Bernini and Alexander VII: Criticism and Praise of the Pantheon in the Seventeenth Century

Abstract

This paper examines Bernini's role in the redecoration of the interior of the Pantheon in Rome, which was projected and partially executed during the pontificate of Alexander VII (1655–67). A careful review of surviving drawings, documents, and sources reveals that — contrary to the usual assumption — Bernini had little to do with the enterprise. Indeed, the evidence leads me to conclude that he actively opposed any scheme to alter the venerable ancient building, and in this regard he found himself at odds with his most important patron in architecture, Alexander VII. The present essay attempts to shed some light on the issue, which inflected the relationship between the architect and the highly cultivated antiquarian who was his chief sponsor in architectural matters. The story of Bernini's refusal to decorate the interior also helps us to appreciate the ways in which the Pantheon could be understood in seventeenth-century Rome and how its reception differed from that during the Renaissance.

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Tod A. Marder

Tod A. Marder received his Ph.D. from Columbia University. He is the author of several earlier studies on Bernini's architecture, and currently editor of the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians [Department of Art History, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08903].