It proclaims the power and confidence of the Catholic Church. But the basilica still lacked a centrepiece. And it's here that Bernini produced his masterpiece. The new basilica had been built above the original tomb of St Peter. To honour the shrine which gave Papal Rome its sanctity, Bernini created this monumental canopy, his baldacchino. There's something very thrilling and powerful about this triumphalist piece of architecture here. It's not just declaring the triumph of the Church and the majesty of the papacy, but it's also pointing out the connection between Rome and Jerusalem. These gorgeous curving pillars are specially designed as replicas of pillars from the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. And so, what Bernini is saying here is that Rome is the new Holy City, Rome is the new Jerusalem. On 18th November 1626, the vision of Julius II was finally realised. 20 popes later, the new St Peter's was finished. Today, it remains the largest church in the world.


它（指the basilica）昭示了天主教会的权利和信心。但这座教堂还少一件“镇堂之宝”。而贝尔尼尼正是在这里完成了他的杰作。这座新的方形教堂就建在原圣·彼得陵墓上方。圣陵赋予了教皇时代的罗马以神圣性，为表纪念，贝尔尼尼创作了这个丰碑式的顶篷，他（那著名）的华盖。这件耀武扬威般的建筑有着非常令人振奋且正能量满满的意义。它不只是在宣告教会的胜利以及教皇的权威，它还点明了罗马和耶路撒冷之间的联系。这些华丽的弧形柱子是以耶路撒冷所罗门圣殿的柱子为原型而精心设计的副本。所以，贝尔尼尼在此传达的讯息是：罗马，是新的神圣之城；罗马，是新的耶路撒冷。1626年11月18日，朱利叶斯二世的愿景终于实现了。历经20位教皇，新的圣彼得教堂竣工了。今天，它仍是世界上最大的教堂。