Santa Cecilia in Trastevere

In the heart of the popular Trastevere district you will find the church of Santa Cecilia. Built in the 5th century on the house of St Cecilia, the church was renovated for the first time in the 9th century by Pope Paschal, who had discovered the location of the saint's tomb after a vision.

Her body was moved into the church and placed in the position in which she had been found.

Getting there : By tram to Trastevere, lines 3 (Trastevere/Mastai stop) or 8 (Trastevere/Mastai stop), or by bus lines no. 125, 780, …

Address : Piazza di Santa Cecilia, 22

Opening hours : every day from 10:00 to 12:30 and from 16:00 to 18:00. The monastic choir with Cavallini's frescoes: on weekdays from 10:00 to 12:30; on public holidays from 11:30 to 12:30

Ticket prices: free admission. For Cavallini's frescoes, €2.50

Access to Santa Cecilia is through a pretty little garden adorned with a fountain surmounted by an antique vase. The façade still retains in its lower part the antique columns, added in the 12th century at the same time as the campanile. The upper part of the façade is 18th-century Baroque.

Inside, the nave is also in Baroque style; the antique columns are now concealed by the piers.

Beneath the altar, a very fine marble statue carved by Stefano Maderno represents St Cecilia as she was found.

A fine 9th-century mosaic shows among others Pope Paschal (on the left holding the model of the church and haloed with a square nimbus, a sign that he was alive when the work was created), Christ in the centre, St Cecilia and other saints.

To finish the visit you can access the crypt (part of which dates from the early 20th century) and the remains of the Roman house said to be St Cecilia's. There you can see tanks in the floor that may be the remains of a tannery. You will also see remains of ancient mosaics.

The legend of St Cecilia :

St Cecilia, patron saint of musicians, lived in the 2nd century. Daughter of a noble family, she was married against her will despite her wish to consecrate herself to God and remain a virgin. Once married she converted her husband Valerian to Christianity, and they lived in chastity.

During the persecutions of Christians, her husband was arrested and executed. Shortly afterwards it was her turn. First shut in the sudatorium (sauna) of her house, she survived despite the heat before finally being stabbed. St Cecilia was buried in the catacombs of St Callixtus. In 822, St Cecilia appeared in a dream to Pope Paschal and showed him the location of her tomb. The coffin was then moved to the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere and placed beneath the altar.

In 1599, during the renovation of the church, her coffin was opened and the body of St Cecilia was found admirably preserved and still in the position in which she had been discovered. A very fine statue by Stefano Maderno was placed beneath the altar, representing the saint in the pose of her martyrdom.