Chiesa del Santissimo Salvatore

Chiesa del Santissimo Salvatore rises in San Salvatore, Italy, with a high façade shaped by two architectural orders and connecting volutes. Giovanni Ambrogio Mazenta designed the church. Construction began in 1605 and ended in 1623 after an interruption, while Tommaso Martelli directed the building work. Houses belonging to the Lateran canons disappeared between 1618 and 1622, opening space before the entrance.

Inside, a broad longitudinal nave leads past three chapels on each side towards a transept and hidden dome. Eight free-standing columns mark the nave’s progression. An octagonal tiburium conceals the dome outside, while the apse curves within and forms polygonal angles beyond the walls. Palladian windows alternate with rectangular false windows across the lateral chapels, creating a measured rhythm of openings and pilasters.

The high altar presents the Holy Saviour in a painting by Guido Reni and Francesco Gessi from 1620. Giacomo Cavedoni’s 1622 paintings surround it with scenes from the Beirut Crucifix story. Alessandro Tiarini’s Sacred Family fills the left transept, while Mastelletta’s Resurrection faces Carlo Bononi’s Ascension. A floor slab in the middle of the nave marks the burial place of Giovan Francesco Barbieri, known as Il Guercino.