Sant'Agostino

Today's photos

1. The facade of the church of Sant'Agostino.

2. Caravaggio's Madonna dei pellegrini.

3. Chapel of the Madonna del parto.

4. A close-up of the Madonna del parto.

5. The tomb of Saint Monica.

6. The main altar by Bernini.

7. Raphael's Isaia and the sculpture of Saint Ann, Mary and Jesus, by Sansovino.

8. A close-up of the Sansovino sculpture.

9. This mosaic is not in the church, but I wanted to show mother and son together.

In a tiny, crowded and inconspicuous piazza near the north end of the more famous Piazza Navona, stands one of Rome's earliest Renaissance churches, Sant'Agostino (Saint Augustine). The church is often overlooked by tourists, despite its location in the middle of the historic center. Making the church seem even more dominant in the piazza is the fact that it is preceded by a high and steep marble stairway. As everybody knows, every church in Rome has its own history, its own works of art and its own curiosities, and Sant'Agostino is no exception. It was begun in 1479 and finished in 1482.

A curiosity

If you want to see a piece of the Colosseum without actually going to the Colosseum, all you need do is stand in front of this church and look at the facade (photo 1) which was made using travertine stone taken from the famous amphitheater. Another example of pagan material turned into Christian use.

La Madonna dei Pellegrini

One of the most famous works of art in the church is the Madonna dei Pellegrini (the Madonna of the pilgrims) by Caravaggio (photo 2). It depicts two elderly pilgrims kneeling at the feet of Mary who is holding the Christ child in her arms. But this representation of Mary is unlike those serene, pious-looking scenes we usually see surrounding the subjects of Mary and the Child. No praying angels and soft, pastel colors here. The pilgrims are dressed in rags, and their dirty, bare feet are in full view. Mary is also in her bare feet, standing in the doorway of what appears to be a dilapidated building. She holds the naked Child in her arms. The only concession made by the artist to the usual depictions of saints is the barely visible halo over the heads of Mary and Jesus. The painting provoked outcries of scandal when it was first placed in the church.

La Madonna del Parto

Perhaps the most interesting statue in the church is the Madonna del Parto (the Madonna of child-birth) which has been associated with various miraculous cures. As its name suggests, it is a statue before which prayers are said for the safe birth of a child. The statue is located in the rear of the church between two entrances; it is filled with ex-voto (votive offerings) left in thanksgiving for a successful birth (photo 3).

A curiosity

A popular tradition holds that this sculpture was adapted from an ancient Roman statue of Agrippina, the mother of the emperor Nero, and that the child she is holding represents the infant Nero. And if you look at it carefully, it does seem to have a similar facial expression as is seen on other statues which depict Agrippina (photo 4). This would be yet another example of a pagan object turned into Christian use.

The cult of this statue as intercessor in child-birth goes back only to the 1800s when a young worker, Leonardo Bracci, prayed to the Madonna to protect his pregnant wife and unborn child. When the baby was born and both mother and child were healthy, Leonardo donated oil to keep a perpetual flame burning before the statue. Since that time this Madonna has been considered the protector of women in child-birth.

The tomb of Saint Monica

A most sacred and revered area of the church is the chapel to the left as you face the main altar. Buried beneath the altar of this chapel is the body of Saint Monica, the mother of Saint Augustine. She died in the year 287 at Ostia, the ancient seaport of Rome, as she and Augustine were preparing to sail back to their home in Hyppo, North Africa. Monica was originally buried in Ostia, but her body was transferred into this chapel shortly after the church was built in 1482 (photo 5). In his Confessions Augustine gives a moving account of his mother's sudden illness and death.

Next to the chapel of Saint Monica is the main altar of the church, a spectacular work by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (photo 6). It displays a Byzantine Madonna said to have been painted by St. Luke the Evangelist.

Isaia and Saint Ann

There are also two superb works of art in the center aisle: a beautiful fresco of the prophet Isaia by Raphael and a statue-group of Saint Ann, Mary and the Christ-child (photo 7). Just think, this is Jesus with his mother and his grandmother! The piece was carved from a single block of marble in 1512 by Andrea Sansovino (photo 8).

The church of the courtesans

This church also has the dubious reputation of having been known as the “church of the courtesans” in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Courtesans were prostitutes whose clients were wealthy and powerful aristocrats, politicians and even clergymen.

A curiosity

The first three pews in the church were reserved for the courtesans so that the faithful would not be distracted during the services by seeing them face to face. Some of these high-class prostitutes were even buried in the church, including the infamous Fiammetta, the lover of Cesare Borgia, the son of Alexander VI Borgia (1492-1503).