La Mostra Origin, Timing and Forms of the Rite Holy Year ceremony
Portrait of Alexander VI
The institution of a specific ritual for opening and closing the Holy Door dates back to the Jubilee of 1500 and Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia). The ceremony remained unchanged until 1975, when Paul VI simplified several aspects.
N. F. Mathey, Alexander VI pont. max., in: Alexander Gordon, La vie du Pape Alexandre VI. et de son fils Cesar Borgia..., vol. I, Amsterdam 1751
Bull of indiction for the Jubilee of 1500, Inter curas multiplices (20 December 1499)
Alexander VI, Inter curas multiplices (20 dicembre 1499), in: Iohannes Burckardus, Johannis Burckardi Liber notarum ab anno MCCCCLXXXIII usque ad annum MDVI, edited by Enrico Celani, vol. II, Città di Castello 1910
The Master of Papal Ceremonies
His duty was to ensure that at each solemn religious act and civil event, all dignitaries and the pontiff himself meticulously followed ceremony protocol
G. Perugini (draw.), Lavoisier Paris (lithog.), Maitre des cérémonies - Maestro di ceremonie, in: Album ou collection complète et historique des coutumes de la cour de Rome..., Paris 1862
The Master of Papal Ceremonies
His duty was to ensure that at each solemn religious act and civil event, all dignitaries and the pontiff himself meticulously followed ceremony protocol
Maitre des cérémonies,in: Album ou collection complète et historique des coutumes de la cour de Rome..., Paris 1862
The Master of Papal Ceremonies
His duty was to ensure that at each solemn religious act and civil event, all dignitaries and the pontiff himself meticulously followed ceremony protocol
Francesco Sestini, Il maestro di camera..., in: Girolamo Lunadoro, Relatione della corte di Roma, e de’ riti da osservarsi in essa, e de’ suoi magistrati, Venezia 1662
The Holy Door at Saint John’s in the fifteenth century
Niccolò della Tuccia, who however seems to be reporting information he had heard indirectly, was the first to mention a “door”, although fifteenth-century chronicles already mentioned the opening of a special door in the Basilica of the Lateran in the fifteenth century. However, the information in question is contradictory, so we cannot be certain that the door existed or that it had any symbolic value.
Niccolò della Tuccia, Cronache di Viterbo e di altre città..., in: Cronache e statuti della città di Viterbo pubblicati ed illustrati da Ignazio Campi, Firenze 1872
The Jubilee of 1500 as chronicled by Sigismondo dei Conti di Segni
Sigismondo dei Conti di Segni, born in Foligno (1432), lived in Rome from 1460 in the service of a number of pontiffs. He was highly familiar with the city and the Curia, where he essentially based his “Storie”. In his description of Alexander VI’s Jubilee, (not without polemic) he recounts the opening of the doors in the four basilicas and the solemn rite for opening the door at Saint Peter’s, celebrated personally by the Pope
Sigismondo dei Conti, Le storie de' suoi tempi dal 1475 al 1510..., vol. II, Roma 1883
Clement VII coins
Commemorative coins of 1525 Jubilee, coeval, representing Holy Door and the Pope opening and closing it
Filippo Buonanni, Numismata pontificum romanorum quae a tempore Martini V usque ad annum M.DC.XCIC vel authoritate publica, vel privato genio in lucem prodiere..., vol. I (Continens numismata à Martino V usque ad Clemente VIII), Roma 1699
Commemorative medals from Nicholas V's Jubilee (1450)
After establishment of the ritual under Alexander VI, the Holy Door became the principal iconographic element in representations of the Holy Year. The door also featured in commemorative medals for Holy Years. The first such medal dates back to 1525; medals associated with previous periods are known as “restitution” (posthumous) medals. The first restitution medal to feature the Holy Door refers to Nicholas V’s Jubilee (at which, incidentally, the ritual of the door had not yet been established as a regular feature).
Domenico Maria Manni, Istoria degli anni santi dal loro principio sino al presente del MDCCL, tratta in gran parte da quella del p.l.f. Tommaso Maria Alfani..., Firenze 1750
Opening of the Holy Door
Porte dorée qu'on ouvre l'année du Jubilé, in: François Jacques Deseine, Rome moderne, première ville de l'Europe, avec toutes ses magnificences et ses délices..., vol. VI, Leiden 1713
Opening of the Holy Doors at the four basilicas in 1750
This detailed Relazione tells us about the ceremonies led by Benedict XIV and the three Legates for opening the Holy Doors at the patriarchal basilicas, featuring details about the processions, precedence, timing, gestures, roles and functions of participants and observers. The Report was published by the Roman Chracas publishers (later Cracas) famous for publishing the Diario di Roma and disseminating news about the papal court and its ceremonies
Distinta relazione delle sagre funzioni fatte dalla santità di nostro signore papa Benedetto decimoquarto nell'aprire la porta santa della basilica di S. Pietro in Vaticano, e dalli tre eminentissimi legati a latere nell'aprire le porte sante delle altre tre patriarcali basiliche di S. Paolo, di S. Giovanni in Laterano e di S. Maria Maggiore, nel corrente anno santo 1750, Roma 1750
Holy Year ceremonies in treatises from the late 1700s
Francesco Antonio Zaccaria (1714-1795) was a Jesuit writer and historian who wrote a treatise on the Holy Year. As well as covering its history and the significance of the celebration, he also delves into its practical and ceremonial aspects. He meticulously describes the rite for opening and closing the Holy Doors established by Alexander VI and his successors, as well as explaining the jubilee’s various ceremonial stages, including how and when the bull of indiction was published
Girolamo Lunadoro, Francescantonio Zaccaria, Lo stato presente o sia relazione della corte di Roma, già pubblicata dal cav. Lunadoro, ora ritoccata accresciuta ed illustrata da Francescantonio Zaccaria..., vol. I, Roma 1774
The rite for closing the Holy Door at Saint Peter’s
This foglio presents the ritual sequence for closing the Holy Door at the Vatican in 1725. The black characters show the liturgy to be uttered; the red characters are for guidelines on how the ceremony should be carried out
Ritus in clausura portae sanctae vaticanae servandus anno jubilaei MDCCLXXV, Roma 1775
Closure of the Holy Doors and the various rites involved
An 1824 edition of Francesco Antonio Zaccaria’s 18th-century treatise Dell’Anno Santo, published in a new edition for the forthcoming 1825 Holy Year. In his description of the rite, Zaccaria explains that Alexander VI “given that at the beginning he introduced the opening of Holy Doors, at the end the custom was taken up for closing them too”
Francescantonio Zaccaria, Dell’anno santo trattato storico, ceremoniale, morale e polemico di Francescantonio Zaccaria con una pratica istruzione per guadagnare il santo giubileo ed aggiunte, vol. I (Parte I storica, e ceremoniale), Roma 1824
Opening of the Holy Door at Saint Peter’s for the Jubilee in 1900
The 1900 Jubilee was celebrated against a challenging backdrop of political tension between the Italian State and the Vatican. Leo XIII performed all of the customary Jubilee rites, including opening and closing the Holy Door, without ever leaving the Vatican
Dante Paolocci (draw.), Come fu aperta la porta santa, 24 dicembre, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. XXVI, n. 53, 31 December 1899
The Holy Doors at the four patriarchal basilicas (Jubilee of 1900)
Saint Peter's and Saint Mary Major
Dante Paolocci (draw.), Le quattro porte sante a Roma, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. XXVII, n. 8, 25 February 1900
The Holy Doors at the four patriarchal basilicas (Jubilee of 1900)
St. John Lateran and Saint Paul's Without-the-Walls
Dante Paolocci (draw.), Le quattro porte sante a Roma, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. XXVII, n. 8, 25 February1900
Ceremonies on the eve of the 1925 Holy Year
These images show the key moments from the eve of the Holy Year as envisaged under a long-standing ceremony. In detail: reading out the bull, the rogitum, the second promulgation and the recognitio ceremony (retrieval of the box walled up in the Holy Door on closing the previous Jubilee containing associated documents, medals, seals and a list of the people who donated bricks to build the wall). Also visible, a commemorative medal for the Holy Year featuring the pontiff as he opens the Holy Door
Felici (papal photogr.), La vigilia dell'anno santo, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. LI, n. 51, 21 December 1924
Ceremonies on the eve of the 1925 Holy Year
These images show the key moments from the eve of the Holy Year as envisaged under a long-standing ceremony. In detail: reading out the bull, the rogitum, the second promulgation and the recognitio ceremony (retrieval of the box walled up in the Holy Door on closing the previous Jubilee containing associated documents, medals, seals and a list of the people who donated bricks to build the wall). Also visible, a commemorative medal for the Holy Year featuring the pontiff as he opens the Holy Door
Felici (papal photogr.), La vigilia dell'anno santo, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. LI, n. 51, 21 December 1924
Opening of the Holy Door (24 December 1924)
Felici (papal photogr.), L'apertura della porta santa 24 dicembre, in: L'illustrazione italiana,a. LII, n. 1, 4 January 1925 (L'anno Santo)
The Pope kneels before being the first to cross the threshold of the Holy Door
Francesco Zaccaria (1774): “...He descends without mitre from the Throne, and having taken the Cross in his hand kneels before the Holy Door..., and then He alone passes through, carrying a lit candle and the Cross...”
Felici (papal photogr.), Il Papa, tenendo nella destra la croce astata patriarcale e nella sinistra il cero acceso, inginocchiato sulla soglia della porta santa, intona il primo versetto del Te Deum, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. LII, n. 1, 4 January 1925 (L'anno Santo)
The slab over the Holy Door at Saint Peter’s knocked down in a single blow (Holy Year 1925)
Armando Bruni (photogr.), Mons. Pelizzo [sic], economo della Fabbrica di San Pietro, dà le ultime disposizioni per la manovra che farà cadere di un colpo la lastra che chiude la porta santa, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. LII, n. 1, 4 January 1925 (L'anno Santo)
The pontifical throne erected in the entrance to the Basilica at Saint Peter’s next to the Holy Door (Holy Year 1925)
These are the final preparations before the opening of the Holy Door. Francesco Zaccaria (1774) says: “The Pontiff, having arrived on his Throne, which is raised opposite the great Door... sits on it but briefly; the Cardinal Major Penitentiary having presented him with a golden Hammer, he takes it in his right hand and... strikes the door three times with the Hammer.”
Felici (papal photogr.), Il trono pontificio eretto nell'atrio della Basilica di San Pietro. A destra di chi guarda, la porta santa, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. LII, n. 1, 4 January 1925 (L'anno Santo)
The pontiff worships in the Sistine Chapel prior to the ceremony (Holy Year 1925)
Since the sixteenth century, a representation of the Holy Year opening ritual has been undertaken in the Sistine Chapel. Francesco Zaccaria writes in 1774: “The Pope, Cardinals and Bishops dressed in white sacred vestments... gather at the Sistine Chapel where the Pontiff intones the Veni Creator. He and all of the Cardinals exit in order of seniority and start to walk towards the Swiss Portico”.
Felici (papal photogr.), L’adorazione del Pontefice nella Cappella Sistina, prima della cerimonia, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. LII, n. 1, 4 January 1925 (L'anno Santo)
Opening of the Holy Door (24 December 1924)
Felici (papal photogr.), L'apertura della porta santa 24 dicembre, in: L'illustrazione italiana, a. LII, n. 1, 4 January 1925 (L'anno Santo)
First great ceremonies of Holy Year 1925
Dopo l'apertura della Porta Santa a S. Pietro. Il pontefice con la sua corte passa tra la folla orante, in: La Domenica del Corriere, a. XXVII, n. 2, 11 January 1925
Hammer and trowel
In 1500, the hammer the Pope used to strike the door was a real mason’s hammer; from 1525, the hammer was made specially for the ceremony. A valuable object, it was forged from gold-plated silver with an ebony handle. Until 1950, Popes used a trowel to spread lime on the threshold of the door when it was time to close it up. It was no longer used from 1975 onwards, when Paul VI established that the door would no longer be walled up from the outside
Due preziosi utensili per la cerimonia della porta Santa: il martello e la cazzuola di oro massiccio, in: La Domenica del Corriere, a. XXVII, n. 2, 11 January 1925
The Cardinal Legate opens the Holy Door at St. John Lateran (Holy Year 1925)
Il cardinale Pompily compie la cerimonia dell'apertura della Porta Santa nella Basilica di S. Giovanni in Laterano, in: La Domenica del Corriere, a. XXVII, n. 2, 11 January 1925
Rome. The Holy Year is announced: The Bull is read in Vatican basilica portico
Istituto Nazionale Luce,1933, D025502
In St. John's in Lateran and St. Paul's outside the walls the solemn rite of the opening of the Holy Door is celebrated by cardinals Marchetti Selvaggiani and Granito di Belmonte
Giornale Luce B0240, 03/1933
The Swiss guard with the magnificent uniforms designed by Michelangelo
Giornale Luce B0244, 1933
After 63 years the Pope celebrates again in St. John's in Lateran the solemn rite of the Ascension. The blessing to people from the Loggia
Giornale Luce B0271, 05/1933
Roman traditions. Acrobatics of the "Sampietrini" for the laying of 900 torches and 5000 lanterns which light St. Peter's from the Cross to the Colonnades
Giornale Luce B0282, 06/1933
Rome. The ceremonies of closing of the Holy doors. In Santa Maria Maggiore
Giornale Luce B0449, 1934
The Holy Year 1950 is announced. The solemn reading of the Bull
La Settimana Incom 00298, 03/06/1949
Single issue dedicated to the opening of the Holy year
La Settimana Incom 00383, 29/12/1949
The mantle of peace
La Settimana Incom 00300, 09/06/1949
Rome. Pope's jubilee visit
La Settimana Incom 00484, 01/09/1950
For the Holy Year. A cross on Spitz Tonezza
La Settimana Incom 00478, 16/08/1950
Proclamation of the dogma of the Assumption
La Settimana Incom 00511, 03/11/1950
The main religious ceremonies which took place in Rome and in Italy to celebrate the Jubilee
La Settimana Incom 00533, 28/12/1950
Ceremony of opening of the Holy year and midnight mass celebrated by His Holiness Paul VI (24/12/1974)
RAI Teche B22727
TV News - Special issue about the Holy Year of Redemption 1983
RAI Teche B10716
St. Peter's. Opening of the Holy Door by His Holiness John Paul II (24/12/1999)
RAI Teche M99358/002
Opening of the Holy door of St. Paul's outside the walls and ecumenical celebration with His Holiness John Paul II
RAI Teche M00018/002