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Church of Saints Martin and Sebastian of the Swiss

Church of Saints Martin and Sebastian of the Swiss

Nanni di Baccio Bigio

Photo: Pufui Pc Pifpef I · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Location
Vatican City
Client / Owner
Pope Pius V
Year
Completed 1568
Access
Private
Typology
Spiritual

The Church of Saints Martin and Sebastian of the Swiss is an oratory in Vatican City and the national church of Switzerland in Rome. It sits on the path the Swiss Guards take each day from their barracks to the Portone di Bronzo. Pope Pius V ordered it as a private chapel for the Pontifical Swiss Guards, and Nanni di Baccio Bigio built it in 1568. It is dedicated to Saints Martin of Tours and Sebastian, both soldiers.

The church is small, 12 meters long and 9 meters wide. Four Doric columns support the entablature, and the pediment bears the arms of Pius V. A forum was added in 1999.

Giulio Mazzoni, a pupil of Vasari, painted the frescoes. They were removed in 1967 for conservation and are stored in the Vatican Museums. The altarpiece depicts the Annunciation.

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