page_title: Montemirabile Chapel (Santa Maria del Popolo)
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Montemirabile Chapel (Santa Maria del Popolo) / Description
caption_attribution_description: English: 15th-century parapet with the coats of arms of a Della Rovere cardinal in the Montemirabile Chapel in the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo.
context_page_description: The Montemirabile or Saint John the Baptist Chapel, otherwise the Baptistery is the first side chapel in the left aisle in the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo.
context_section_description: Although the chapel retained its basic architectural layout, many of its features were lost during the later alterations. The side walls of the windowless, hexagonal chapel are articulated by painted Corinthian pilasters decorated with tendrils, vases, flowers, animals, sphinxes, phantastic creatures and garlands on a yellow background, resting on a fake marble pedestal. These were created by the workshop of Pinturicchio. The vault is simply painted white. The keystone bears the escutcheon of Pope Sixtus IV encircled by an egg and dart moulding. The entrance arch of the chapel is painted to look like grey marble; it is decorated with a band of acanthus leaves and an egg and dart edge. 
  Aediculae
  The most valuable works of art in the chapel are the aediculae of the baptismal font and the holy oil (oleum sanctum) on either side of the main altar. They were assembled in 1657 from 15th-century marble fragments and integrated with new additions. The original pieces are exquisite sculptural works by the school of Andrea Bregno. Pico Cellini claimed that the sculptures of the saints in the shell-headed niches had previously decorated the rear side of Bregno's old main altar which was demolished in 1627 (the front side is kept in the sacristy). This theory remains disputed because that statues might have come from other demolished monuments in the basilica like the lost Borgia tombs. The identification of the four saints are uncertain except the figure of John the Baptist (with scroll and lamb) on the baptismal font and John the Evangelist (with chalice) on the font of the holy oil. The symbols, the haloes and the hair of the figures are gilded. The shafts of the Composite pilasters are decorated with ecclesiastical symbols: different types of crosses, cardinal's hats, torches, wreathes, palm branches, lamps. The shields with the crosses on the pilasters of the aedicula of the holy oil indicate that these parts came from the Cybo chapels. On the dropped friezes there are pairs of cherub heads between bunches of fruits. Inside the niche of the baptismal font there is a relief depicting the Baptism of Jesus. The coats of arms on the plinths belong to Cardinal Flavio Chigi.
  Parapet
  The 15th-century parapet with the coats-of-arms of a Della Rovere cardinal is probably the finest in the basilica. It shows a strong similarity to the parapet of the Della Rovere Chapel. The central motifs are the coats themselves which are surrounded by wreathes of fruit and fluttering ribbons. The white marble central slabs are flanked by dwarf pillars which are decorated with different types of shields and bunches of fruits, ears and flowers. There is a cross trefly on the large shield in the middle of the right door pillar. The matching shield on the other side is empty and the pillar has a rough, unfinished surface. There are many other subtle differences between the two sides: the wreath on the left is less closely set, and it contains acorns, ears of wheat and poppy pods, the ribbons on the left have tufts at their ends while those on the right have pretty flowers sprouting.
  Unusually the inner side of the parapet is decorated as well. The central motif on each slab is an antique wine jug and a palm branch placed crosswise. These are hanging from a knot of flowered ribbons and framed by a festoon of olive leaves that are ornamented with fluttering, flowered ribbons. There is a playful variedness in the ornamentation with a lot of slight differences between the two reliefs. 
  Tomb of Antoniotto Pallavicini
  The funeral monument of Cardinal Antoniotto Pallavicini on the left wall was made by the Bregno workshop. It was originally set up in the apse of the Old St. Peter's Basilica but a Dutch traveller, Aernout van Buchel glimpsed it in 1587 among various other discarded tombs and sculptures in the nave due to the ongoing demolition of the ancient church. According to the inscription on the sarcophagus "always having death in mind, Antoniotto Cardinal of S. Prassede, erected [this tomb] for himself while still alive, in the year 1501". The monument was
caption: Marble parapet slab
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