Old St. Peter's Collage

Ground plans and reconstructions based on archaeological evidence as well as early 17th century drawings of Old St. Peter's offer an overview of the original building before construction began on new St. Peter's starting in the mid-15th century.   The plan of Old St. Peter's compared to the New St. Peter's including the great piazza constructed by Bernini ma_kd_old_sptr_cf_new_plan.gif     Italy, Rome, Old St. Peter's, plan (Krautheimer)   Italy, Rome, Ols St. Peter's, reconstruction of longitudinal cross-section (Arbeiter, 1988)     Italy, Rome, Old St. Peter's, drawing of the atrium looking toward the façade   Italy, Rome, Old St. Peter's, Nave looking east, Drawing by Grimaldi     Italy, Rome, Old St. Peters, nave wall, drawing by Grimaldi   Italy, Rome, Old St. Peters, nave wall, drawing by Grimaldi     This engraving by Piranesi showing the interior of San Paolo fuori le mura (outside the walls) in Rome provides a glimpse of the scale and character of the great early Christian basilicas   Italy, Rome, San Paolo, Piranesi engraving before the fire of 1823     The early Christian basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome captures the architectural characteristics of the early Christian basilica including the wide central nave flanked by aisles, the quality of light provided by the clerestory and the open timber roof construction.     Italy, Rome, Santa Sabina, Interior view of nave   Italy, Rome, Santa Sabina, Aisle     Italy, Rome, Santa Sabina, Interior view   Italy, Rome, Santa Sabina, Exterior view