The Round Cloister of Bramante's Tempietto

The original design for the round cloister by Donato Bramante, meant to accompany his Tempietto di San Pietro in Montorio, dates from the early 16th century. It was initially planned to be situated between the pre-existing church of San Pietro in Montorio and its older cloister. However, the round cloister was never realized as envisioned; instead, a rectangular cloister was built, placing the Tempietto at its center. This adjusted plan is detailed in Sebastiano Serlio’s "I Quattro Libri dell'Architettura" (1570), which presents an idealized schematic of the design. The specifics of whether the cloister was intended to have one or two stories, or if the 16 columns were meant to support an entablature or a series of arches, are not documented clearly. The design has been depicted several times throughout the history of architecture. Notably, Paul Marie Letarouilly’s 1940 illustration critiques the feasibility of Serlio's depicted four chapels, pointing out spatial conflicts with the transept apse of the main church.