| Church of San Clemente and its
Mithraeum it is difficult to
compare this basilica to other Roman churches, however
beautiful and artistically important they may be. Inside, the
visitor takes a real trip through time visiting two basilicas: a
lower and upper with four different structural levels dating from
the 1rst to the 12th century A.D. On the lowest level of the lower
Basilica there is the Mithraeum, a temple dedicated to Mirtra, an
ancient Persian religion that was a rival with Christianity. In
addition, inside the upper church there are the splendid
mosaics depicting the stories from the life of St. Catherine of
Alexandria , frescoed by Masolino
|
Scala Santa (Holy Stairs) a place of worship
and prayer, it is beleived that Jesus Christ walked up these steps
to Pilate's Praetorium before His passion. The frescoes on the
walls constitute one of the best examples of late manierist Roman
decoration, commissioned by Pope Sixtus V at the height of the
Catholic Counter-Reformation (end of the 16th century)
Sancta Sanctorum the
private chapel of the Popes inside the Lateran Palace and initial
residence of the successors to St. Peter during the Middle Ages.
This once again astonishes visitors with its graceful, refined
furnishings and murals thanksto recent restoration |
Palazzo Massimo this
palace hosts a considerable part of the archaeological collection
of the National Roman Museum and above all the paintings and
mosaics of many villas and residences of the Imperial Age which
graced the urban and extra-urban landscapes of Rome. Among these,
stands out the decoration of the summer triclinium from the villa
of Livia at Prima Porta. This was reconstructed following careful
restoration work and transportation from its original site that
was begun in the 1950's |
