So as you can see, today I'm here at St Peter's
square, and I'm going to show you something that not a lot of people talk about which
are all the Latin inscriptions that are in this church. And not a lot of people talk about this because
not a lot of people can read Latin, but I'm going to be showing you some of the most interesting
ones, and I'm going to be translating them so you can see what they say actually. So let's get to it. As you get to St. Peter’s Square, the first
inscriptions you see are the ones on the Vatican Obelisk. There is a different inscription on each side. This obelisk was part of a project of Pope
Sixtus V to atone and integrate pagan antiquities into the new Christian order during the Renaissance. So the north and south sides of the obelisk
have inscriptions about the history of the obelisk itself. On the south side, the inscription says: SIXTVS V PONT MAX OBELISCVM VATICANVM DIS
GENTIVM IMPIO CVLTV DICATVM AD APOSTOLORVM LIMINA OPEROSO LABORE TRANSTVLIT ANNO MDLXXXVI
PONT II; in English: Sixtus V Pontifex Maximus, laboriously
brought the obelisk dedicated to the gods of the pagan worship to the threshold of the
apostles in the year 1586 in the second year of his pontificate. And the north side of the obelisk reads: SIXTVS V PONT MAX CRVCI INVICTAE OBELISCVM
VATICANVM AB IMPVRA SVPERSTITIONE EXPIATVM IVSTIVS ET FELICIVS CONSECRAVIT ANNO MDLXXXVI
PONT II; that’s: Sixtus V Pontifex Maximus, consecrated
to the invincible cross the Vatican Obelisk atoned more justly and happily from impure
superstition. 1586, second pontificate. Below this one, there are two more smaller
inscriptions, the first one: DOMINICVS FONTANA EX PAGO MILI AGRI NOVO COMENSIS
TRANSTVLIT ET EREXIT; translated as: Domenico Fontana from the town
of Melide, a new land of Como, transported and erected it. This is talking about the architect Domenico
Fontana who made the great feat of transporting the obelisk from its original location south
of the basilica and placing it in the center of the piazza. And below, the smaller inscription says: PETRVS
MACCARANIVS FABRICAE S PETRI CVRATOR SEMITAM MERIDIANAM PVBLICAE COMMODITATI AERE PROPRIO
F ANN MDCCCVII; In English: Pietro Maccaranio, the curator
of the Fabric of St. Peter, placed and paid with his own bronze the noon path for public
convenience in 1807. By the noon path, it means the sun dial that
you can see on the pavement of the square, where the obelisk’s shadow is projected
at noon certain days of the year. After being consecrated and after ordering
its relocation, the obelisk was crowned with a cross, and at its base on the east side,
St. Anthony’s Brief, a prayer used in rituals of exorcism, was sculpted: ECCE CRVX DOMINI - FVGITE PARTES ADVERSAE
- VICIT LEO DE TRIBV IVDA; this translates as: Here is the cross of the
Lord, run away enemies, the lion of Judah’s tribe has triumphed. And finally the west side reads: CHRISTVS VINCIT, CHRISTVS REGNAT, CHRISTVS
IMPERAT, CHRISTVS AB OMNI MALO PLEBEM SVAM DEFENDAT; meaning Christ conquers, Christ reigns, Christ
commands, may Christ defend his people from all evil. This is the beginning of a very old Christian
hymn from the middle ages. Just by walking around St. Peters Square you’ll
see several Latin inscriptions. For instance, above the colonnade there is
one with the name of the pope who commissioned it, there’s another one on each of the fountains
with the name of the pope who restored them, and even the lanterns have inscriptions indicating
the year they were placed and the coat of arms of the pope who installed them. Beyond the obelisk, terminating the square,
you see St. Peters facade adorned with another inscription on its frieze: IN HONOREM PRINCIPIS APOST(OLORVM) PAVLVS
V BVRGHESIVS ROMANVS PONT MAX AN MDCXII PONT VII; this indicates to whom the facade was dedicated
and in what year, so the translation would be: In honor of the prince of the apostles, Paul
V Borghese Roman Pontifex Maximus in the year 1612 in the seventh year of his pontificate. In the vestibule and inside the basilica,
you’ll find hundreds of Latin inscriptions, most of them telling you either the name of
the saints that are depicted in the statues, or the name of the Pope who finished specific
parts of the church along with the year of completion. One example is the inscription at the top
the dome just beneath the lantern, which reads: SANCTI PETRI GLORIAE SIXTVS PAPA V ANNO MDXC
PONTIFICATO V; in English: Pope Sixtus V dedicated it to
the glory of Saint Peter in 1590 during the fifth year of his pontificate. At the entrance of the Basilica there are
various inscriptions of this kind. This inscription was made when Pope Urban
VIII, the pope who finished the construction of the Basilica consecrated the temple, and
it reads: VRBANVS VIII PONT MAX VATICANAM BASILICAM
A CONSTANTINO MAGNO EXTRVCTAM, A BEATO SYLVESTRO DEDICATAM, IN AMPLISSIMI TEMPLI FORMAM, RELIGIOSA
MVLTORVM PONTIF(ICVM) MAGNIFICENTIA REDACTAM, SOLEMNI RITV CONSECRAVIT, SEPVLCHRVM APOSTOLICVM
AERE A MOLE DECORAVIT, O DEVM ARAS ET SACELLA STATVIS AC MVITIPLICIBVS OPERIBVS ORNAVIT; This text in English is: Urban VIII Pontifex
Maximus, consecrated with the solemn rite the Vatican Basilica, built by the great Constantine,
dedicated by St. Sylvester in form of a great temple, and remade in the religious magnificence
by many popes, and he decorated the apostolic tomb with great bronze (here it’s talking about the baldacchino
over the tomb of St. Peter), oh to god altars and chapels adorned with
statues and multiple works of art. So really by reading these inscriptions you
can gain insight into the history of the basilica’s construction. You have to remember that the official language
of the Vatican is Latin, as it was the language of the Romans, and the Catholic Church is
an institution founded by the Roman Empire, it essentially represents what remains of
the empire, the pope himself being like the emperor, as he adopts the same title that
the Roman emperors had: Pontifex Maximus, where pontifex means “bridge
maker” referring to a bridge between the earthly and the heavenly realms. Also most of the tombs that you see on the
pavement have their names and dates inscribed in Latin. And on top of the lateral domes are verses
from the Bible such as psalms or verses from gospels and from the book of revelation. But the most significant inscriptions are
those adorning the friezes positioned on each side on top of the nave and transepts, and
encircling the drum of the dome at the bottom. Crafted from small mosaic pieces, each letter
stands over two meters high. The immense scale becomes truly apparent when
you ascend to the top of the dome. All of these are verses from the Bible, specifically
words spoken by Jesus to St. Peter, reflecting the significance of St. Peter’s Basilica. Let’s start with the inscription on top
of the northern transept, which reads: O PETRE, DIXISTI: TV ES CHRISTVS FILIVS DEI
VIVI, AIT IESVS: BEATVS ES SIMON BAR IONA QVIA CARO ET SANGVIS NON REVELAVIT TIBI; in English, this translates to: Oh Peter, you said: You are the Christ, the
Son of the living God, and said Jesus: Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and
blood did not reveal this to you. The continuation of the same gospel can be
found at the bottom of the dome, where it says: TV ES PETRVS ET SVPER HANC PETRAM AEDIFICABO
ECCLESIAM MEAM ET TIBI DABO CLAVES REGNI CAELORVM. And this is highly symbolic as it translates
to: “You are Peter and upon this rock I will
build my church, and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven”. And this is true if you take the text in a
literal way, because right underneath this inscription lies the tomb of St. Peter, symbolizing
the rock upon which the church is built. Then on the North side of the nave, the same
gospel continues: QVODCVMQVE LIGAVERIS SVPER TERRAM ERIT LIGATVM
ET IN COELIS, ET QVODCVMQVE SOLVERIS SVPER TERRAM ERIT SOLVTVM ET IN COELIS. In English: Whatever you bind on earth will
be bound also in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed
also in heaven. On the southern side of the nave the inscription
reads: EGO ROGAVI PRO TE O PETRE VT NON DEFICIAT
FIDES TVA ET TV ALIQVANDO CONVERSVS CONFIRMA FRATRES TVOS: I prayed for you, oh Peter, that your faith
may not fail, and when you come back to me, strengthen your brothers. This is what Jesus said to Peter before telling
him that he would disown him three times before the rooster crows. The inscription over the southern transept
are the words Peter and Jesus exchanged after the resurrection: DICIT TER TIBI PETRE IESVS: DILIGIS ME? CVI TER, O ELECTE, RESPONDENS AIS: O DOMINE,
TV QVI OMNIA NOSTI, TV SCIS QVIA DILIGO TE; meaning: Jesus said three times to you, Peter:
Do you love me? To whom you, oh chosen, responded saying:
Oh Lord, you who know all, you know that I love you. And to this, Jesus responded with the words
that are on the top of the apse, inscribed in Latin on the left side, and in Greek on
the right side: O PASTOR ECCLESIAE TV OMNES CHRISTI PASCIS
AGNOS ET OVES ΣΥ ΒΟΣΚΕΙΣ ΤΑ ΑΡΝΙΑ, ΣΥ
ΠΟΙΜΑΙΝΕΙΣ ΤΑ ΠΡΟΒΑΤΙΑ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥ; which in English translates as: Oh shepherd
of the Church, you feed all of Christ’s lambs and sheep. The reason for it being in Greek, is that
the four gospels were originally written in that language, before Christianism spread
through the Roman Empire and the scriptures got translated into Latin. The four piers of the crossing form a single
line from a text by a Roman writer called Cyprian, who was a bishop of Carthage in the
Early Christian period, and it reads: HINC VNA FIDES MVNDO REFVLGET, HINC SACERDOTII
VNITAS EXORITVR; and it translates to: From here the one faith
shines in the world, from here the unity of priesthood is born. If you visit the crypt of the basilica, you'll
find this stone with the names of the popes buried in this basilica, and the year each
of them were buried. And finally, there is a series of inscriptions
on the pavement in the center of the nave, where the names of the largest and most important
Catholic temples around the world are inscribed, such as Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London,
the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Brussels, The shrine of the Immaculate Conception in
Washington, and Reims Cathedral in France. There’s also the Metropolitan Cathedral
of Mexico City, Milan cathedral and Cologne Cathedral, as well as many other renowned
temples. All of these inscriptions not only unveil
the dedication and spirituality that permeated the construction of this temple, but they
also connect us with the deepest roots of the Catholic Church and its legacy. By deciphering and understanding the meaning
behind these words engraved in stone, we can appreciate the significance of St. Peter’s
Basilica not only as an architectural masterpiece but as a timeless manifestation of faith and
devotion throughout the centuries. If you want to understand the architecture
of St Peter's Basilica and the history of how it was built, then I recommend you watching
my video explaining the Basilica of St Peter's. I hope you learned and enjoyed, please like
this video because it helps me a lot and subscribe to my channel, and if you want me to translate
more Latin inscriptions in Rome, let me know in the comments. Thank you for watching and I'll see you very
soon in the next episode. Goodbye!
