San Pietro in Vincoli
San Pietro in Vincoli (sam ˈpjɛːtro iɱ ˈviŋkoli; Saint Peter in Chains) is a Roman Catholic titular church and minor basilica in Rome, Italy, best known for being the home of Michelangelo's statue of Moses, part of the tomb of Pope Julius II. The Titulus S. Petri ad vincula was assigned on 20 November 2010, to Donald Wuerl. The previous Cardinal Priest of the basilica was Pío Laghi, who died on 11 January 2009. Next to the church is hosted the Faculty of Engineering of La Sapienza University, in the former associated convent. This is named "San Pietro in Vincoli" per antonomasia. The church is on the Oppian Hill near Cavour metro station, a short distance from the Colosseum. Also known as the Basilica Eudoxiana (Basilica Eudossiana, it was first rebuilt on older foundations in 432–440 to house the relic of the chains that bound Saint Peter when he was imprisoned in Jerusalem, the episode called "Liberation of Saint Peter". The Empress Eudoxia (wife of Emperor Valentinian III), who received them as a gift from her mother, Aelia Eudocia, presented the chains to Pope Leo I. Aelia Eudocia had received these chains as a gift from Iuvenalis, bishop of Jerusalem. According to legend, when Leo compared them to the chains of St. Peter's final imprisonment in the Mamertine Prison, in Rome, the two chains miraculously fused together. The chains are now kept in a reliquary under the main altar in the basilica. A chain link outside of Rome is in St Peter's Church, Rutland, Vermont. Numerous churches to saint Peter bear the Ad Vincula suffix, relating them to the relic, basilica and enchainment of the Roman church-founding saint. The basilica, consecrated in 439 by Sixtus III, has undergone several restorations, among them a restoration by Pope Adrian I, and further work in the eleventh century. From 1471 to 1503, in which year he was elected Pope Julius II, Cardinal Della Rovere, the nephew of Pope Sixtus IV, effected notable rebuilding. The front portico, attributed to Baccio Pontelli, was added in 1475.
