This minor basilica is one of the oldest churches in Rome, built on the site of a house-church. Its basic floor plan and early walls date to the 340s, and much of the structure to the 1140s. Designated as one of the seven churches for pilgrims to celebrate Holy Years in Jubilee, to garner special graces, it is dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The interior is filled with 12th and late-13th century mosaics. The apse decoration shows Christ embracing his enthroned and bejeweled mother, who is garbed in resplendent Byzantine fashion and colors, while the hand of the hidden God the Father bestows a victor's wreath on them. Massive antique granite columns with capitals taken from the Temple of Isis or the Baths of Caracalla dominate the nave. An octagonal painting of the Assumption by Domenichino fits into a gilded wooden ceiling frame the artist also designed. Legend has it that the pagan Emperor Alexander Severus granted the rights to the site for a church, rather than to the tavern keepers who wanted it, because he preferred its use by worshippers rather than drunkards, no matter which god they worshiped.
This minor basilica is one of the oldest churches in Rome, built on the site of a house-church. Its basic floor plan and early walls date to the 340s, and much of the structure to the 1140s. Designated as one of the seven churches for pilgrims to celebrate Holy Years in Jubilee, to garner special graces, it is dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The interior is filled with 12th and late-13th century mosaics. The apse decoration shows Christ embracing his enthroned and bejeweled mother, who is garbed in resplendent Byzantine fashion and colors, while the hand of the hidden God the Father bestows a victor's wreath on them. Massive antique granite columns with capitals taken from the Temple of Isis or the Baths of Caracalla dominate the nave. An octagonal painting of the Assumption by Domenichino fits into a gilded wooden ceiling frame the artist also designed. Legend has it that the pagan Emperor Alexander Severus granted the rights to the site for a church, rather than to the tavern keepers who wanted it, because he preferred its use by worshippers rather than drunkards, no matter which god they worshiped.