Christian Rome with Underground Basilicas 3-Hour Guided Tour

Churches

Rome

from €89.00 EUR
Duration: 3 Hours
Organized by: Welcome Italy
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Discover the Christian background underneath the streets of Rome on a 3 hours strolling tour of several of its small basilicas, such as the Basilica of San Clemente, the Santi Quattro Coronati, and also the Holy Stairs in the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran.

Delight in a half-day strolling tour of Christian Rome and explore underground treasury in a few of the most astonishing churches. Your tour guide will certainly inform you remarkable realities along the road, leading you to the historical Basilica of San Clemente, and the Cathedral of St. John.

Beginning at the Basilica of San Clemente, the only church in Rome to be built on 3 various levels. Constructed from the 1st to the 12th centuries, 2 underground floors can currently be checked out, including the Altar of Mithras from the first century.

Continue to the church of the Santi Quattro Coronati, dedicated to 4 anonymous saints and martyrs.

Follow the tale of the Emperor Constantine the Great and Pope Sylvester in the Chapel of St. Sylvester, where it is said the famous Constitutum Constantini (Donation of Constantine) occured.

Finish your trip at the Basilica of Rome, likewise referred to as the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran. The oldest of the 4 Papal Basilicas, St. John Lateran boasts a magnificent façade, but it’s the Scala Sancta (Holy Stairs) that will certainly catch your eye.

What's Included

Resort pick-up and drop off,
Live Tour guide (English, Spanish, French),
Entrance ticket to the Basilica of San Clemente.

Cancellation Policy

Free cancellation up to 1 day before tour starts.

Useful Info

In 312, the Emperor Constantine (306-337) ordered an end to the persecution of Christians. As the catacombs were gradually abandoned, huge basilicas arose above the tombs of the Apostles and the earliest successors of Peter: San Paolo fuori le mura, the first St Peter’s, San Clemente…

The popes took up residence in a palace close to St John Lateran, the first sanctuary of the city dedicated to Christ; they were to remain there till their departure for Avignon at the start of the fourteenth century. After the barbarian invasions, and the deposition of the last Roman emperor in 476, it was the papacy that assured the city’s survival. Under the aegis of Charlemagne, Rome rose from its ruins – only to be battered by further storms in the Middle Ages as popes, emperors, and nobility waged a relentless struggle for power.

Though the city’s life resumed little by little, it was mainly confined to the loop of the Tiber and Trastevere, on the left bank. Travellers found sheep grazing amid the remains of the Capitol, the Palatine and the Esquiline in scenes of near desolation.

Location

4 Piazza di S. Giovanni in Laterano Lateran basilica, Roma, Lazio 00184