The Dream of Innocent III and the Papal Coat of Arms

The large fresco on the north wall tells the story of the foundation of the Ospedale Innocenziano at the end of the 12th century, dedicated to Santa Maria in Sassia. It originates from the legend of the “macabre fishing”, a vision that appeared in a dream to Pope Innocent III. In this dream, fishermen recovered the bodies of newborns, cast into the Tiber by their own mothers, and presented them to the pope. In reality, during his pontificate, the hospital was reestablished as a place of refuge for abandoned infants, the poor, and single women, while also providing free medical care to the sick, regardless of social class. This initiative was based on the principle that illness should not be seen as divine punishment. Above the large fresco, two female figures—allegories of Misericordia and Pietas—stand alongside the heraldic emblem of Innocent III: a checkered black-and-gold eagle, symbolizing the pope’s mission.