Secret Roman Cloister Near Pantheon Holds Centuries of Dramatic History

A secluded cloister steps away from Rome's Pantheon contains frescoed walls that chronicle dramatic historical events including Galileo's Inquisition trial. The peaceful courtyard, home to 20 Dominican friars, features artwork depicting the site's role in papal elections and religious persecution.

ROME (AP) — Just steps away from Rome’s famous Pantheon lies a tranquil cloister that remains largely unknown to the millions of visitors who pass by daily.

Beyond its massive wooden entrance, decorated walls tell the story of centuries filled with drama, from papal elections to the religious trial of scientist Galileo Galilei. The general public cannot access these historic frescoes.

The courtyard centers around a fish pond surrounded by olive trees, two towering palms, and an orange tree whose fruit the resident friars transform into marmalade. Content cats rest in warm patches of sunlight across the lawn. Twenty Dominican friars continue to call the surrounding convent home while performing their religious duties.

“It is designed to be a place of prayer, of meditation and therefore in some way to encourage prayer and the meditation of the friars,” said Friar Aucone.

Throughout history, this location has drawn notable personalities including St. Catherine of Siena and Renaissance artist Fra Angelico, both entombed in the neighboring basilica. The site witnessed significant moments such as papal elections and proceedings of the Roman Inquisition.

The adjacent basilica’s title, Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, reflects its layered past — a Christian church honoring the Virgin Mary constructed above an ancient Roman temple dedicated to Minerva, goddess of wisdom.

“This cloister of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva is one of the largest and perhaps the most beautiful in all of Rome and it was a great cultural center in ancient times and it is even now,” said Claudio Strinati, an art historian.

During Julius Caesar’s era, citizens gathered here to vote. Dominican Friars constructed their church on this location in the late 1200s. The current cloister replaced an earlier version around 1570, designed by Guidetto Giudetti, who studied under Michelangelo.

Wall and ceiling frescoes display rosary mysteries intended to inspire contemplation among the Dominican residents. Additional artwork tucked into alcoves throughout the cloister reveals the complex and sometimes troubled history of this place and its occupants.

During the 16th century, the convent housed Roman Inquisition offices. High on the cloister walls, medallion portraits show beheaded Dominican Friars who served as inquisitors, depicted with severed necks and their heads in their hands.

“Among other things there was the tribunal of the Inquisition where famously Galileo Galilei was interrogated,” explained Strinati.

Within a chamber adjacent to the cloister, Galileo Galilei faced inquisition judges in 1633, compelled to abandon his “heretical” theory that Earth and other planets orbit the sun.

Fra Angelico, the Renaissance master and Dominican friar, resided at the convent while creating frescoes for the Vatican’s Niccoline chapel. Though in his fifties, Fra Angelico appears much older in his cloister wall medallion — a weathered elderly man in religious robes bent over his artwork.

Another medallion depicts St. Catherine of Siena, who lived at the convent and lies buried in the adjacent basilica. Friar Aucone observes with humor that while they possess her remains, her skull had to be given to Dominican Friars in Siena.

The structure encircling the cloister hosted two papal conclaves that chose Pope Eugene IV in 1431 and Pope Nicholas V in 1447. Five popes rest within the Basilica.

According to Strinati, concealed gems like the Santa Maria Sopra Minerva cloister contribute to Rome’s magical appeal.

“There is all the history hidden and therefore sometimes something is found and all generations, including mine, have discovered things,” he said. “The generations that will come later will continue to discover why it is so great and so profound that much is secret and hidden. And that is an element of its charm.”