Santa Maria della Pace, almost unknown to most, is a unique place in the world. It is in fact the only church on the planet that can boast frescoes by Raphael.
Founded on the site of the medieval chapel of Sant’Andrea de Acquaricariis, at the end of the 15th century Sixtus IV probably commissioned it to Baccio Pontelli.
It was rebuilt in its present form by Pietro da Cortona, whose façade with semicircular pronaos is his architectural masterpiece and one of the greatest achievements of Roman Baroque architecture.
Thanks to this intervention, the whole square became a sort of baroque theatre of which the church is an ideal stage.
Inside, in addition to Raphael’s masterpieces, there are also works by Maderno and Bramante’s cloister.
