St. Peter's Basilica

One of the largest churches in the world, with a dome designed by Michelangelo; the heart of Catholicism.

Catholic tradition holds that Saint Peter, one of Jesus's closest followers, is buried beneath its main altar. The basilica took 120 years to build, from 1506 to 1626, and some of the greatest artists of the Renaissance worked on it, including Donato Bramante, Michelangelo, Carlo Maderno and Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Up to 60,000 people can stand inside it at once.

History

An earlier church, now called Old St. Peter's, was begun on this spot by the Roman emperor Constantine between 319 and 333. More than a thousand years later, in April 1506, work started on a grand new basilica to replace it. Bramante made the first design, Michelangelo later shaped the great dome, and Carlo Maderno completed the building. The new basilica was dedicated in November 1626, so 2026 marks its 400th anniversary. Deep under the floor, archaeologists searched for Peter's grave, and in 1950 Pope Pius XII announced that his tomb had been found.

What's inside

The basilica is about 220 metres long and 150 metres wide, and the top of the dome stands about 137 metres above the ground. Among its most famous treasures is Michelangelo's marble sculpture, the Pietà. Over the main altar rises Bernini's baldachin, a gigantic bronze canopy, and at the far end of the church is his Chair of Saint Peter. In the four huge pillars that hold up the dome stand giant statues of Saints Longinus, Helena, Veronica and Andrew. Outside, statues of Peter and Paul, each 5.55 metres tall, guard the front steps.

Visiting today

Visitors can go up into the dome, partly by lift, to look down into the church far below and out across the rooftops of Rome. Underneath the basilica, guided tours follow an ancient path through the Vatican Necropolis, an old underground cemetery, to the place believed to be Peter's tomb, beneath the foundations of Constantine's first church. The year 2026 is special too, because it marks 400 years since the basilica was dedicated.

On the globe

The model shows the great basilica in Vatican City crowned by Michelangelo's huge dome. Zoom in to compare the dome with the long church in front of it.