Santa Barbara Chapel

The Santa Barbara Chapel ( St. Barbara Iliopolskaya ) is a Catholic chapel in Rome , one of the four chapels of the original Basilica of Santi-Quattro-Coronati and one of the two that has survived to the present (the second, the chapel of St. Nicholas, is located inside the Augustinian monastery and is inaccessible for inspection ). In the 9th century, a chapel was added to the southeast corner of the basilica. The entrance to the chapel was equipped from the north, from the temple itself; the main altar was located on the south side, opposite the entrance, two more altars - on the east and west sides. The newly built Easter II Basilica has already become, and the Santa Barbara Chapel has been isolated from the temple. This led to the reorientation of the building: the entrance is now equipped from the west, from the cloister of the monastery ( XIII century ), and the main altar is placed in the apse on the east side.

The eastern wall of the Santa Barbara Chapel: two false capitals and frescoes from the 13th century are visible

On the device of Leo IV of the chapel of St. Barbara in Santi Quattro-Coronati was known from the message of Liber Pontificalis . Subsequently, the chapel was re-consecrated, and its former name is forgotten. In 1913, during the restoration, Antonio Munoz identified episodes from the life of Saint Barbara in the frescoes discovered and, by linking these episodes with the message of Liber Pontificalis, managed to identify the chapel.

In terms of the chapel, it is almost square, the deviation from the regular geometric figure is due to the fact that the chapel was attached to the existing baptistery . The chapel is covered with a cross vault based on powerful consoles decorated in the form of false capitals (there are no columns under capitals). It is assumed that initially the columns in the chapel were present, but they did not carry the load, but served only as an element of decor (a similar device has the chapel of St. Zeno in the church of Santa Prassede , also dating back to the 9th century).

It is assumed that, under Leo IV, the walls of the chapel on the outside and inside were covered with frescoes , preserved only fragmentary: in the southern apse two figures of saints are visible, geometric motifs are distinguishable above the western entrance. In the XIII century, simultaneously with the construction of the cloister, the Benedictines re-painted the chapel: Madonna and Child remained in the eastern apse, fragments of the life of Saint Barbara and symbols of the Evangelists remained on the vault, and the mosaic in the cosmatis style was framed in the frieze .