 Introduction
Santa Maria del Popolo is a notable Augustinian church located in Rome. It stands to the north side of the Piazza del Popolo, one of the most famous squares of the city. The Church is one of the most important monuments from the Roman Renaissance, not only from an architectural point of view but also in terms of the paintings and sculptures that give this place genuine rarity value as a museum of Renaissance art.
 History
There is a legend telling how, in 1099, a small chapel dedicated to Our Lady was built here near Nero's tomb in order to keep the ghost of that terrible emperor at bay. In reality, however, Santa Maria del Popolo was constructed during the Crusades with public money to thank the Virgin for interceding when the Holy Sepulcher was liberated. Since the people of Rome funded the building, the chapel received the name del Popolo (of the people). Other sources state that the popolo nickname stems from the Latin word populus, meaning poplar and probably referring to a tree located nearby. The chapel became a church by will of Pope Gregory IX, and given to the Augustinians, who held it until now, in the first half of 13th century.
Santa Maria del Popolo was reconstructed by Baccio Pontelli and Andrea Bregno in 1472-1477, commissioned by the association of the Lombards of Rome, creating an excellent example of Italian Renaissance architecture. In 1655-60 the facade was modified by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who was asked by Pope Alexander VII to update the Renaissance church to a more modern Baroque style.
After Bernini's intervention, the church became a favourite site of burials of rich people of the city. Among the others, the banker Agostino Chigi and the Cardinal Savo Millini have their tombs here.
 Location
Address: Piazza del Popolo, I-00186 Rome, Italy.
Transit: Metro: Flaminio (line A); Bus: 1, 2, 2b, 90, 95, 115, 202, 203, 205, 490, 492, 495.
 What's to see
The church is built on a Latin cross plan with three aisles and many side chapels. The first on the right was built for the family of della Rovere, the second (by Carlo Fontana, 1682-87) for Cardinal Cybo, the second on the left for the Chigi family. The Capella Chigi (1513-15), is one of Raphael's most important architectonic works. You will find it worthwhile to go down the nave and look into the left hand transept inside the Cappella Cerasi where there are two exceptional masterpieces by Caravaggio: the Conversion of St. Paul and the Crucifixion of St. Peter. Santa Maria del Popolo contains numerous tombs including those of Cardinal Ascanio Sforza (d. 1505) and Cardinal Girolamo Basso della Rovere (d. 1507), both by Andrea Sansovino, in the choir. On the vaulting of the choir are frescoes by Pinturecchio depicting the Coronation of the Virgin, with Evangelists, Sibyls and Fathers of the Church.
 Useful information
Trivia: Dan Brown set here an episode of his novel Angels and Demons, and Thom Gunn wrote a poem about Caravaggio's Conversion, which he named after the church.
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