Dome

Close view, from southwest, depicting back elevation with stairs to crypt; The circular building, which stands in a courtyard next to S Pietro in Montorio, serves as a shrine marking the supposed site of St Peter's crucifixion; at its very centre is the hole reputedly for the cross, exposed in the crypt and also visible through an opening in the paved floor above. Despite its tiny size, the Tempietto is majestically conceived. The shrine is encircled by a ring of sixteen Doric columns raised on three steps, with an entablature and balustrade above; the upper level has a drum and a dome with a crowning finial (altered in 1605). Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.groveart.com/ (accessed 1/21/2008)