COLLECTION NAME:
Archivision Base to Module 9
Record
Preferred Title:
Lateran Basilica: Aisles and Tombs
Alternate Title:
Saint John Lateran: Aisles and Tombs
Image View:
Chapel of St. John the Evangelist, side view of chapel
Creator:
Alexander VII, Pope (Italian patron, 1599-1667); Francesco Borromini (Italian architect, 1599-1667)
Location:
site: Lateran Basilica (Rome, Lazio, Italy)
Date:
1646-1649 (creation)
Cultural Context:
Italian
Style Period:
Baroque
Work Type 1:
monument
Work Type 2:
tomb
Classification:
architecture
Material:
stone; stucco
Technique:
carving (processes); construction (assembling)
Subjects:
death or burial; rulers and leaders; Alexander VII, Pope, 1599-1667; interior
Description:
Borromini's final contribution to the decoration of the Lateran Basilica were the tombs in the side aisles commissioned by Alexander VII. They are a fanciful combination of medieval fragments and Baroque frames; mainly owing to the skilful handling of illusionistic perspectives these hybrid creations offer a spectacle of opposing forces crowded within the narrowest space. Alexander condemned them as being 'too Gothic'. This was not intended as a comment on their style but rather implied that the innovative combination of classical elements produced an uncanonical ensemble alien to the conservative Pope. (Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.groveart.com/)
Collection:
Archivision Base Collection
Identifier:
1A1-BF-SG-2-B1
Rights:
© Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc.
Lateran Basilica: Aisles and Tombs
