I Re Cattolici committenti di Bramante a Roma
In: Quaderni dell'Istituto di Storia dell'Architettura: n.s. 2019, 2020
DOI: 10.48255/1104
The Catholic Kings’ patronage of Bramante in Rome
When Bramante built the Tempietto, the Catholic Kings Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon were
already involved for more than twenty years in the restructuring of the entire complex of the monastery of
San Pietro in Montorio. The construction of the church, initially conceived as an act of thanksgiving for
the birth of Prince John (1478), actually spanned the last quarter of the fifteenth century, ending with the
building of the façade during the pontificate of Alexander VI (1500).
While the precise dates for building the Tempietto have oscillated for a long time between 1498-99
and 1512, we are now in a better position to ascribe it to the period immediately after 1502. This is
due to the emergence of new documentary evidence, a deeper understanding of the patrons’ role, and
the contributions of restorations and more recent surveys. Among the most famous monuments of the
Renaissance, the Tempietto was intended to celebrate both the memory of the martyrdom of St. Peter and
the messianic role of the Spanish monarchy on the threshold of modernity.