Overview
This tiny church of early Christian origin, built in the fourth century to house the remains of the martyr Bibiana, has earned a place in art history books as the first architectural project of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who was commissioned to rebuild it at the age of 27, on the occasion of the Jubilee of 1625. Bernini opted for an intervention that would respect the sobriety of the original structure while at the same time giving the façade a new Baroque monumentality. The interior also contains an early work by Bernini: the beautiful statue of Saint Bibiana on the main altar was his first fully dressed sculpture. The painting of the church was entrusted to Pietro da Cortona and Agostino Ciampelli, contemporaries who were important exponents of Baroque painting. For this reason, the small Basilica of Santa Bibiana has the distinction of being one of the first churches, if not the first, to experiment with Baroque in all its forms: architecture, sculpture and painting. To the left of the central portal stands a partially worn column, traditionally believed to be the one to which the saint was tied to be scourged. Her remains are said to be enshrined in the Constantinian alabaster urn under the main altar.
