Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua

History

Saint Anthony

Saint Anthony of Padua (1195 – 1231) was a Portuguese priest, a passionate and merciful man, a disciple of Saint Francis of Assisi. He traveled through present-day France and Italy and his sermons were captivating and attracted many people.

Saint Anthony arrived in Padua in 1226 and founded a convent there in 1229.

An unexpected tragedy happened in 1231 when he, a young, talented, and promising man became ill and died due to food poisoning with fungus. There are legends about the lament in Padua when people learned about his death.

Saint Anthony was canonized less than one year after his death – unusual speed for the Catholic church. Now he is recognized as a patron of lost things. He was exhumed in 1263 – his body was decomposed but there was a miracle – the tongue of the saint was incorrupt as if celebrating the extraordinary oratory skills of Saint Anthony.

Every year on June 13th in the streets of Padua takes place the Procession of the Relics.

The construction of a giant church

Saint Anthony, according to his will, was buried in the small church of Santa Maria Mater Domini which was built in the late 12th century. This was a will of a modest man.

The church took into account his will but did not follow his spirit of humility. Soon after his death in 1232 there was started construction of one of the largest church buildings in the world. The ancient church was incorporated in the new building and now forms one of its chapels – Chapel of the Dark Madonna.

The giant structure was completed in 1310, although there have been multiple extensions and rebuildings in later times, for the most part at the end of the 14th century – middle of the 15th century.

Design

Exterior

The most impressive view of the cathedral opens from the northwest. To the surprised visitor opens a view of a tall and even somewhat chaotic structure with a multitude of diverse, seemingly incompatible details.

The structure represents a mix of Byzantine and Romanesque styles with some influence of the Gothic style. The church has an enormous, Romanesque central hall with side aisles. Above the hall rise eight Byzantine domes similar to the domes in Saint Mark’s Basilica in the nearby Venice.

The brick facade also has features of two styles – the central section and its side extensions are in Romanesque style and in front of it arcaded balcony and four large recesses in Gothic style.

As if this is not enough, Basilica has two tall and several smaller towers which somewhat resemble minarets.

To the north-west, in front of Basilica stands also an outstanding monument – the famous condottiero (military leader) Gattamelata on a horse, shaped by Donatello.

Interior

Basilica has many outstanding art values, including sculptures by Donatello and fresco by Giotto. Here are several important images of Madonna, weird and somewhat macabre relics are the chin and tongue of St. Anthony in the main hall of Basilica.

There are several chapels:

• Chapel of Saint Anthony contains the body of Saint Anthony in a tomb called Arca;
• Treasury Chapel is shaped in Baroque style and contains the relics of the saint;
• The Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament houses the tomb of Gattamelata and his son Giannantonio;
• Especially wonderful is the Chapel of St.James, which was shaped in Gothic style in the 1370ies. It is adorned with frescoes by Altichiero da Zevio, one of the great Gothic painters. Frescoes show the Stories of St.James, but the centerpiece – Crucifixion – is his masterpiece.

References

1. Saint Anthony of Padua. Accessed in the 19th December 2018
2. Webcamera

Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua is included in the following list: