Rome - Sant'Agostino

Sant'Agostino, situated near the Piazza Navona, is noted for its image of the Madonna del Parto (Madonna of Childbirth) who is invoked by pregnant women seeking a safe delivery and by married couples wanting a child. The church, built between 1479 and 1483 (probably by Giacomo da Pietrasanta) and rebuilt in 1750, has a severe travertine facade, one of the earliest Renaissance facades in Rome. The interior, with a high nave barely wider than the aisles, is dominated by the dome which is flanked by the transepts. In addition to the Madonna del Parto (by Jacopo Sansevino, 1421) the church has a painting of the prophet Isaiah by Raphael (1512; third pillar on left) and Caravaggio's "Madonna of the Pilgrims" (1605; third chapel in north aisle).

To the right of the church is the Biblioteca Angelica (state-owned since 1873), a library specialising in philology.