Anglican church in Rome

by Victor Grigore, Webphoto.ro

Though it is a recent work, the Anglican Church on Via Nazionale in Rome was included on the Italian national monuments’ list, thanks to the work of three artists, two English and one American. The mosaics they created manage to give the church of St Paul’s Within Walls the convincing appearance of a centuries old monument.

The mosaic on the apse by Edward Burnee-Jones represent the Annunciation, the moment in which the Virgin Mary receives the news from the Angel Gabriel that she will carry the Son of the Lord.
In the rear of the church Burnee-Jones represented Christ against a blue background surrounded by angels on His throne. One level below are the classes of God’s City. For some of the characters, the English artist had some surprising choices, using the faces of contemporary characters to replace the saints they stood for. The procedure was employed even by Michelangelo in his “Last Judgment”, where we see some of his contemporaries and himself. St Ambrose was “played” by J Pierpont Morgan, a ferocious American bank owner who contributed to the building of this church, but we also see two American presidents: General Ulysses S Grant and Abraham Lincoln, but also a local hero, Giuseppe Garibaldi.

Another valuable mosaic is the Nativity by George Breck, displaying the adoration of the shepherds and of the Magi.
The walls of the Anglican church in Rome are colored and lighted by the stained glass windows made in England by Clayton and Bell company. The great rose window on the rear wall represents Christ the King surrounded by martyrs. Other stained glass windows present the life of St Paul, including the road to Damascus, the Annunciation and the Nativity.