Santa Maria dell'Orazione e Morte, church in Rome, Italy
Santa Maria dell'Orazione e Morte is a Baroque church on Via Giulia designed by architect Ferdinando Fuga with an elliptical floor plan. Inside, a crypt displays arranged skeletal remains, including chandeliers crafted from vertebrae and an altar topped with a bone cross.
The church was established in 1576 and underwent major reconstruction in 1737 under Fuga's design. This rebuilding created the present Baroque structure that continues to serve as a memorial to those who had no one to bury them.
The church served a brotherhood focused on honoring the forgotten dead through proper burial rites. Its very name speaks to prayer and meditation on mortality, a theme expressed throughout the building's bone decorations and skeletal displays.
The church is open to visitors and the crypt can be explored, though photography is not permitted inside. Take your time to study the intricate details, as the small building contains much ornamental craftsmanship throughout.
The facade displays Latin inscriptions including 'Hodie mihi, cras tibi', meaning 'Today me, tomorrow you'. These words were meant not only as a reminder of death for the deceased, but as a sobering thought for the living who passed by.
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