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Hopefully, the email for the feast day celebration of the Chair Of Saint Peter explained that the religious celebration has nothing to do with a chair for sitting but rather the office held by Saint Peter and his successors. This article is about the physical chair that Saint Peter is said to have sat in. 
 Above (right) is a picture of the Bernini enclosure to house the Chair of Peter. To the left is a bronze statue of Saint Peter seated, much as he would have been when preaching. Both are located in The Basilica of Saint Peter in Vatican City. Guidebooks describing St. Peter's Basilica will point out the bronze chair located in the apse as the Chair of Saint Peter. Some stories say that this is the very chair that St. Peter used to sit on during his sermons. Others believe the chair to be a mid-ninth-century artifact, given by the Frankish king Charles the Baldt to Pope John VIII. Opinions vary but most recognize its symbolism, as Pope Benedict did in his Angelus sermon of February 19th 2012: The Chair of Saint Peter, represented in the apse of the Vatican Basilica is a monumental sculpture by Bernini. It is a symbol of the special mission of Peter and his Successors to tend Christ’s flock, keeping it united in faith and in charity.Historically, the chair had been at Saint Peter's for some years when G.L. Bernini enclosed it in bronze and placed it above the apse altar. He completed his work in 1666 after smelting a massive amount of bronze. At each side of the chair enclosure are four statues depicting Doctors of the Church, two from the east (Sts. Athanasius and John Chrysostom ) and two from the west (Sts. Ambrose and Augustine). Each statue is 16 feet, six inches high. The papal coat of arms at the base is that of Alexander VII . In the background is a gilded cloud of angels surrounding an alabaster window with a Holy Spirit dove to provide rays of sunlight around the chair area. 
There have seen several pontifical investigations concerning the chair. Most have concluded that there is no reason for doubting the genuineness of the relic but there is no absolute proof of authenticity. The enclosure that Bernini built to encase is truly a marvelous sight. The only Vatican stamp to depict the Bernini encasement is from the 80th Birthday of Pope John XXIII issue (Scott 321), which showed the Chair of Saint Peter communicating papal succession.  Scott 321 (1961) References • Joseph N. Tylenda, S. J, S. Pietro In Vaticano The Pilgrim's Guide To Rome'sPrincipal Churches The Liturgical Press, Copyright 1993, pages 16-17 • Rosamond McKitterick, John Osborne, Carol M. Richardson, and Joanna Story (editors), Old Saint Peter's Rome Cambridge University Press, paperback edition 2018 • Roberto Cassaneli (editor) General Guide To The Vatican City Jaca Books First english edition November 2012 • The Chair Of St. Peter Vatican Notes Volume XVIII, Number 4, Page 13 • Rev. H. A. Phinney, The Eightieth Anniversary Of The Birth Of John XXIII,Vatican Notes Volume: 14, Issue 2, 1965, Pages 9-11 • Discover the Throne of Peter the Apostle at St. Peter's Basilica website - https://www.st-peters-basilica-tickets.com/st-peters-chair/ • 9 Things You Need to Know About the Chair of St. Peter National Catholic Register, website - https://www.ncregister.com/blog/9-things-you-need-to-know-about-the-chair-of-st-peter Photographs are from the photo collection of Marvin Lanahan |
