St. Ivo, St. Agnese and St. Peter's
One of the most spectacular views of central Rome can be
seen from the roof garden terrace of our hotel. Here
we see aligned the cupolae of Borromini's church of St. Ivo alla
Sapienza, C. Rainaldi and Borromini's St. Agnese in
Agone and in the distance Michelangelo's St. Peter's.
A masterpiece of
Roman Baroque architecture, St. Ivo alla Sapienza,
designed by Borromini, was begun under the pontificate of
Urban VIII in 1643. The drum of the dome is surmounted by
a graded convex segment that counter-balances the concave
hemicycle of the extant courtyard designed by della Porta
a century earlier. The concave lantern, pictured here,
topped by a spiral ramp terminates in a flaming laurel
wreath (symbol of wisdom and knowledge = sapienza) is
encrusted with the heraldic iconography of the Pamphilj
Pope, Innocent X who succeeded Urban VIII in 1644.
The plan of St. Ivo is based
on the intersection of two equilateral triangles (think
of a Star of David) whose points act as chapels of
alternating convex and concave forms. This shape is echoed
throughout the centralized interior right up through the
apex of the dome. The interior is decorated with
beautiful stucco cherubim and seraphim, a distinct
Borrominian signature. The dome is also articulated with
Chigi monti (mounts) and stars - heraldry of Pope
Alexander VII who completed the church in 1660.