St Peter's Basilica Analysis

Without a doubt, two of the most notable and important religious buildings in the world are the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey and St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Italy. Both of these buildings were built to be the greatest structures of their time, meant to symbolize the strength and reach of Christianity as a whole. Their innovative architectural styles and grand aspirations laid the groundwork for them becoming the ultimate status symbols of power and tradition within the religious world throughout their history. Though similar in nature, differences between them in terms of their general characteristics can be useful in comparing the state of architecture, the Christian religion, and society itself during the era that each was built in.

Old St. Peter’s Basilica was completed in the year 360, roughly thirty years after construction began under the orders of the Roman Emperor Constantine I, otherwise known as Constantine the Great . The design was a typical basilica form, resembling many traditional Roman basilicas and audience halls at the time. It consisted of five aisles, a wide central nave, and two smaller aisles on each side of the nave, which were each divided by twenty-one marble columns taken from earlier pagan buildings . It got its historic name because Constantine went to great lengths to have it be built on the site of Saint Peter’s grave. This influenced the design because the site of the grave was located outside the boundaries of Vatican City, and as a result the apse with the altar was placed in the west of the church so that the basilica’s façade could be approached from Rome to the east. One of the distinguishing aspects about the physical structure of the church is the fact that it was built in the shape of...

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...ged on numerous occasions throughout its history and ultimately destroyed in 15th century. The new St. Peters was consecrated in 1626, and has carried on the legacy of its predecessor as a place of religious pilgrimage. It has been maintained and restored over the years and to this day remains one of the largest churches in the world. Because of its location in the Vatican, the current Pope attends a number of services throughout the year and it annually draws crowds as high as 80,000 people. As a work of architecture, like its predecessor it to is regarded as one of the greatest architectural buildings of its age. It draws on a number of similar design themes as the Old St. Peters, and what is ultimately clear is that along with the Hagia Sophia they remain two of the most iconic buildings in the world with a place in history that will live on for years to come.