Continuing with with Rome’s Papal Basilicas, today we will profile Santa Maria Maggiore.
Santa Maria Maggiore
Address: Via Liberiana, 27 (Esquilino)
Phone: 06-483-195
Web: http://www.vatican.va/various/sm_maggiore/index_en.html
Getting There: Metro Line A (Termini) or B (Termini or Cavour); Buses 16, 27, 70, 71
History: The largest church in Rome dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Santa Maria Maggiore has maintained its paleo-Christian foundations, which date back to the 5th century, has 12th-century mosaics, and it also contains relics of the Holy Crib. Rome’s most prolific artist, Gianlorenzo Bernini, is also entombed here.
What’s Cool: According to legend, this church was built on the hill where a miraculous snow fell on August 5 (obviously a miraculous sign if you’ve ever been in Rome in August!).
Photo from Vatican.va
