
- ^Great Britain. Public Record Office; Bentinck, George Cavendish; Brown, Horatio F. (Horatio Forbes); Hinds, Allen Banks; Brown, Rawdon Lubbock (1864).Calendar of state papers and manuscripts relating, to English affairs, existing in the archives and collections of Venice, and in other libraries of northern Italy.University of Michigan. London, H. M. Stationery office.
Further reading
[edit]- Johnson, Geraldine A. (1999). "Donatello's Sculpture in the Santo".Renaissance Quarterly.52(3): 627–66.doi:10.2307/2901914.JSTOR2901914.
External links
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