Pietro Bernini

Pietro Bernini (May 6, 1562 – August 29, 1629) was an Italian sculptor. He was the father of the more famous sculptor, Gian Lorenzo Bernini.

Pietro Bernini was born in Sesto Fiorentino, Tuscany. He moved to Naples to work on the Certosa di San Martino there, and Gian Lorenzo was born in Naples in 1598. In 1605 the family moved to Rome under the protection of Cardinal Scipione Borghese. In Rome he worked on various projects for Pope Paul V, another Borghese, including the Pauline Chapel in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

One of Pietro Bernini's best known contributions to the city of Rome is the Fontana della Barcaccia which resembles a beached ship and is located at the foot of the Spanish Steps. It was commissioned by Pope Urban VIII and built in 1627.

He died in Rome in 1629.

Married Angelica di Giovanni Galante in a private, at-home ceremony in Naples, on January 17, 1587.