«Non poteva patir la chiesa». Perizie e conflitti intorno alla cupola della chiesa del Santissimo Nome di Gesù a Roma

The Roman church of Santissimo Nome di Gesù constitutes a bedrock of the architecturaland artistic historiography of the 16th and 17th centuries. In particular, the complex eventsregarding the realization of the 17th-century interior decoration, such as the question ofwhether to remove the Cupola ribs in order to have a smooth surface to fresco or not, haveled to numerous studies, including some related to the 1672 intervention by the Jesuits, rectorsof the church, and the Farnese family, the Church patrons. The author, who has recentlypublished a study which re-examines the interior decoration of the Gesù, takes this occasionto examine the question of the technical surveys of the cupola, setting them into this new historicaland critical context. This allows him to thoroughly investigate the roles played by GianLorenzo Bernini, Carlo Rainaldi and Carlo Fontana in the 17th-century events.