A New Home for Saint Peter!

Construction on St Peter's Basilica Began 500 Years Ago!

On 18 April 1506, Pope Julius II traded his papal tiara for a hard hat and climbed into a foundation trench to lay the cornerstone for a new basilica honoring St. Peter. Three years into his reign, the Pontiff had decided that the old basilica - constructed by the Roman Emperor Constantine in the early 4th century - was too decrepit to stand any longer.

Julius II asked his architect Bramante to design a new Basilica and Bramante was pleased to oblige. In true Renaissance spirit, he proposed a building that combined the colossal vaulting of the Basilica of Constantine in the ancient Roman Forum with a dome resembling that of the Pantheon. A medal depicting his proposed building was struck in honor of the project (see right).

It was to be more than one hundred and fifteen years before the church was consecreated and still several decades before the interior was completed.