Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary

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Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary
Santa Corona
Contrà Santa Corona
Vicenza, May 2025

“As a thanksgiving for the victory at the Battle of Lepanto, to which Vicenza contributed two ships, the Confraternity of the Rosary erected this large chapel—the fourth on the right—completed in 1619, on the site previously occupied by two smaller 15th-century chapels of the Nievo and Monza families. To add height and integrate the chapel with the church, the right nave’s vault was demolished and replaced with a higher ceiling with a grand scenic effect; the imposing entrance arch to the nave is echoed inside. Ten years later, a majestic altar of light and gray marble was erected, featuring polychrome statues of Saint Thomas and Saint Catherine of Siena—the patrons of the two previous chapels—flanking the Virgin of the Rosario, from whose starry crown rays of light emanate throughout the niche. In the intrados of the niche, fifteen painted octagons depict the Mysteries of the Rosary. Above the archivolt, three cherubs symbolize the Virginity of Merciful Mary (with the attribute of a cedar), Divine Grace (with a cornucopia), and Prudence (with a mirror and serpent). The two statues on the entablature are allegories of Meekness (holding a lamb) and Temperance (flanked by a camel). Above the attic, three putti symbolize Purity (with a dove), the Holy Spirit (a dove resting with spread wings on its head), and Providence (with a rudder).” (Santa Corona, Wikipedia)

L'adorazione dei Magi

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‘L'adorazione dei Magi’ by Paolo Veronese
Chapel of St. Joseph, Santa Corona
Contrà Santa Corona
Vicenza, May 2025

“The chapel—the third on the right—was built in the last decade of the 18th century, after demolishing the wall where the urn containing the remains of the blessed Bartholomew of Breganze was embedded, now in the Holy Thorn Chapel. During the mid-19th century restorations, an altar with fluted columns and a triangular pediment, erected around 1570 by artists from the Pedemuro San Biagio workshop, was placed there, along with the Adoration of the Magi from the mature period of Paolo Veronese, a painting of exceptional quality and great evocative power that significantly influenced the Vicentine artistic environment, particularly the development of Francesco Maffei. The composition, with a vertical orientation, features a caravan in the lower register moving from the left, guiding the viewer’s gaze toward the Holy Family on the right, with the Madonna standing out for her beauty against a towering column. In the upper section, a metaphysical burst of light, a tangible sign of the Epiphany, contrasts with a dark sky streaked with blue. The light, as a protagonist, skillfully highlights the architectural structures and the rich garments of the figures.” (Santa Corona, Wikipedia)

Betlémská kaple

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Betlémská kaple (Bethlehem Chapel)
Betlémské náměstí, Staré Město
Prague, September 2024

“The Bethlehem Chapel (Czech: Betlémská kaple) is a medieval religious building in the Old Town of Prague, Czech Republic, notable for its connection with the origins of the Bohemian Reformation, especially with the Czech reformer Jan Hus. The chapel is named for the Innocents massacred in Bethlehem by Herod the Great in an attempt to kill the newborn Jesus Christ. The Bethlehem Chapel was founded in Prague in 1391 by Wenceslas Kříž (known as 'the Merchant'), and John of Milheim, and taught solely in the Czech vernacular, thus breaking with German domination of the Medieval Bohemian church. The building was never officially called a church, only a chapel, though it could contain 3,000 people; indeed, the chapel encroached upon the parish of Sts. Philip and James, and John of Milheim paid the pastor of that church 90 grossi as compensation. Hus became a rector and a preacher in March 1402. After Hus's excommunication in 1412, the Pope ordered the Bethlehem chapel to be pulled down, although this action was rejected by the Czech majority on the Old Town council. After Hus's death, he was succeeded by Jacob of Mies.” (Bethlehem Chapel, Wikipedia)

Madonna del Rosario

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Chapel of the Madonna del Rosario
Via del Pignattello
Siena, April 2024

“The Chapel of the Madonna del Rosario is a small, Baroque style, originally Roman Catholic, but now deconsecrated oratory or church located between via San Marco and via della Diana in the contrada of the Chiocciola (snail), in the city of Siena, Tuscany, Italy. It association with the neighborhood also gained the scenic building the name of the Chapel of the Chiocciola. The chapel is located some 200 meters west and uphill of Porta San Marco.” (Chapel of the Madonna del Rosario, Wikipedia)

Welsh Congregational Chapel

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The Borough Welsh Congregational Chapel, 1870
Southwark Bridge Road
London, May 2023

“The Borough Welsh Congregational Chapel (Welsh: Capel-y-Boro) is the mother chapel of the Welsh Congregational church in London, England. It is located at 90 Southwark Bridge Road in Southwark, a district also known as ‘The Borough’. The roots of the congregation date back to 1774. There has been a Welsh chapel on the current site since 1806, although the present building dates from 1870. About 1870 the freehold for the ground on which the chapel stood was purchased and a new chapel was built on the site. The foundation stone was laid on 31 July 1872 by Samuel Morley (MP) a famous Congregationalist, who donated £500 to the new chapel which was opened on Sunday, 23 February 1872. The Chapel today stands in the same place as the old chapel but instead of the entrance facing Little Guildford Street, it now faces Southwark Bridge Road. On 8 August 1881, David Simon Davies from Carmarthen College was ordained as the first Minister. In the Burns' Day storm on 25 January 1990, part of the roof and two chimneys fell into the Chapel causing a great deal of damage. It took six months to rebuild the gallery, and during this time services were held in the vestry. The Chapel was re-opened on 22 November 1990.” (Borough Welsh Congregational Chapel, Wikipedia)

Capilla de Monte-Sion

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Capilla de Monte-Sion
Calle Feria
Casco Antiguo
Seville, September 2023

“The chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary, known as the chapel of Monte-Sión, is a temple of Catholic worship located on Calle Feria, Seville, Andalusia, Spain. It was built in an old Dominican convent. It is the canonical headquarters of the Brotherhood of Monte-Sión.” (Capilla de Monte-Sion, Wikipedia)

Capilla de San Bartolomé

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Capilla de San Bartolomé (Chapel of San Bartolomé)
Calle Averroes
Córdoba, September 2022

“The Chapel of San Bartolomé (Capilla de San Bartolomé) is a funerary chapel in the historic centre of Córdoba, Spain. It is dated between 1390 and 1410. Richly decorated, it is one of the city's finest examples of Mudéjar art. Located on the Calle Averroes in today's Faculty of Arts building, the relatively unknown chapel is one of the city's most notable monuments. With the development of the Alcázar Viejo district in 1391 and the later expulsion of the Jews from La Judería, the parish of San Bartolomé was established while a church of the same name was constructed between 1399 and 1410. The little building continued to operate as a parish church until the 17th century, possibly awaiting completion of a larger church. Restored in 1953 and 2006, the chapel is a fine example of ancient Mudéjar art.” (San Bartolomé, Wikipedia)

Chapel by Bernardo Buontalenti

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Chapel by Bernardo Buontalenti, 1580
Park of Pratolino, Villa Demidoff
Via Fiorentina, Vaglia
Florence, May 2022

“The Chapel was built in 1580 and is one of the last constructions made in Pratolino by Bernardo Buontalenti. Erected on the margins of the Park behind the Villa on an artificial earthwork mound, it can be reached by climbing up a staircase. It covers a total surface of 300 m2. Initially delimited by high firs, it is now surrounded by a broadleaf forest. The central-plan building was originally composed of a hexagonal room with a side of 4.20 m, surrounded by an ring-shaped porch of eighteen columns made of pietra serena (a grey Tuscan sandstone); four of them were later included in the walls forming the sacristy. Inside there are some pieces of furniture, among which the wooden stalls and the altar, with a big altarpiece and other decoration elements. The survey enabled to study the geometry of the dome (Arenga and Velatta 2012), coated with lead sheets and ending with a lantern, for a total height of 15.60 m., which in the previous surveys had been drawn only through patent approximations” (Geomatics for Knowledge and Conservation of Cultural Heritage: The Pratolino Park Case-Study, University of Florence)

Cappella di Piazza

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Cappella di Piazza
Piazza del Campo
Siena, February 2022

“The Chapel of Piazza del Campo, located inside the square of the same name, is a marble construction erected at the base of the Tower of Mangia. The prevailing thesis is that the work was made to thank the gods for the end of the plague that had heavily affected the Tuscan city in the twelfth - thirteenth centuries. The construction works, according to documents of the time, began in 1325 on a project by the architect Domenico D'Agostino and were completed by Giovanni De Cecco around 1376. The Gothic features of the structure are attributable to the latter. The decorations and ornamentation were entrusted first to the sculptor Antonio Federighi and then to Giovanni Antonio Bazzi, known as ‘Sodoma’, who concentrated mainly on the fresco above the altar, unfortunately now almost completely damaged.” (Chapel of Piazza del Campo, Nice Places)

Madonna and Child

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Madonna and Child by Mariotto di Andrea, 15th century
Oratorio di San Cristoforo
Via Franceschini
Volterra, September 2021

Capilla del Carmen

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Capilla del Carmen by Aníbal González Álvarez-Ossorio, 1928
Puente de Isabel II (Puente de Triana)
Seville, September 2022

“The Capilla de la Virgen del Carmen, better known as ‘La Capillita’ because of its small size, is located next to the Puente de Triana bridge in Seville, and is home to the patron saint of the sea and the Spanish Navy, and the protector of fishermen. The building is a symbol of the Triana neighbourhood. It took from 1924 to 1928 to build and it is the headquarters of the Hermandad de Gloria Nuestra Señora del Carmen brotherhood, although the history of its location begins long before it was built. The building consists of two small elements: a cylindrical chapel adorned by a dome that adjoins a bell tower via a rectangular body through which the building is accessed. There is an abundance of pottery in both the interior and the exterior of the chapel. Its shape resembles a ‘mechero’ (old-fashioned cigarette lighter) the name by which this unique chapel in Triana is popularly known.” (Capilla de la Virgen del Carmen, Andalucia.org)

Cappella della Madonna del Voto

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Cappella della Madonna del Voto (Chigi Chapel)
Duomo di Siena (Siena Cathedral)
Piazza del Duomo
Siena, April 2017

“The small Chigi Chapel (or Cappella della Madonna del Voto) is situated in the right transept. It is the last, most luxurious sculptural addition to the Duomo, and was commissioned in 1659 by the Sienese Chigi pope Alexander VII. This circular chapel with a gilded dome was built by the German architect Johann Paul Schor to the baroque designs of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, replacing a 15th-century chapel. At the back of the chapel is the Madonna del Voto (by a follower of Guido da Siena, 13th century), that even today is much venerated and receives each year the homages of the contrade. On the eve of the battle of Montaperti (4 September 1260) against Florence, the city of Siena had dedicated itself to the Madonna. The victory of the Sienese, against all odds, over the much more numerous Florentines was ascribed to her miraculous protection. Two of the four marble sculptures in the niches, are by Bernini himself: Saint Jerome and Mary Magdalene. The other two are Saint Bernardine (Antonio Raggi) and Saint Catherine of Siena (Ercole Ferrata). The eight marble columns are originally from the Lateran Palace in Rome. The bronze gate at the entrance is by Giovanni Artusi.” (Siena Cathedral, Wikipedia)

Chapel of Jak

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Chapel of Jak (replica of the Portal of the Church of Jak)
Vajdahunyad vára (Vajdahunyad Castle)
Városliget (City Park)
Budapest, September 2017