ST. MARY “ANTIQUA”: only witness in the world of the cultural passage in centuries of frescoes. Three different layers show the style changing from the 6th to the 8th century A.D.. Well kept, though buried for 1000 years, after the earthquake of the 847. It rises by the Palatin, in the Roman Forum.

 

you should absolutely see the “Last Judgement” by Cavallini, roman artist who studied at Giotto’s, to whom they were finally given the merits of a really fantastic art… This fresco is characterized by plastic emphasis and space tridimensionality, the details of wool coats and heavy tissues stress the body… in a unique way… not excluding that Giotto was inspired by him, turning upside down art history. 

ST. PUDENZIANA: in this church you’ll find the most ancient apsidal mosaic… it’s the first time Jesus appears on a throne… once again an “unicum”.

ST. PRASSEDE:

it rises in the middle of a modern block. It’s one of the first parish-churches. Rich in mosaics, it’s composed of a small chapel, the “Sacello of St. Zenone”, totally covered in mosaic; mosaic that even follows the vault architecture, with golden background, and Christ in the center, held by four angels laying their feet on the capitals of the columns that support the vault itself… very original.

 

OUR HOLY LADI IN TRASTEVERE: it’s one of the most ancient in Rome, it’s dated back to half of the 4th century. It keeps such wonderful mosaics on the basis of the apse, which the first representation of Our Holy Lady sitting near Christ on the throne; other characteristic is the artist’s signature (Cavallini), visible in the dedicatory side, in the circle in the third picture. In Altemps Chapel there’s the icon of Our Lady of Mercy from the 7th/8th century… to be seen.

 

ST. MARTIN BY THE MOUNTS: we’re in Colle Oppio, church that represents the characteristics of the Christian buildings from the Carolingian ages: there are some underground rooms that let us think of this place being born in the 3rd century, maybe for commercial use… remains of a floor as a mosaic of a black and white chessboard, and frescoes from the 3rd century… very original.

 

ST. SABIN: extremely beautiful church, with nave lightened by many windows; columns and capitals are very similar, but above all the cypress door, unique: it’s a historiated door, divided in squares where it’s told the history of the Old and New Teastament… in one square there’s the first representation of Jesus’ crucifix among the robbers.

 

 

SANCTA SANTORUM AND THE HOLY STAIRS: through the Holy Stairs you can reach the Sancta Sanctorum, Pope’s private chapel until his siege was St. John in Lateran. Its name comes from the numerous and sacred relics kept inside it. Wonderful the mosaic decoration and the 13th century’s frescoes.

 

 

CONSTANCE’S MAUSOLEUM: just behind St. Agnes cathedral, it’s peculiar for its architecture, with an outer ring-passage rich in mosaics Constantine’s ages… very original and evident the further restorations.

 

And for who doesn’t know the “Mitreus”, here are some to visit… they’re places of worship of god Mitra, oriental religion developed also in Rome, and whose initiation consisted in scarifying a bull on a grating on the floor, while under the grille the initiated had to be flooded with the animal’s blood…

MITREUS OF CARACALLA BATHS: one of the biggest in Rome, placed in the dungeons of the baths, well kept hall with mosaic floor in white and black stripes. One of the halls was identified as stable for the bull. The particular atmosphere and the good keeping let us understand how peculiar Mitra’s worship was.

 

 

MITREUS OF ST. CLEMENT: in the dungeons of the wonderful cathedral, you can visit the Mitreus of Severus’ age… well kept the altar with the image of Mitra killing the bull.

 

 

MITREUS OF ST. PRISCA: very suggestive and warm, down the central hall, the scene of the bull.

 

 

VILLA GIULIA’S MUSEUM: it’s kept the archaeological material of Latium, of south Etruria and of Umbria… The sarcophagus of the Weds coming from Cerveteri is one of them… very interesting.

 

 

 

 

 

SACRED AREA OF ARGENTINA SQUARE: four temples of the republican age, where Julius Cesar was stabbed.

AUDITORIUM OF MECENATE: (in Leopardi Square) it’s all that remained of Mecenate’s Villa. A rectangular room where Mecenate met writers and poets to declaim their works. The walls were frescoed with country images… it was probably a very fresh place used in summer. triclinio estivo.

 

COPPEDE’ QUARTER: visiting Porta Pia, you can reach this quarter, carrying the name of its designer, where you can see a lot of villas and palaces, like Fairies Villa with a fresco from the middle ages.

 

 

 

MONASTERY OF THE OBLATES ( In St. Francesca Romana): in 32, Marcello Theatre Street, identified by Bernini’s oval alto-rilievo, there’s the monastery entrance that owns a wonderful cycle of frescoes, relating to St. Francesca Romana’s life, by Antoniazzo Romano, who was defined one of the major artists of Latium by Vasari.

 

QUINTILI’S VILLA: between Old and New Appia, a huge Villa rises on a hill, comparable to Villa Adriana. Commodo, Marcus Aurelius’ son, was a crazy oriental person who, charmed by this place, wanted it so much that he killed his whole family with the excuse of a plot against him. The Villa became an imperial residence and its remains witness its greatness.

 

CAFFARELLA VALLEY: in Old Appia country they rise the arches of Felix waterworks, so called in honor of Sisto the 5th in 1585, and a series of constructions… medieval towers, fifth-century villas, sacred woods (the one where Numa Pompilio met the Nymph Nigeria), the temple of god Redicolo…