San Clemente

Title

San Clemente

Description

The coronation procession followed a pattern: beginning in the Vatican for the consecration and the papal area to cross the river and go to city, to the archeological zone, and then to the churches. Among others, Pope Innocent III’s coronation procession route stopped at San Clemente. But the basilica was not uncommon to be used as part of a processional route.

Inside the church, underneath the present 12th century basilica in the older, underground church, you can see one of the other processions recorded in the church artwork by an eleventh century painter. The fresco, done by an unknown artist, is of the procession San Clemente’s translation to the Basilica of San Clemente in the 9th century. San Cyril leads the procession of people: behind him is a crowd of people, incense hung in thuribles, and the body of San Clemente is carried on a gilt bed and covered rich fabrics. Behind them are people carrying crosses and red banners, similar to what would have been seen later during the Papal coronation of Innocent the third. At five stations along the church route, the new Pope would scatter coins into the crowd, and they would continue on to the final stop of the procession, the Lateran.

Creator

Sophia Myers (2021)

Source

Brentano, Robert. Rome Before Avignon. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1990. 60-62.

Date

1250

Identifier

sanclemente_2019

Coverage

Spatial Coverage

Via Labicana, 95, 00184 Roma RM

Description

The coronation procession followed a pattern: beginning in the Vatican for the consecration and the papal area to cross the river and go to city, to the archeological zone, and then to the churches. Among others, Pope Innocent III’s coronation procession route stopped at San Clemente. But the basilica was not uncommon to be used as part of a processional route.

Inside the church, underneath the present 12th century basilica in the older, underground church, you can see one of the other processions recorded in the church artwork by an eleventh century painter. The fresco, done by an unknown artist, is of the procession San Clemente’s translation to the Basilica of San Clemente in the 9th century. San Cyril leads the procession of people: behind him is a crowd of people, incense hung in thuribles, and the body of San Clemente is carried on a gilt bed and covered rich fabrics. Behind them are people carrying crosses and red banners, similar to what would have been seen later during the Papal coronation of Innocent the third. At five stations along the church route, the new Pope would scatter coins into the crowd, and they would continue on to the final stop of the procession, the Lateran.

Creator

Sophia Myers (2021)

Date

1250

Coverage

800s

Source

Brentano, Robert. Rome Before Avignon. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1990. 60-62.

Geolocation