The Vatican Sacristy is connected to the Basilica by two ambulacra: the first is reserved to the clergy and leads to the Chapel of the Choir; the second enables to Basilica to be reached directly via a door that opens into the Clementine Chapel, beneath the monumental tomb of Pope Pius VIII. On the corridor facing Largo Braschi there is another entrance served by a double-flight grand staircase. Attached to the majestic building of the Vatican Sacristy is the Palazzo della Canonica. The construction of the Sacristy dates back to the pontificate of Pope Pius VI (1775-1799). The project was entrusted to the architect Carlo Marchionni (1702-1786) and for its construction, the old sacristy (“Rotonda di Sant'Andrea” or “di Santa Maria della Febbre”), some houses and the small church of Santo Stefano degli Ungari were demolished in the area of the building south of the basilica. The foundation stone of the new sacristy was laid by Pope Pius VI on 22 September 1776. The inauguration took place eight years later, on 10 June 1784.
The Vatican Sacristy houses the Treasury Museum of Saint Peter’s Basilica.
© Fabric of Saint Peter