Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini's Scala Regia in the Apostolic Palace, Vatican, drawing by Leitch, engraving by E. Challis 1835

This is an engraving by E. Challis, after a drawing by William Leighton Leitch, depicting Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini's Scala Regia in the Vatican. Completed in the mid-17th century, Bernini's Scala Regia, or Royal Stairway, connected the Vatican Palace to St. Peter's Basilica, functioning as the main entrance to the papal apartments. The engraving, likely created in the 19th century, captures the imposing architecture and dramatic use of perspective that Bernini employed to create a sense of grandeur and power. The Vatican, as the center of the Roman Catholic Church, had a significant influence on artistic production. Bernini, as a leading artist of the Baroque period, was commissioned to create works that reinforced the authority and prestige of the papacy. The Scala Regia, with its illusionistic effects and opulent decoration, served to impress visitors and assert the dominance of the Church. Further historical research into the patronage system of the Vatican and the political context of the Baroque period can deepen our understanding of the artwork. This enables us to appreciate how art can be shaped by and also reflects the prevailing social structures of its time.