Santa Maria in Campitelli

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Map of the Churches of Rome

Santa Maria in Campitelli

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The Baroque church of Santa Maria in Campitelli, also known as Santa Maria in Portico, was built as the shrine for a tiny icon of the Madonna and Child, which was believed to have stopped an outbreak of the plague in 1656. 

Lantern

The church was designed by Carlo Rainaldi (1611-91) and built between 1658 and 1667. The inscription on the facade reads: SPQR VOTVM S ALEXAN VII P M S MARIAE IN PORTICV A FVNDAM POS A D M D C L X V. ​

Nave

The nave is barrel-vaulted with three chapels on each side; the middle two of which are very large.

The beautiful silver-gilt and enamel icon, known as the Madonna del Portico, which is thought to date from the 13th century, sits above the high altar in the centre of a dramatic burst of golden rays. 

High Altar

The icon is only 25 cm high, which makes it very difficult to see from the nave. 

The high altar has been attributed to Giovanni Antonio de Rossi, with help from Ercole Ferrata and Johann Paul Schor. The fresco in the vault of the apse was painted by Giovan Battista Conti (1878-1971) and depicts Pope Alexander VI Offering the Church to the Virgin Mary (1925).  

The Altieri Chapel

The first chapel on the left is the Cappella Altieri, which was designed in the first decade of the 18th century. It is dedicated to St Joseph and the Blessed Ludovica Albertoni (1473-1533). The fine marble altarpiece is by Lorenzo Ottoni (1658-1736) and depicts The Holy Family appearing to Blessed Ludovica Albertoni in a Vision. 
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The identical tombs on the side walls belong to Angelo Altieri and his wife Vittoria Parabiacchi. Each tomb bears just a single word: NIHIL (Nothing) and VMBRA (Shadow). 

Vault

The fresco in the vault, which depicts The Assumption of the Virgin Mary, is by the Roman painter Giuseppe Passeri (c. 1610-79). 

Chapel of San Giovanni Leonardi

The second chapel on the left is dedicated to San Giovanni Leonardi (1541-1609), the founder of the Clerks Regular of the Mother of God (Ordo Clericorum Regularium Matris Dei), who is enshrined in front of the altar. 

Tomb of San Giovanni Leonardi

However, the chapel was originally dedicated to St John the Baptist, as is clear from its decoration. It was designed by Giovanni Battista Contini (1642-1723), and commissioned by Cardinal Paluzzo Paluzzi Altieri degli Albertoni, an adopted nephew of Pope Clement X (r. 1670-76), who died in 1698.

​The vault fresco of St John the Baptist in Glory (1683) has been attributed to Giacinto Calandrucci (1646-1707). The altarpiece depicts the Apotheosis of San Giovanni Leonardi (1860) by Marcello Sozzi. However, the ribbon inscription (above the painting) still proclaims: NON SVRREXIT MAIOR IOANNE BAPTISTA. ​​​​

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