Basso della Rovere Chapel, Renaissance chapel in Santa Maria del Popolo, Rome, Italy.

The Basso della Rovere Chapel is a hexagonal side chapel in the south aisle of Santa Maria del Popolo, the third from the counterfaçade. A slim 15th-century balustrade guards the entrance. Inside, painted porphyry columns with Corinthian capitals support a white and gilded entablature above a pedestal of illusionistic benches and monochrome reliefs. The altar wall holds a marble Pietà by Gian Cristoforo Romano and the tomb of Giovanni Basso.

Bishop Girolamo Basso della Rovere commissioned the chapel's decoration between 1484 and 1492, following Pope Sixtus IV's reconstruction of the basilica. This project reflected the artistic ambitions of the period and shaped one of the church's finest interiors.

The frescoes depict scenes from the Virgin Mary's life and the stories of saints like Augustine, Francis, and Anthony of Padua. These painted walls shape how the chapel feels and tell religious narratives to those who enter.

The chapel sits within the church Santa Maria del Popolo and can be accessed through the main entrance of the building. It is worth spending time here to observe the details of the artworks and painted walls throughout the space.

The painted benches on the pedestal imitate carved stone, and two books rendered in perfect perspective rest on one of them, deceiving the viewer. The maiolica floor tiles from Deruta carry heraldic devices, Della Rovere oaks and animals. The pedestal's inlays resemble those of Guidobaldo da Montefeltro's study, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.