★★★★★ 5.0
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Church of Jesus and Mary
The year is 1681, and sculptor Domenico Guidi unveils something Romans have never seen before... a dancing skeleton wrapped in a funeral shroud, grinning at an hourglass as if mocking time itself. This macabre masterpiece guards the entrance to Gesù e Maria, but it's just the beginning of the story hidden inside these travertine walls. Stand before Carlo Rainaldi's deceptively simple facade from 1674, and you'd never guess what lies within. Between 1678 and 1690, Bishop Giorgio Bolognetti of Rieti transformed this church into his family's eternal home, spending a fortune to cover every surface in ornate marble. His relatives sleep beneath your feet in the presbytery floor—fourteen family members buried here until Napoleon's 1805 edict ended the practice. Another monument by Ercole Ferrata, both students of the great Bernini, shows Father Time himself tearing apart a banner bearing a dead man's name. But here's what makes this place truly extraordinary... Since 1992, this has been Rome's longest-running traditionalist Catholic worship site, where Latin Mass echoes through Giacinto Brandi's golden Coronation of the Virgin just as it did three centuries ago. The Bolognettis built themselves a heaven on earth—and accidentally preserved a portal to Rome's Baroque soul.
Did You Know?
- Built for the Discalced Augustinians, the Church of Jesus and Mary (Gesù e Maria) was constructed between 1633 and 1675 on Via del Corso, replacing an earlier church dedicated to Saint Anthony the Abbot that stood on land once owned by the powerful Colonna family. Its Baroque facade and ornate marble interiors were designed by notable architects Carlo Buzio and Carlo Rainaldi, reflecting the artistic ambitions of 17th-century Rome.
- The church holds a unique distinction as a cardinalate deaconry, established by Pope Paul VI in 1967 under the formal title 'Santissimi Nomi di Gesù e Maria in Via Lata'—a nod to Rome’s ancient street names and its elevated status in the Church hierarchy. This makes it not just a parish church, but a site of broader ecclesiastical importance.
- Gesù e Maria is celebrated for its lavish Baroque interior, including a main altar decorated with precious marbles commissioned by Bishop Giorgio Bolognetti in the late 1600s. The church’s history as a convent for the Discalced Augustinians—a reform movement seeking a simpler, more devout life—adds a layer of spiritual and cultural significance, contrasting with its opulent decoration.