The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-09-03
RRoONsTR uCrED ny PIus X.


No one has ever been to Rome without
gazing In admiration upon the beauty Of the
grand mosaic which covers the vault the upper
portion of the wall, aud lines the windows of
the aIse of the great Iasilica of ~. John Lat
eran. In few days that mosaic will he lying
upon the ground, either In quantity OF mum
bered pto1es or "A more or loss irreparable mass
Of rubbish. according IA the process of detaChng
It from the wall may be successful or not. And
who can tell This operation carried out. the
ar@e itself Is to be lcvelted with the ground. In
order that the Baslican plan may be converted
into that Of Latin cross, by the construction
Of the upper limb, which the clerical papers
describe as having been hitherto wanting, az be-
ING fe1rSn 70 gVs sIG,ent spne Tor tme
necessary to the decoruin Of the hdter It Cdp'd
OF all the churches.
From many points of view the mosaic is one
OF the most Important In Rome. IL forms the
only connecting link between the works Of
earlier date aud those IN the trlbunes Of sta.
Marta Maggiore ~. Clemente, and sta. Maria In
Trasteverc, while at the same time II affords ex-
ample OF different periods ~ work manshlp har-
moniOusly blended together. In the upper
third ~ the miraculous head OF the Saviour on a
deep blue groundwork surrounded by angels,
and this part Il believed To date from the time
Of Leo l. II IL probable that the lower portion
was destroyed during one Of the fires. and re-
placed with that we now see representing The
John the Baptist, St. John the Evangelist and
1T. Andrew, standing three on each side OF a
great jewclled cross. Again II was Injured and
repaired by Jacobus Torru, the master who
wrought that Ia the apae of Sta. Maria Maggiore
and who introduced the smaller figures OF st.
placing at the same time his own name In the
left-hand corner Then, between the windows,
are nine grand Prophets, the work OF another
Jacobus, In all probability the monk who In Lss..5
made the mosaic In the tribune adjoining the
Baptistery OF ~. Giovanni at Florence.
But, even supposing that the mosaic should
pass with comparative safety through the Inn
minent danger Of utter destruction to which II
II about to he subjected. and finally reappear In
no very different state On the niche to he built
at the head Of the Latin cross, vet the improve
ments to he made viii entirely destroy all that
remains Of the iiasilican character Of the edi1ce
no longer the same that had been erected by
Constantine. II retained its original form. and
the nave was divided from the double asiles on
each side by lines Of columns. These were
buried In pairs within the clumsy piasters sub
stitutcd In 1850 by iionominu by order OF limo
cent Y. Then Clement XII. nearly century
later, continued the Improvements. and the
old front with it, portico and frescoes by Giotto,
gave place to the actual FACADE. Ia what
considered the better taste Ot the period But the
apse. with It's grand mosaic. remained. and the
liasilican plan was, in the main. preserved until
now. when Plus TX. has resolved to complete
the transformation 10y giving the church the
better form ~ a Latin cross. with big statues
IN two great pilastels on each side Of the upper
limb. like those In the nave, so that henccforth
the mother and head Of all the churches will
bear no more resemblance to its original form,
or tn the edincc IN which the Christians OF early
centuries won hpped than does the Roman re-
igion of the present day To the solemnity Of the
simpler faith they followed.
Plus IN. has undertaken TO bear the expense
OF this, which will amount TO about b,GcUo
francs.