Photos of St. Peter’s Square and Basilica

At the spiritual center of the world's smallest state

La basilique Saint-Pierre et l'obélisque
Place Pie XII et la Via della Conciliazione
L'obélisque Place Saint-Pierre de Rome
La fontaine du Bernin
Un garde suisse au service du public
Les colonnes de la place Saint-Pierre
Visite de la place Saint-Pierre
Les appartements du pape
Fontaine du Bernin devant la basilique St-Pierre
Des touristes place Saint-Pierre
Un matin tranquille sur la place Saint-Pierre
Obélisque devant la basilique Saint-Pierre
Fontaine place Saint-Pierre
Vue sur Saint-Pierre depuis la Piazza Pia
Fontaine place Saint-Pierre
La garde suisse et ses célèbres uniformes
Préparation d'une messe place Saint-Pierre
Peinture sur une porte de la basilique
Statue de Sainte-Thérèse d'Avila
Nef de la basilique Saint-Pierre
Monument funéraire de Grégoire XIII
Riches décorations dans la basilique St Pierre
Monument Alexandre VII, le Bernin
Peinture de la basilique St-Pierre
Statue de Saint-Pierre d'Arnolfo di Cambiao
La coupole de la basilique Saint-Pierre
Visite de la basilique Saint-Pierre
Autel latéral dans la basilique Saint-Pierre
Vitrail du Saint-Esprit de Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Visite de l'intérieur de la basilique St-Pierre
Tombeau du pape Innocent XI
Autel de la basilique Saint-Pierre de Rome

The St. Peter’s Basilica, located in the Vatican, is the main church of Catholicism, not only from a spiritual point of view but also because of its size. It was Emperor Constantine who initiated the construction of this majestic building, in 319 A.D. Apart from Masses and services, visiting the Basilica is free, but expect to wait one to two hours to enter, due to security checks.

St. Peter’s square was built after the basilica. It was commissioned to Bernini by Pope Alexander VII. Bernini imagined the square as a space made up of two arms that welcomed the crowd of pilgrims. These two arms are in fact composed of 284 columns topped by the statues of 140 saints. Two large fountains frame an Egyptian obelisk from Caligula’s former circus.

The visit of the Basilica of St. Peter in Rome was made on April 26, 2010.

Click on the picture to enlarge it and discover its caption.

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