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WALKING TOURS OF ROME

Pope Innocent VIII & the Holy Lance

28/12/2019

 
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Funerary monument of Pope Innocent VIII, St Peter's Basilica, Rome
Funerary monument to Pope Innocent VIII (det.), St Peter's Basilica

The oldest funerary monument in St Peter's Basilica is that to Pope Innocent VIII (r. 1484-92), the work of the Florentine sculptor Antonio del Pollaiuolo (c. 1433-98). The monument originally stood in the Constantinian Basilica and was transferred to the new church in 1621.

​In the upper part of the monument Innocent VIII holds what looks like a small spade, but which is, in fact, part of the lance that pierced the side of Christ. 
According to the Gospel of St. John: "one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water" (19:34, KJV).

For centuries this relic of the Holy Lance was kept in Constantinople. However, in 1492, shortly before his death, the pope received it as a gift from the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid II (r. 1481-1512). The Holy Lance is also known as the Lance of Longinus, the name given to the soldier, who, according to tradition, later converted to Christianity. 

The pope is flanked by reliefs of the four cardinal virtues: Prudence, Justice, Fortitude and Temperance. In the lunette above are the three theological virtues: Faith, Hope and Charity. 

At the base of the monument, Innocent VIII lies on his sarcophagus. This is an inexplicable inversion of the original monument, which had the recumbent figure at the top.

The inscription on the sepulchre makes the erroneous claim that the discovery of the New World (NOVI ORBIS) took place during his pontificate, when, in fact, Innocent VIII died little over a week after Columbus set sail. 

Funerary monument of Pope Innocent VIII, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome
Funerary monument of Pope Innocent VIII
Funerary monument of Pope Innocent VIII, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome
Funerary monument of Pope Innocent VIII (det.)

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    My name is David Lown and I am an art historian from Cambridge, England. Since 2001 I have lived in Italy, where I run private and
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  • Home
  • Private Tours
  • Contact
  • Rome
  • St Peter's Basilica
    • Altars >
      • Altar of St Joseph
      • Altar of St Gregory the Great
      • Altar of the Madonna of Succour
      • Altar of St Sebastian
      • Altar of the Lie
      • Altar of the Presentation of the Virgin
      • Altar of St Jerome
      • Altar of the Transfiguration
      • Altar of Pope Leo the Great
    • Monuments >
      • Countess Matilda of Canossa
      • Maria Clementina Sobieska
      • Queen Christina of Sweden
      • Pope Innocent VIII
      • Pope Paul III
      • Pope Gregory XIII
      • Pope Gregory XIV
      • Pope Leo XI
      • Pope Urban VIII
      • Pope Alexander VII
      • Pope Clement X
      • Pope Innocent XI
      • Pope Alexander VIII
      • Pope Innocent XII
      • Pope Benedict XIV
      • Pope Clement XIII
      • Pope Pius VII
      • Pope Leo XII
      • Pope Pius VIII
      • Pope Gregory XVI
      • Pope Pius X
      • Pope Benedict XV
      • Pope Pius XI
      • Pope Pius XII
      • Pope John XXIII
      • The Stuarts
    • Portico >
      • Door of Death
      • Door of Good and Evil
      • Central Door
      • Door of the Sacraments
      • Holy Door
    • Pieta
    • Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament
    • Cathedra Petri
    • Crossing >
      • Baldacchino
      • Confessio
      • Dome
      • St Longinus
      • St Helena
      • St Veronica
      • St Andrew
    • St Peter
    • Chapel of the Choir
    • Chapel of the Baptistery
    • Nave
  • Sistine Chapel
    • North Wall
    • South Wall
    • East Wall
    • Ceiling: Part One >
      • Ceiling: Part Two
      • Ceiling: Part Three
    • The Last Judgement
  • Fountains
    • Trevi Fountain
    • Fontana della Barcaccia
    • Fountain of the Triton
    • Fountain of the Bees
    • Fountain of Moses
    • Fountain of the Four Rivers
    • Fountain of the Acqua Paola
    • Fountain of the Turtles
    • Fountain of the Naiads
    • Fountain of the Cannonball
    • Piazza del Popolo
    • Fountain of the Pantheon
    • Fountains of Piazza Farnese
    • Fountain of Goddess Roma
    • Rioni Fountains
    • Street Fountains
    • Venice Marries the Sea
    • St Peter's Square
    • Fountain of the Moor
    • Fountain of Neptune
    • Fountain of the Porter
    • Fountain of the Seahorses
  • Gallery
    • Piazzas >
      • Piazza del Campidglio
      • Piazza del Quirinale
      • Piazza del Popolo
      • Piazza di Spagna
      • Piazza Navona
      • Piazza S. M. in Trastevere
      • Piazza San Pietro
    • Mosaics
    • Fountains
    • Churches
    • Ancient Rome
    • Palaces
    • Domes
    • Papal Coats of Arms
    • Street Shrines
    • Old Photographs
    • Borromini & the Baroque
  • Images of the Eternal City