San Lorenzo in Lucina

The Minor Basilica of St. Lawrence in Lucina (Italian: Basilica Minore di San Lorenzo in Lucina or simply Italian: San Lorenzo in Lucina; Latin: S. Laurentii in Lucina) is a Roman Catholic parish, titular church, and minor basilica in central Rome, Italy. The basilica is located in Piazza di San Lorenzo in Lucina in the Rione Colonna, about two blocks behind the Palazzo Montecitorio, proximate to the Via del Corso. History The basilica is dedicated to St. Lawrence of Rome, deacon and martyr. The name "Lucina" derives from that of the Roman matron of the AD 4th century who permitted Christians to erect a church on the site. Pope Marcellus I supposedly hid on the site during the persecutions of Roman Emperor Maxentius, and Pope Damasus I was elected there in AD 366. The consecration of a basilica dedicated to St Lawrence by Pope Sixtus III, who was Pope from AD 432 to AD 440 is mentioned in the Liber Pontificalis. Translator of the text, Louise Loomis, states that this basilica is the San Lorenzo fuori le Mura but notes that Arthur Frothingham believes it to be the church of San Lorenzo in Lucina. Frothingham makes note of Titulus Lucinae in a list of parish churches in Rome. In the preserved decrees of a synod held in AD 499 by Pope Symmachus, the denomination of a church as Titulus Lucinae is mentioned, which was the dedicated to St Lawrence, according to the translators of the manuscript. A basilica dedicated to St Lawrence is also mentioned under the Liber Pontificalis, The church was first reconstructed by Pope Paschal II in the early 12th century. The church was consecrated by Pope Celestine III on 26 May 1196. In 1606 Pope Paul V assigned the basilica to the order of Clerics Regular Minor. Cosimo Fanzago completely renovated the interior in the 17th century, including conversion of the side aisles of the basilica into chapels. The ceiling was also frescoed by the Neapolitan Mometto Greuter. In the 19th century, in a subsequent restoration of the interior commissioned by Pope Pius IX, the Baroque decoration of the nave was replaced with frescoes painted by Roberto Bompiani. The current Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Laurentii in Lucina is Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don, Archbishop of Colombo, Sri Lanka, who was appointed on 20 November 2010. Art and architecture In the rebuilding of 1650, the aisled basilical plan was destroyed and the lateral naves were replaced by Baroque chapels, which were then leased to noble families to decorate and use as mausolea. This was done by inserting walls behind the piers of the arcades. The arcades themselves have solid, square piers with imposts. The flat ceiling is coffered, gilded, and decorated with rosettes and has a painting of the Apotheosis of St. Lawrence in the central panel. This ceiling was made in 1857 under Pope Pius IX. Guido Reni's Christ on the Cross (1639–40) is visible above the high altar, framed by six Corinthian columns of black marble. Below the altar is a reliquary in which is preserved the gridiron on which tradition maintains that St. Lawrence was martyred. The marble throne of Pope Paschal II in the apse behind the high altar has an inscription that records the translation to the basilica of its relics of St. Lawrence of Rome. A Madonna and Child with John of Nepomuk and Archangel Michael by Onofrio Avellino hangs in the apse behind the high altar. Gian Lorenzo Bernini designed the Cappella Fonseca, fourth on the right, for the Portuguese Gabriele Fonseca, who was physician to Pope Innocent X (1644–55). The chapel has some fine busts by Bernini and his workshop, including a portrait of Fonseca to the left of the altar. This chapel also has the painting Elisha Pouring Salt into the Bitter Fountain by Giacinto Gimignani of 1664. The French artist Nicolas Poussin (1594–1665) is buried in the second chapel on the right side and is commemorated with a monument that the French Ambassador François-René de Chateaubriand donated in 1830. The second chapel on the left has an altarpiece by Carlo Saraceni. The fifth chapel on the left was designed and decorated by Simon Vouet. His two paintings depict St. Francis of Assisi: one shows him receiving his religious habit and the other depicts his temptations. The altarpiece shows St. Francis Appearing to Giacinta Marescotti on Her Deathbed by Marco Benefial. Giuseppe Sardi designed the baptistery to the left of the entrance in the 17th century. In the basilica is also the tomb of the composer Bernardo Pasquini (1637-1710). Three years after the composer's death, his portrait was placed there, sculpted in Carrara marble by Pietro Francesco Papaleo (circa 1642–1718). The portrait was a commission by the composer's nephew Felice Bernardo Ricordati and his pupil Bernardo Gaffi. Charles Stewart, an officer in the Papal army who died in 1864, is buried in the basilica. He was the son of John Stewart, Prince Charles Edward Stuart's ("Charles III", the "Young Pretender") "maestro di casa". Charles had ennobled John as a baronet in 1784. Just outside the Basilica is the original sculpture of When I was a Stranger, created by Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz as part of the Matthew 25 collection installed throughout Rome on the occasion of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy. The Basilica made international headlines in early 2026 when Italian newspaper La Repubblica noted that the restoration of a 2000 painting of an angel, flanking a bust of Umberto II, bore an apparent resemblance to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The Diocese of Rome said it would "immediately initiate the necessary investigations", while the painting in question was subsequently covered with a layer of paint or plaster. List of cardinal protectors Interments Pompeo Batoni (not visible) Josef Mysliveček Bernardo Pasquini Nicolas Poussin Charles Stewart Francesco Gonzaga (1538-1566) Filippo Calandrini See also San Silvestro in Capite Notes References M. E Bertoldi, "L'area archeologica di San Lorenzo in Lucina a Roma", Bollettino di archeologia, 13–15, 1992, 127–134. M. E. Bertoldi, S. Lorenzo in Lucina (Le chiese di Roma illustrate. Nuova serie 28), Roma 1994. M. E. Bertoldi, "Un documento di archivio sul battistero di S. Lorenzo in Lucina", Ultra terminum vagari. Scritti in onore di Carl Nylander a cura di Börje Magnusson et al., Roma 1997, 43–44. F. Bertozzi, "S. Lorenzo in Lucina," Roma Sacra 2, 1995, pp. 6-17. Olof Brandt, "Un'iscrizione riutilizzata da S. Lorenzo in Lucina", Rivista di Archeologia Cristiana 70, 1994, 197–201. Olof Brandt, "Sul battistero paleocristiano di S. Lorenzo in Lucina", Archeologia laziale XII (Quaderni di archeologia etrusco-italica 23), 1, Roma 1995, 145–150. Olof Brandt, "La seconda campagna di scavo nel battistero di S. Lorenzo in Lucina a Roma. Rapporto preliminare", Opuscula Romana 20, 1996, 271-274. Olof Brandt (ed.), "San Lorenzo in Lucina: The Transformations of a Roman Quarter." [Skrifter Utgivna av Svenska Institutet i Athen / Acta Instituti Atheniensis Regni Sueciae. 4°, 61.] Stockholm Rome 2012, ISBN 9789170421792. Clark, Anthony Morris (1981). Studies in Roman Eighteenth-Century Painting. Decatur House Press, Limited. ISBN 978-0-916276-10-2. Hüls, Rudolf (1977). Kardinäle, Klerus und Kirchen Roms: 1049–1130 (in German). Bibliothek des Deutschen Historischen Instituts in Rom. ISBN 978-3-484-80071-7. R. Krautheimer, Corpus basilicarum christianarum Romae. The early Christian basilicas of Rome, 2, Città del Vaticano 1959, 178–179. D. Mondini, "S. Lorenzo in Lucina", in: P. C. Claussan, D. Mondini, D. Senekovic, Die Kirchen der Stadt Rom im Mittelalter 1050–1300, Band 3 (G-L), Stuttgart 2010, pp. 261–309, ISBN 978-3-515-09073-5 Luigi Salerno, S. Lorenzo in Lucina in Via del Corso (Roma 1961). G. De Spirito, "Basilica S. Laurentii in Lucina", Lexicon Topographicum Urbis Romae III, Roma 1996, 183–185. Titi, Filippo (1763). Descrizione delle Pitture, Sculture e Architetture esposte in Roma. Marco Pagliarini, Rome. pp. 367–369. Fillipo Titi. Tymowska, Wanda; Mérot, Alain; Gallo, Daniela (2002). Marco Benefial: état de la question. Paris: Mémoire de DEA : Histoire de l'art : Paris 4. External links Official website of the Vicariate of Rome http://spazioinwind.libero.it/lucina "The basilica of San Lorenzo in Lucina and the Lovatti Chapel in Rome". by Maurilio Lovatti Media related to San Lorenzo in Lucina (Rome) at Wikimedia Commons