MUSEUM AND ORATORY OF SANTA MARIA DELLA VITA

The monumental complex of Santa Maria della Vita was built in the 13th century, as a Hospital and Church, with the latter
having the dome designed by Bibiena, is the most important example of Bolognese Baroque and houses the famous Lamentation over the Dead Christ by Niccolò dell’Arca, the "stone scream," according to the famous definition by D’Annunzio,

Adjacent to the church is the Oratory, with the sculptural group of the Assumption of the Virgin by Alfonso Lombardi, and the Museum of Health and Assistance, as well as the Gregorian School Benedict XVI,
Since 1814 the complex became the Major Hospital until the bombings of 1943, when it was razed to the ground.
The Sanctuary and its surroundings constitute the heart of the historic center of Bologna, the so-called Quadrilateral; restored, it has been serving its current function as a museum and exhibition center since 2010.

THE PIETÀ

The Lamentation over the Dead Christ is the masterpiece of Niccolò dell'Arca housed at Santa Maria della Vita.

It is a work consisting of seven life-size figures in terracotta with traces of polychromy, which is presumed to have been created between 1463 and 1490, and whose exact arrangement is unknown.

The dead Christ is in the center, lying down with his head resting on a cushion.

All around the body are the other figures, including the two women torn apart by pain and with their clothes billowing in the wind.

Detached from the others, the figure of the client, facing the spectator, in Renaissance attire.

Getting to the museum

8-10 Via Clavature - historic center

Bus 11, 13, 14, 19, 20, 25, 27, 29, 30, 37
stop at Piazza Maggiore or via Rizzoli
Shuttle A: Piazza Galvani stop

Train: 15 minutes by foot from the Central Station

Parking: Underground parking in Piazza VIII Agosto

Contacts - timetable - fares

Museum and Oratory of Santa Maria della Vita

8-10 Clavature Way, Bologna,
+39 051 230260
santamariadellavita@genusbononiae.it

Opening
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday: 10-19
Mourning: 10:30-18:30

Admission
Full - Museum and Oratory included : € 6
Reduced - Museum and Oratory included : € 4