Saint John’s Lateran complex is the most important place in Catholicism, being the cathedral of Rome and the official siege of the Pope. The basilica, dedicated to Christ the Saviour and, in a second moment, to St. John the Evangelist and St. John the Baptist, was built by will of the emperor Constantine as the first Christian church within the city walls. Being restored several times during the centuries, it reached its actual aspect thanks to Francesco Borromini, who transformed its interiors in a baroque way. Inside the basilica we’ll cherish the beautiful marble statues representing the apostles, the gothic style canopy above the main altar, the mosaic in the apse attributed to Jacopo Torriti and the frescoes in the transept by artists as Pomarancio, Orazio Gentileschi, Cesare Nebbia, Giovanni Baglione and Bernardino Cesari.
The paleochristian baptistry still shows fragments of the original decoration in the side chapels, while the rest of the building is lavishly decorated in baroque style. In the middle the baptismal fountain shows off, covered by a gilded bronze apex by Ciro Ferri. On the opposite side of the street we can visit the Sanctuary of the Holy Steps, where there’s the staircase that, according to tradition, Christ walked in Jerusalem when he went to Pontius Pilate’s palace. Still today the believers go up on their knees praying the rosary.
