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Saint Agnes outside the walls, not to be confused with Sant' Agnese in Agone, to be found in Piazza Navona
Photo: via Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
This church was built next to the mausoleum of Santa Costanza in the 7th century and is on top of catacombs. It is very unusual in that the floor level is at the level of the catacomb floor, and the street entrance is at the level of the second floor gallery. The body of St. Agnes lies in a silver sarcophagus. There are several stories about her death at the age of 13 in 304 AD. One is that the prefect Sempronius wanted her to marry his son, and condemned her to death when she refused. Roman law did not permit the execution of virgins, so he ordered her to be raped but her virginity was miraculously preserved. She was then condemned to be burnt at the stake but the wood would not burn. Another is that she was stripped naked by the Emperor Diocletian because of her refusal to marry but that her hair then grew rapidly to preserve her modesty.
Saint Agnes Outside the Walls is a titular church and minor basilica in Rome located on a slope descending from the Via Nomentana. The church stands above the Catacombs of Saint Agnes, where the saint was originally buried and which remain accessible from the church. A larger basilica of the same name was built nearby in the 4th century; its ruins can still be seen near Santa Costanza. The present church was constructed by Pope Honorius I in the 7th century and largely preserves its original structure. Notably, the apse mosaic depicting Saint Agnes, Honorius, and another unidentified pope remains mostly intact.
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Sant'Agnese fuori le mura
Small catacombs that contained the remains of Saint Agnes
This church was built by the Emperor Constantine (272-337) as a mausoleum for his daughters Constantina and Helena. It was part of a much larger cemetery complex, parts of which can still be seen. The mausoleum was consecrated as a church and dedicated to Constantina when she became a saint in 1254. The building is circular with an inner arcade resting on pairs of granite columns. It retains some marvellous mosaics from the 4th century.
Catacomb of Priscilla
Underground burial place of an ancient Roman family and of seven early popes.
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