In this area was the site of the temple of Apollo; St. Benedict adjusted it to serve as an Oratory where the monks came together to say their prayers. He dedicated it to St. Martin Bishop of Tours.

In 1953, when the Abbey was rebuilt, traces where found of the original foundation of this Oratory with its small apse, the boundaries of which were found marked below the mosaic featuring Christ between the Holy Virgin and St. Martin according to a drawing by the Monk F. Vignanelli.

It was in this Oratory that St. Benedict died in the position described by St. Gregory the Great, his biographer:

This episode is recorded by the bronze Group in the middle of the garden done by the sculptor A. Selva in 1952, which was a gift from the German Chancellor K. Adenauer.

Images available in this page:

	Entrance Cloister View of the Entrance Cloister (422x406, 97K)
	Death of St. Benedict The bronze Group with St. Benedict (519x541, 121K)

Now you can visit:

• the Cloister of Bramante;