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Sant'Adriano al Foro

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41°53′34.55″N 12°29′7.45″E / 41.8929306°N 12.4854028°E / 41.8929306; 12.4854028

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The church (right) around 1500; with the Arch of Septimius Severus
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The interior, looking east, of Sant'Adriano al Foro

Sant'Adriano al Foro was a church in Rome, formerly in the Curia Julia in the Forum Romanum and a cardinal-deaconry (a titular church for a cardinal-deacon).

The church

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Plan (1835) of Sant'Adriano
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Doors of Sant'Adriano/Senate House, now at Saint John Lateran
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Remains of a fresco

The Church of Sant'Adriano al Foro (Italian for Saint (H)Adrian at the Roman Forum) was a conversion of the Curia Julia, which had housed the Senate of Ancient Rome, by Pope Honorius I in 630. The Curia Julia was begun in 44 BC by Julius Caesar and finished by Augustus in 29 BC.

The end of the 6th and the beginning of the 7th century mark for Rome a period of profound decay.[1] The curia had been abandoned until Honorius decided to erect the church.

Its name refers to the martyr Adrian of Nicomedia (died 306). Paintings are still visible in a side chapel which depict scenes from the life of Adrian; there are also some Byzantine paintings.[2] It was designated by Pope Sergius I (687–701) as the starting point for the litanies during certain the procession liturgical feasts of the Virgin Mary, Presentation in the Temple, Annunciation, Assumption and Nativity.[3] Pope Gregory IX made substantial changes to the building in 1228.

In 1590 the relics of saints Papias and Maurus were rediscovered in the church and transferred to Santa Maria in Vallicella. In 1660, its large bronze doors were moved by order of Pope Alexander VII to adorn the main portal of the Basilica of Saint John Lateran.[2][4] A coin was found within the doors during their transfer[5] that dated repairs made to the curia and the addition of the bronze doors to the reign of Emperor Domitian (AD 81–96).

Reconstruction as Curia Julia

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Its structure was modified multiple times before it was deconsecrated in the 1930s to recover the ancient structure of the building. On either side of the entrance are niches corresponding to medieval burials. The painting of the Holy Family, a product of the school of Raphael, was moved to the modern Church of Santa Maria della Mercede (1958), and the dedication to Saint Adrian added to that church.[6]

Cardinal deaconry

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It was established in 734 as Cardinal Deaconry of Sant'Adriano al Foro.

On 25 January 1946, the title was suppressed to establish the Cardinal Deaconry of San Paolo alla Regola.

Cardinal deacons

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The following Cardinals have been Cardinal deacons of the Deaconry,[7][8][9] except in special circumstances, which are noted by italics.

References

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  1. ↑ Hülsen, Christian. The Roman Forum - History and Monuments, p.24, Ermanno Loescher & Co., 1905
  2. 1 2 Lorizzo, Paul. "The Ancient Center of Roman Power", Zenit, May 19 2012
  3. ↑ Miranda, Salvatore. "Deaconries", Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
  4. ↑ Claridge, Amanda. Rome. An Oxford Archaeological Guide. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998, p. 71
  5. ↑ Lanciani, Rodolfo Amedeo (1897). The ruins and excavations of ancient Rome. New York, NY, USA: Houghton, Mifflin and Company. p. 265. ISBN 978-1-4021-9765-9. Retrieved 2025-05-02. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  6. ↑ "Parish of Santa Maria and Merced Sant Adriano", Diocese of Rome
  7. ↑ David M. Cheney, GCatholic: Cardinal-Deacons of S. Adriano al Foro Romano. Retrieved: 03/11/2016.
  8. ↑ Conradus Eubel, Hierarchia catholica medii aevi I, editio altera (Monasterii 1913), p. 48 (1182-1431).
  9. ↑ Conradus Eubel, Hierarchia catholica medii aevi II, editio altera (Monasterii 1914), p. 66 (1385-1503).

Bibliography

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  • Michele Dattoli, L'aula del Senato Romano e la chiesa di S. Adriano (Roma: Maglione & Strini, 1921).
  • Antonio Nibby, Roma nell'anno MDCCCXXXVIII: pte. I-II. Antica (Roma: Tipografia delle belle arti, 1839), pp. 27–32.
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  • , original pictures of the exterior of the church and its conversion
  • , original picture of the pre-1930 interior of the church
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