The smallish Church of Santa Maria in Trivio is located near the Trevi Fountain in Rome. It stands in Piazza dei Crociferi and is particularly interesting for its façade and the ceiling fresco by Antonio Gherardi.
Santa Maria in Trivio Church Rome
Address, opening times, tickets
The address of the Chiesa di Santa Maria in Trivio is Piazza dei Crociferi, 49 – Rome (tel. +39 066789645.). Bus: 51, 53, 62, 63, 71, 80, 83, 85, 116, 117, 160, 160F, 492, C3, FRP, N4, N5, N12. Metro: Barberini (line A). Opening hours: 08:00-12:00 and 04:00-08:00. During Mass, tourists are not allowed to enter. Entrance fee: Free of charge.
History and Description
The original church is said to have been built in the 6th century by the Byzantine general Belisarius, but the current version was built by the architect Giacomo del Duca, who worked on it from 1573 to 1575.
Until the 15th century, the Chiesa di Santa Maria in Trivio was called Santa Maria in Xenodochio or Santa Maria in Synodo, after a nearby hospice for the sick and pilgrims. In 1571, the church was entrusted to the Order of the Crociferi, which later was banned.
The Camillians took over in 1657 and in 1839 it was the turn of the Caracciolines. Since 1854, the Santa Maria in Trivio Church has been in the hands of the “Order of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood.”
The architectural style of this three-level church is Baroque. It consists of a single nave, with 4 chapels on either side. The coat of arms above the main entrance belongs to Pope Alexander VII.
What to see
The ceiling, restored in 1999, was painted in 1669 by Antonio Gherardi and depicts various events in the life of Mary.
In the third chapel on the right is a Crucifix from 1350.
The urn containing the mortal remains of San Gaspare del Bufalo (the founder of the Order to which the church belongs) is in the second chapel on the left.