MysecretRome

A fascinating multi-layered Basilica of St. Clemente

The Basilica of St. Clemente is an unparalleled experience here in Rome, especially if you are on the hunt for that unique site not everybody goes to.

The Basilica of St. Clemente is a minor basilica dedicated to Pope Clement I.
This temple is remarkable because archaeologically, it records the history of Rome from the beginning of Christianity up until the Middle Ages.

The Basilica is made up of three layers (be sure to visit all of them!!): the present building founded during the Medieval period, the house of a member of the Roman aristocracy and a fourth century church which is underneath the basilica.

During the second century AD, the site on which the church now stands was occupied by a Roman mansion owned by Titus Flavius Clemens, one of the first Roman senators to convert to Christianity. The house was used for Christian clandestine worship, since being Christian at the time was forbidden.
Approximately a century later, a temple dedicated to Mithras, was built on the same site.

On the second floor of the mansion a large room was built, which would later become a basilica commissioned by Pope Siricius after the end of Christian persecution in 313 AD.

It is believed that the church was badly damaged during the Norman sack of Rome in 1084. It was thus abandoned and buried under the level of the streets of the city. Years later, a new church, commissioned by Pope Paschal II, was erected on the same site and finished in 1108. It is the same that still stands today.

From the entrance through the sacristy, despite the cold, darkness and moisture, sometimes walking down dark and humid passageways, we can discover this wonderful part of Roman history.