San Bernardo alle Terme

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Map

San Bernardo alle Terme

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The late 16th century church of San Bernardo alle Terme was built into the remains of an ancient circular building that originally formed part of the Baths of Diocletian. The church is dedicated to St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153).

St Bernard Holding the Cross

The fresco in the ornate Baroque frame depicts St Bernard Holding the Cross.

Interior

The interior is dominated by the eight large stucco statues of saints, the work of the sculptor Camillo Mariani (1567-1611), who completed them circa 1600. Beginning at the right, the saints are: St Augustine, St Monica, St Mary Magdalene, St Francis of Assisi, St Bernard, St Catherine of Alexandria, St Catherine of Siena and St Jerome.

The two side chapels contrast with the rest of the church in having polychrome marble fittings. The chapel on the left is dedicated to St Robert of Molesmes, who is regarded as the original founder of the Cistercians. The altarpiece depicts The Mystic Marriage of St Robert to Our Lady and is by Giovanni Odazzi.

Chapel of St Bernard

The chapel on the right is dedicated to St Bernard. The altarpiece, also by Odazzi, depicts The Ecstasy of St Bernard, and refers to a vision that the saint had of Christ descending from the cross to embrace him. ​

Dome

The structure of San Bernardo is similar to that of the Pantheon (albeit on a smaller scale), a cylinder (22 metres in diameter) capped with a cofferred dome and an oculus.

Funerary Monument to Johann Friedrich Overbeck

The Chapel of St Francis is accessed through the door to the right of the sanctuary. The altar has a stucco statue of St Francis Receiving the Stigmata by Giacomo Fancelli.  

The chapel is home to the funerary monument of the German painter Johann Friedrich Overbeck (1789-1869), founder of the group of artists known as the Nazarenes, who moved to Rome in 1810 and lived there for the rest of his long life. The  monument is by Karl Hoffmann. 

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