Artwork
Interior of Saint Peter's, Rome
Interior of Saint Peter's, Rome is an oil painting by the Rococo painting artist Giovanni Paolo Panini. It dates from 1754 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
- Inscription
- Inscribed:around the collar of the cupola: [CA]ELORVM TV ES PETRVS ET SV[PER HANC PETRAM AEDIFICABO ECCLESIAM MEAM ET TIBI DABO CLAVES REGNI]; on the ceiling of the nave, the arms of Pope Paul V, encircled by: PAVLVS.V.PONT.MAX.A.MDCXV; on arcophagus above first doorway on right: INNOCENT. XIII. / PONT.MAX.; on upper relief roundel on the first pier at left: S GELASIVUS; on lower roundel on the second pier at left: S. SIXTUS; on upper roundel on right pier: S. CAIVUS; on lower roundel on right pier: S. MARCVS; on second pier: S. TELESCO
About this work
Subject & Meaning
As a work in the religious genre, it presents the vast architectural space as a magnificent and spacious setting.
The painting depicts the interior of Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome, viewed from a perspective described as the most favorable and advantageous for lighting effects. As a work in the religious genre, it presents the vast architectural space as a magnificent and spacious setting. The composition is enriched by figures distributed with artistic intent, which historically served to illustrate the ceremonial entry of Étienne-François, duc de Choiseul, during his ambassadorship to Rome.
This inclusion of specific figures transforms the architectural view into a record of a significant diplomatic event, celebrating the grandeur of the site while commemorating the patron's presence.
Technique & Style
Giovanni Paolo Panini's Interior of Saint Peter's, Rome (1754) is executed in oil paint on canvas. The work measures 154.5 cm in height and 197 cm in width. Classified within the religious genre, the painting demonstrates the artist's characteristic handling of architectural space and light.
Contemporary documentation from 1787 describes the composition as rich and notes that the figures are distributed with artistic intent to enhance the favorable and happy effects of illumination within the vast interior. The surface retains the formal qualities of a mid-eighteenth-century veduta, balancing precise architectural rendering with populated narrative elements.
History & Provenance
Painted in 1754 by Giovanni Paolo Panini, this oil on canvas likely originated in the collection of Étienne-François, duc de Choiseul. It appeared in a Paris sale on December 12, 1787, described as depicting the interior of Saint Peter's with ceremonial figures honoring the Duke's ambassadorship. The work possibly passed to the painter Hubert Robert and his wife, Anne-Gabrielle Soos, before being sold in Paris in November 1821.
Subsequent owners included William Lowther, 2nd Earl of Lonsdale, who sold it at Christie's in London in 1887, and Algernon George De Vere, 8th Earl of Essex, who dispersed it from Cassiobury in 1923. After appearing at the Sackville Gallery in 1924, the painting entered the collection of Count Alessandro Contini Bonacossi in Rome. Following the Count's death, his heirs sold the work through M. Friedenberg to Thomas Agnew & Sons in 1967, and the National Gallery of Art acquired it the following year.
Interior of Saint Peter's, Rome by Giovanni Paolo Panini has been in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., since 1968, when it was purchased through Thomas Agnew & Sons, London, from M. Friedenberg. The work is catalogued under accession number 1968.13.2. Before entering the NGA, the painting passed through several distinguished owners, including the duc de Choiseul at Château de Chanteloup, Hubert Robert and his wife in Paris, the 2nd earl of Lonsdale in London, and the 8th earl of Essex at Cassiobury, Hertfordshire. It was also shown at the Sackville Gallery in London in 1924.
The painting was exhibited and sold multiple times during the 19th and early 20th centuries, with documented sales in Paris in 1787 and 1821, at Christie's in London in 1887, and through Knight, Frank & Rutley in London in 1923.
Overview
Giovanni Paolo Panini’s oil on canvas, dated around 1754, depicts the vast interior of Rome’s Saint Peter’s Basilica. The composition presents the nave’s soaring ceiling, a succession of arches and columns, and a multitude of sculptural and painted decorations, rendered with a luminous palette that emphasizes the space’s grandeur.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Giovanni Paolo, also known as Gian Paolo Panini or Pannini (17 June 1691 – 21 October 1765), was an Italian Baroque painter and architect who worked in Rome and is primarily known as one of the vedutisti ("view painters").
Interior of St. Peter's, Rome
Interior of St Peter's Cathedral in Rome
The Nave of St Peter's, Rome
Interior of St Peter's, Rome
Interior of St Peter's, Rome
Transept of St. Peter's, Rome
Interior of St. Peter’s, with the Illumination of the Cross of St. Peter
View of St. Peter's Square, Rome
Vatican, St. Peter's Basilica