The Grim Reaper stands guard over the tomb of Cardinal Cinzo Aldobrandini, in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli (Saint Peter in Chains) Rome.
Also known as the Basilica Eudoxiana, the church was first built in 432-440 to house the relic of the chains that bound Saint Peter when he was imprisoned in Jerusalem. According to legend, the Empress Eudoxia (wife of Emperor Valentinian III) gifted the chains to Pope Leo I. When he compared the gifted chains to the chains of St. Peter's final imprisonment in the Mamertine Prison in Rome, the two chains miraculously fused together.
In this same church stands Michaelangelo’s free-standing funeral monument for Pope Julius II whose centerpiece is the statue of Moses.
So what does all this have to do with Grim? Not much except the sculptures and church are pretty impressive and Grim is a fitting “scary” image for Halloween. That’s why I’m positing this tonight.
Enjoy…or not….
12 responses
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Kathleen Mercado said (31 Oct 2009):
Wonderful Rob! Happy Halloween to you...oh, elusive one:)
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Maurie A gave props (31 Oct 2009):
THAT's creepy... pretty fitting for tonight..... LOL @ Kathleen... you are so right...very elusive :)
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Maurie A gave props (31 Oct 2009):
It IS a beautiful shot though :) and the Info about the church is very interesting, must have been awesome to see in person!
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david ong gave props (31 Oct 2009):
outstanding entry! creepy and haunting! Happy Halloween Rob!
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Susan Littlefield gave props (1 Nov 2009):
A perfect Halloween posting! Grim and bare it!!
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Dawn Duffield (Deleted) gave props (1 Nov 2009):
A wild sight to see in a church; well it is Italy after all...Very interesting
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Catherine Hadler added a link (1 Nov 2009):
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Kevin Kabuki gave props (1 Nov 2009):
Ah yes...The Grim-ma Reapa. Have to love miraculously fusing chains, what a labor saving device. It makes me wonder, did this person ever think, even once in their lifetime, "I want a huge scary freaking statue over my corpse when I'm dead!"??? Which of course makes me wonder that the people who prepared his tomb really didn't care much for him. Still great artwork, and a monument to humanity's nutty imagination.
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Mary Brown gave props (4 Nov 2009):
Quite an impressive church monument! Thank you for the informative narrative.
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eithne mythen gave props (12 Nov 2009):
This is wonderful, love all the info, I was surprised by some of the artwork in the churches in Italy, some pretty gruesome things that would not be seen here, having said that the paintings and sculptures were very impressive and wonderful to see..
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John Linton gave props (29 Nov 2009):
Creepy coolness.
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Gail Anderson gave props (6 Dec 2009):
oh my! creepy CREEPY! I would love to see this in person!
