THE ST PETER’S BASILICA

For a long time, the church has been associated with the decorative arts of architecture, with sculpture, reliefs, and paintings that establish a solemn and sacred atmosphere. Recently, the church has funded architectural masterpieces for cathedrals, basilicas, mosques, and abbeys that demonstrate the grandeur of the Catholic church. Furthermore, commissioned tapestries and stained glass windows in cathedrals serve to empower religious congregations with mostly Christian messages.
The new St. Peter's Basilica will be built on the ruins of the former one. The former basilica, which has been in use since Constantine's day, can no longer be used for liturgy. As you know, the old basilica is built on what is believed to be the tomb of St. Peter thus giving the location a divine disposition which will serve to make the new basilica the center of the Christian world. In respect to this special position, the altar will be placed directly above St. Peter’s tomb. The site was originally built as a funerary church to house the apostle’s tomb and those of Christians wishing to be buried near him. For a long time, pilgrims have used the church for commemorative rights for their families which deviates from the Church’s desire.

The current proposal places the new church with an interior length of 183m, with the central dome rising to 138m on a diameter of 42m. The nave will have a width of 25m while the collonade will feature 284 thick columns to support the domes and roof. The defining feature of the new basilica will be the dome rising to 448.1ft from the basilica’s floor to the top of the mounted cross. Although with a smaller diameter than the nearby Pantheon dome (142ft), and it stands much higher at 452 feet from street level which also exceeds the Florence Cathedra of the Early Renaissance. The inspiration for constructing the domes will come from the Pantheon and the Florence duomo where engineers have created adequate solutions to problems commonly associated with the construction of huge domes. The builders will use iron rings within the dome’s masonry to provide structural support and prevent it from collapsing on itself during construction. The structural integrity will also be improved through the use of Tufa concrete for the curved beams whose formula I have rediscovered.

The main materials required in construction of the dome are concrete and marble to maintain structural integrity and support. Additional materials include mortar, brick, limestone, timber, bronze roof tiles, travertine stone, and leaden roofing. The columns in the nave collonades will require the importation of marble and granite which will enhance the perception of the basilica as the center of Christendom. Multiple iron bands at the base of the dome will provide support and tension. Moreover, the travertine stone requires 7 internal iron rings in addition to iron chains to increase the cupola’s stability. To increase the church’s grandiosity, the dome will be constructed in one shell of concrete which will be lightened through the use of tuff and pumice. Moreover, the dome’s interior will will feature deep coffers to create horizontal and vertical ribs that lessen the overall load on the walls.

I also drew additional inspiration from the dome of Florence’s Cathedral where it is made of two shells of brick with the outer having 16 stone ribs. Similar to other structures of a similar disposition, it will be supported by piers on a drum. The surrounding peristyle will feature 16 pairs of columns each 49ft high joined by an arch. Although these columns appear to buttress the dome’s ribs, they are structurally redundant since the dome has an ovoid shape that exerts less thrust than a hemispherical dome such as that of the Pantheon.







































































The main church will follow a central plan in the shape of a Latin-cross contained within a square and a dome as a roof over the center and smaller domes in the surrounding towers. The central plan will have all of the church’s main dimensions equidistant from a center similar to other structures built by High Renaissance architects. Previous architects sponsored by the church have preferred a Greek-Cross design which features equidistant arms of a cross. However, with the ongoing counter-Reformation, a Latin-style cross (with one elongated arm) has gained popularity as the true symbol of Christianity. Moreover, the circular center also bears spiritual connotations as most people believe the continuity of a circle to be the preferred shape by nature. The centrally-planned building topped by a dome symbolizes the church as the divine center of justice in the universe in addition to having celestial harmony in the geometry and proportion.







St. Peter’s square has been designed to resemble a theater focusing attention on the basilica itself. The auditorium follows a square plan and the facade as the papal stage which conforms to the ongoing participation of the church in Counter-Reformation art. The inspiration for the square comes from classical antiquity designed around an elliptical space 320m long and 240m wide surrounded by fourfold rows of columns decorated with the figures of saints. It provides a transition from the city to St. Peters where the city side is elliptical and enclosed partially by two collonades of Tuscan Doric columns made of travertine that gradually narrow down to a trapezoid as it approaches the church. These Doric columns form three continuous passages with two meant for pedestrians while the third will handle carriage traffic. In general, the piazza is based on the theme of three aisles used to approach the apse in a church. The center of the square’s ellipse will be marked using an obelisk with additional fountains showing the foci of a compass. The placement of columns radiates from a central point resembling the spokes of a wheel whose hubs terminate between the obelisk and fountains thus allowing for a harmonious transition from the city to the church.

The facade is 114.69 meters wide and 45.55 meters tall made of travertine. It features a central pediment supported by Corinthian columns and rising behind an attic and topped by thirteen statues representing Christ surrounded by eleven of his disciples (St. Peter’s statue is placed at the stairs’ entrace).



The entrance from the Basilica to the dome features a long portico covered by barrel vaults. These are formed through creating a series of joined arches. Since they exert enormous thrust to the walls on which they rest, the buttresses have to be thick and will need regular aubtment to decrease the downward pressure. Moreover, since these walls do not present lateral thrust, they can span large spaces in terms of height and width. The vault will be decorated using gilt and ornate stucco with illumination coming from small windows located between pendentives while the piazza reflects light on the marble floors.

















However, the project faces some challenges due to its unique placement. Building on the old St. Peter’s basilica and directly above the saint’s tomb, the new structure will have to fortify and rest on the old foundations. Moreover, building on Vatican hill presents problems due to its steep slope and the surrounding swamplands which handle weight poorly. Prior analysis of the site has shown that good soil in the site occurs at varying depths as the northern side has loam soil 15m below the surface while it appears 25m on the southern side.

In conclusion, the new structure will use regular repeating designs in some regions that will progressively transform into curves and irregularity as it mixes the renaissance and baroque architectural styles. Special consideration was given to ensure that the irregularity and variety creates symmetry and grandeur through optical illusions that increase the church’s grandiosity. Moreover, by appealing to theemotions and intellect of the faitfhul, the building will convince them to place unconditional faith and trust in the Catholic church. In this respect, the act of approaching the church should provide a spiritual experience shrouded in mystery and symbolism.





Bibliography

Ching, Francis DK. Architecture: Form, space, and order. John Wiley & Sons, 2014.

Goffi, Federica. Time Matter (s): Invention and Re-imagination in Built Conservation: the Unfinished Drawing and Building of St. Peter's, the Vatican. Routledge, 2016.

Kostof, Spiro. "A history of architecture: settings and rituals." New York: Oxford (1995).