Ancient Rome
The medieval Chiesa di San Giorgio in Velabro is a beautiful, atmospheric church whose original 7th-century portico was completely destroyed by a Mafia bomb attack in 1993. Its interior, divided by bare granite columns, features a colourful apse fresco attributed to Pietro Cavallini and his students.
The name Velabro is a reference to the Velabrum, the marshy area where tradition holds that Romulus and Remus were rescued after they'd been set adrift on the Tiber.
1.86 MILES
Founded by Pope Julius II in the early 16th century and enlarged by successive pontiffs, the Vatican Museums boast one of the world's greatest art…
1.71 MILES
In the city of outstanding churches, none can hold a candle to St Peter's, Italy’s largest, richest and most spectacular basilica. Built atop a 4th…
0.27 MILES
An impressive – if rather confusing – sprawl of ruins, the Roman Forum was ancient Rome's showpiece center, a grandiose district of temples...
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Sandwiched between the Roman Forum and the Circo Massimo, the Palatino (Palatine Hill) is one of Rome's most spectacular sights. It's a beautiful,…
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Everyone wants to see the Colosseum, and it doesn’t disappoint, especially if accompanied by tales of armored gladiators and hungry lions. More than any…
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Dating from 1471, the Capitoline Museums are the world's oldest public museums, with a fine collection of classical sculpture.
0.71 MILES
With its revolutionary design, this awe-inspiring temple has served as an architectural blueprint for millennia.
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With its showy fountains, baroque palazzi and colorful cast of street artists, hawkers and tourists, Piazza Navona is central Rome’s elegant showcase…
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Despite its name, this four-fronted 4th-century arch was probably dedicated to the emperor Constantine or Constantatius II. In ancient times cattle…
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A busy thoroughfare, Piazza Bocca della Verità stands on what was once ancient Rome’s cattle market, the Forum Boarium. Little remains from that period…
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This classic Republican-era temple dedicated to the god of rivers and ports, Portunus, owes its current state of preservation to the fact that it was…
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A bearded face carved into a giant marble disc, the Bocca della Verità is one of Rome's most popular curiosities. Legend has it that if you put your hand…
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Dating to the 2nd century BC, the circular Tempio di Ercole Vincitore is the oldest marble temple in Rome. Twenty Corinthian columns surround the compact…
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According to tradition, these Iron Age huts on the Palatino, also known as the Casa Romuli, are where Romulus and Remus were brought up by the shepherd…
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Visible to the south of the Isola Tiberina are the remains of the Pons Aemilius, ancient Rome’s first stone bridge. Dating to the 2nd century BC, it was…
8. Basilica di San Nicola in Carcere
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This innocuous-looking 11th-century basilica, hidden behind scaffolding when we last visited, harbours some fascinating underground ruins. Beneath the…