The Crypt of the Popes in the mysterious Catacombs of San Callisto
After the Quo vadis church, to the right of the Appia Antica, are the Catacombs of St. Callistus, among the largest and most important in Rome. They date back to around the middle of the 2nd century and are part of a cemetery complex occupying an area of 15 hectares, with a network of tunnels […]
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Centrale Montemartini, art after electricity
Along via Ostiense, on the left bank of the Tiber opposite the former Mercati Generali, the Centrale Montemartini is a perfect example of the conversion of an industrial archaeology building into a museum. What started out as the first public electricity production plant, named after Giovanni Montemartini, is now the second exhibition centre of the […]
Domus Aurea, the house of Nero after his incendiary madness
After the fire of Rome in 64 A.D., which destroyed much of the city centre, Emperor Nero had a new imperial residence built stretching from the Palatine Hill to the Opian Hill and part of the Caelian Hill, which went down in history as the Domus Aurea because of its splendor. Designed by architects Severus […]
Capitoline Museums, the world’s first public exhibition space
The birth of the Capitoline Museums, the oldest public museum in the world, dates back to 1471, when Pope Sixtus IV donated a group of bronze statues to the Roman people, which formed the initial nucleus of the collection. The collections were later expanded by the popes with works coming from excavations of Rome, from […]
A museum for Garibaldi’s heroes and the Roman Republic
After a restoration and enhancement project, the monumental complex of Porta San Pancrazio was reopened in 2011 and the Museum of the Roman Republic and Garibaldi’s Memory was inaugurated. Using historical documents, works of art and multimedia and didactic materials, it retraces history, places, and personalities of this fundamental era in the history of this […]
Pantheon, the shrine of the House of Savoy and tomb of geniuses such as Raphael
The Pantheon is one of the best preserved examples of the monumental architecture of ancient Rome. Its history begins in 27 B.C., when Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, son-in-law, friend and collaborator of Octavian, had a first temple built in this area dedicated to ‘all the gods’. Having fallen into a state of neglect and subsequently sacked […]
Villa Farnesina, a Renaissance jewel in Trastevere
Villa Farnesina on via della Lungara in Trastevere is one of the noblest and most harmonious achievements of the Italian Renaissance, built as the residence of the wealthy Sienese banker Agostino Chigi to a design by architect Baldassarre Peruzzi between 1505 and 1520. It was frescoed according to a rich iconographic programme aimed at celebrating […]
The ‘core’ of the most genuine Rome is on display at the Museo in Trastevere
Located in the heart of Rione XIII, the Museo di Roma in Trastevere is housed in the former monastery of Sant’Egidio, where the Discalced Carmelite nuns lived until the taking of Rome. Once restored in 1976, the building became the seat of the Museum of Folklore and Roman Poets, where materials related to Roman popular […]
At San Pietro in Montorio the Tempietto by Bramante
Founded in the 9th century on the spot where St Peter was believed to have been crucified and rebuilt in the late 15th century, the church owes its name ‘Montorio’ to ‘Mons Aureus’, the name given in the Middle Ages to the Janiculum Hill where it is located. During the siege of Rome by French […]
On the Appia Antica the remains of the villa that celebrated the exploits of Maxentius
The archaeological complex of the Villa of Maxentius stretches between the second and third mile of the Via Appia Antica and consists of three main buildings: the palace, the circus and the dynastic mausoleum, designed to celebrate the Emperor Maxentius, Constantine’s opponent who was defeated at the Battle of Ponte Milvio in 312 AD. The […]