Dorota Abdelmoula-Viet, Paolo Ondarza – Vatican
The mosaic with the image of Leo XIV was illuminated on Sunday, January 25, before Vespers, which the Pope presided over in St. Paul’s Outside the Walls Basilica on the occasion of the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The papal portrait was placed in the right nave of the temple, at a height of 13 m, in a gallery containing 267 papal images.
A tradition from the time of Leo the Great
Placing portraits of successive popes in St. Paul’s Outside the Walls Basilica – the Apostle of the Nations – is a tradition dating back to the 5th century and the pontificate of Leo the Great. Initially, these images were paintings, but the vast majority of them were destroyed during the tragic fire that consumed the temple in 1823.
In 1847, Pius IX decided to recreate the papal gallery, entrusting this task to the Vatican mosaic workshop. The work proceeded at an express pace: in less than half a year, painted portraits of 262 popes were created, which then served as a model for making mosaics – each in the form of a tondo, with a diameter of 137 cm.
From Peter to Leo XIV
The tradition of creating a mosaic based on a previously prepared portrait is cherished to this day. The author of the painting with the image of Leo XIV is Dr. Rodolfo Papa, a renowned sacred art creator in Italy. He completed it within a few weeks last July. Leo XIV himself chose the final version of the painting from among 4 sketches presented.
Subsequently, in just 3 months, a mosaic consisting of 15,000 elements with a total weight of 130 kg was prepared based on this. In January, the mosaic was presented to the Pope, and then its installation in St. Paul’s Outside the Walls Basilica began. Throughout Leo XIV’s pontificate, it will remain illuminated, as a sign of his exercise of the Petrine office.
