San Paolo fuori le mura
One hundred and thirty metres long and 65 metres wide, this is the second largest basilica in Rome after St. Peter's. Started under the reign of Constantine, it was completed in 395 AD.
Over the centuries it was enriched with paintings and frescoes until in July 823 AD a terrible fire almost burnt it to the ground. The basilica was rebuilt in 1928 following the original design (including the portico in front of the facade, called "of the hundred columns").
Inside there are many works of art: the Byzantine-Venetian mosaics in the apse, the Gothic Ciborium by Arnolfo di Cambio, in the Chapel of the Holy Sacrament the mosaic representing the Holy Virgin, the frieze with mosaic portraits of the Popes, the Triumphal Arch at the far end of the central nave, the Byzantine bronze panels of the Holy Door, and the harmonious cloister with multicoloured marbles, mosaics and smooth and spiral-shaped columns.
San Paolo fuori le mura - Rome
The Pyramid
It is the tomb of the roman tribune Caius Cestius, died in 12 BC. In the Middle Ages people believed it was the tomb of Remus, brother of the mythical founder of the city. It is 36.40 mt. high and the side of the base is 22 mt. long.
