This dramatic journey through religious and artistic history traces the defining event of a glorious epoch: the building of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Begun by the ferociously ambitious Pope Julius II in 1506, the endeavour would span two tumultuous centuries, challenge the greatest Renaissance masters and enrage Martin Luther. By the time it was completed, Shakespeare had written all his plays, the Mayflower had reached Plymouth and Rome had become Europe's holy metropolis. A dazzling portrait of human achievement and excess.