Rome San Paolo Fuori le Mura apartments for rent, bed and breakfast, vacation rentals in Rome : district San Paolo Fuori le Mura

It was built on the grave of St. Paul. It is one of the seven churches of Rome which are visited by pilgrims, and one of the five Basilicae Maiores. It belongs to the State of the Vatican.
The emperor Constantine built a chapel in memory of St. Paul at the place where the saint was beheaded in 67 AD.
Around 386-410, the Roman emperors built a basilica at the place of the original chapel with five naves divided by columns with a transept, praised by the poet Prudentius (early fifth century) as "duomo aureo" ("golden dome").
The convent (936) and the cloister (1205-1241) are due to the Benedictines.
The frescoes of the nave and the mosaic on the facade were created by Cavallini (XIII-XIV centuries).
The portico of the facade was built by Galileo in 1750. The origin of the ten monolithic columns of the portico is very unique because they had a long journey behind them: they come from Lago Maggiore, and more precisely from the quarries of Baveno and Montorfano.
They were then brought from the lake to Rome by water with large barges, along the Ticino, the canal and the Po, until they reached the Adriatic Sea and then circumnavigated the whole of Italy to reach its destination via the river Tiber, unloading their precious cargo at the basilica. The transport took 4 years.
The facade is dominated by a new bell tower which is crowned by a pediment with mosaic which depicts Christ blessing with the apostles.
At the entrance to the Cappella di San Benedetto (Chapel of St. Benedict) there is an interesting pool of water from the last century: it represents the devil who is kicked out of the basilica.
The monastery houses a collection of Christian inscriptions and grave stones from the old basilica and 42 medallions with portraits of the popes who have followed from the fifth to the ninth century. Next to the monastery there is the museum.
In the cloister there is a collection of architectural fragments, sarcophagi and tombstones from the early Christian basilica and excavations from the necropolis.
The church was almost completely destroyed by a devastating fire in 1823. The then Pope Leo XII appealed to the faithful Christians around the world for its reconstruction.