Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran
The Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran is the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome and the official ecclesiastical seat of the pope as Bishop of Rome, making it the highest-ranking of the four major papal basilicas. Founded in the fourth century under Emperor Constantine, it is the oldest public church in Rome and bears the title omnium urbis et orbis ecclesiarum mater et caput, mother and head of all the churches of the city and the world.
Though damaged and rebuilt many times over the centuries, the basilica acquired its grand Baroque interior largely through the work of Francesco Borromini in the seventeenth century, while Alessandro Galilei added the monumental eighteenth-century facade crowned with colossal statues. The adjoining Lateran Palace was the principal papal residence for almost a thousand years before the move to Avignon and later the Vatican.
Despite standing within Italian territory, the Lateran complex enjoys extraterritorial status under the 1929 Lateran Treaty. As the pope's cathedral it remains the focus of important liturgies, and its ancient history and rich art make it one of the most significant churches in Christendom.
- Location
- 41.8859, 12.5062
- Local time
- 00:37 (Europe/Rome)
🕘 Visiting hours
| Mon–Sun | 07:00–18:30 |
Basilica open daily and free; cloister and Treasury museum ticketed, closed Sundays.
✨ Saints & blessed venerated here
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Saint John the Baptist Saint
Co-titular of the archbasilica; relics venerated here
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Saint John the Evangelist Saint
Co-titular of the archbasilica alongside the Baptist
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Saint Peter Saint
His reputed skull is enshrined in a reliquary bust above the high altar (papal altar)
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Saint Paul Saint
His reputed skull is enshrined alongside St. Peter's above the high altar
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Pope Saint Sylvester I Saint
Pope who consecrated the original Constantinian basilica, foundationally linked to the Lateran
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Saint Thomas Aquinas Saint
Among the colossal apostle and doctor statues lining the nave
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Pope Saint Leo the Great Saint
Among the popes commemorated in this cathedral of Rome
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