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Basilica
The Splendor and the Scandal:  Building St. Peter's

by R. A. Scotti

Without a doubt, St. Peter's Basilica is the grandest architectural undertaking of the High Renaissance. I had the privilege of visiting it this summer, and it was one of the greatest experiences of my life. I was literally awe-struck by the grandeur and size of this magnificent building.  After reading R. A. Scotti's beautifully written history, I am further dazzled by the genius that was required to accomplish this monument to God's glory. Having read this book made my tour of the Basilica of St. Peter so much more meaningful.

Constantine built the original Basilica over the apostle, Peter's, grave but, in 1506, the fiercely ambitious Pope Julius II decided to demolish this sacred shrine.  He wanted to build a better one. The new structure was not completed in his lifetime...construction of the new St. Peter's covered two centuries. The greatest artists and architects of the age – Michelangelo, Bramante, Raphael, and Bernini – worked for a succession of twenty-seven popes. This new Basilica and the controversy surrounding it, the assassination attempts, the decadence, and the uncontrolled costs divided the Christian world for all time, according to the author. 

In this absorbing story of the construction of the Basilica of St. Peter in Rome, Scotti brings to life the artists and the popes, the politics and the passions of this exciting time in the world history.  There was Julius II, who laid the cornerstone in 1506; Leo X, the Medici pope whose extravagant spending fueled the resentment toward the papacy that divided the Christian world; Clement VII and his tumultuous rein, during which Rome was sacked by Emperor Charles V; and Sixtus V, who restored the ravaged city and pushed to have the great dome completed during his lifetime. Michelangelo, who designed the present dome, reluctantly accepted the job when he was 71 years old.

There are some errors in Scotti's description of building methods and materials used at the time, and maybe even on the effect that the corruption and costs had on the Protestant Reformation, rather than the theological issues that did fuel the split, but the liveliness of the narrative more than makes up for these inconsistencies. The book is highly readable and difficult to put down.

The Book

Viking/Penguin Group
June 8, 2006
Trade Paperback
978-0-7394-7994-0
Nonfiction/History
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Excerpt
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The Reviewer

Beverly J. Rowe

Reviewed 2007
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© 2007 MyShelf.com