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Photo: Parrocchia di Santa Agnese fuori le Mura, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
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.
The Mausoleum of Constantina, also known as the Mausoleum of Santa Costanza, was built in the 4th century AD for Constantina, the daughter of the emperor Constantine I. It later became a church. It is located in Rome on the Via Nomentana, within the monumental complex of Sant'Agnese fuori le mura.
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Sant'Agnese fuori le mura
Small catacombs that contained the remains of Saint Agnes
Saint Agnes outside the walls, not to be confused with Sant' Agnese in Agone, to be found in Piazza Navona
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.
Catacomb of Priscilla
Underground burial place of an ancient Roman family and of seven early popes.
With its strange Liberty- style buildings with influence from the Art Nouveau of the 1920s this small bunch of blocks is one of the most interesting, and less known, landmarks of the city. A must see.
A magnificent patrician house with beautiful gardens. It was built by order of Cardinal Alessando Albani in 1743-1763 in order to accommodate his collection of art. The collection was taken care of by the Winkelmann, adviser and friend of the cardinal. In Rome, Winkelmann wrote his "Geschichte der Kunst des Altertumns (HIstory of the Art of Antiquity)", which made him the founder of classical archaeology. The painted ceiling of the great hall depicting Mount Parnassus is by the German painter Anton Raphael Mengs who was considered as the greatest painter in Rome in the 18th century. A permission to visit is to be requested by email or fax from Principi Torlonia's administration where you'd need to indicate date and time desired, your name and number of people in your party (max. 10).
Museo d'Arte Contemporanea di Roma
Rome's museum of contemporary art, housed in a former industrial complex. Rotating exhibitions, each one usually lasting about 4 months. The MACRO Testaccio exhibition space is located in Aventino-Testaccio.