St John Lateran and the Scala Santa

The Basilica of St John Lateran

The Basilica of St John Lateran stands in the south-east of Rome, near the ramparts. St John Lateran is the cathedral of Rome; the Pope is its bishop. It is the oldest church and is therefore the “mother and head of all the churches”. It is one of the four major basilicas.

Getting there : San Giovanni metro station. By tram, line 3 to Porta San Giovanni. By bus, lines no. 16, 81, 85, 87, 218, 655 …

Address : Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano

Opening hours : every day from 7:00 to 18:30. Cloister visit from 9:00 to 18:00. Baptistery visit from 7:00 to 12:30 and 16:00 to 19:00.

Ticket prices: free admission for the basilica; charge for the cloister (€5)

St John Lateran was founded in the 4th century by the emperor Constantine, on the lands of the Laterani family. Its size, 100 metres long and 65 metres wide, made it an exceptional monument; even today, only St Peter's Basilica in Rome surpasses it in size. Nothing remains of the ancient church; invasions and fires destroyed St John Lateran several times. The present building dates mainly from the 17th century, Pope Innocent X having commissioned Borromini to renovate the interior. The main façade was added in the 1730s by Galilei.

St John Lateran is of great historical importance. It was the seat of the papacy until the beginning of the 14th century; five conclaves were held there and the famous Lateran Accords were signed there. These accords, established between Mussolini and the Pope, defined the role of the Holy See in Rome.

The main façade, in Baroque style, is made of travertine (white limestone). It is adorned with pilasters and columns that divide it into five bays. The doors are surmounted by a loggia, itself surmounted by a balustrade bearing 15 monumental statues 7 metres high, representing Doctors of the Church, St John, St John the Baptist and Christ in the centre.

Note the central bronze door which dates from antiquity, since it comes from the Roman Senate. The right-hand side door is the Holy Door, opened only in Holy Years.

The second façade, which faces Piazza San Giovanni in Laterano and its obelisk, has a very different appearance from the main façade.

In Renaissance style, it was built in the 1580s by Carlo Fontana on the order of Pope Sixtus V.

This façade is decorated with pilasters. The first-floor loggia is used for the papal blessing (on Ascension Day). It is surmounted by two 13th-century campaniles.

The interior of St John Lateran that we see today is Baroque and dates from the restoration of 1650, carried out by Borromini. He undertook a modernisation that transformed the medieval interior into Baroque.

Thus the number of arcades in the nave went from 14 to 5, the filled spaces being replaced by large niches housing the monumental statues of the twelve apostles.

The superb Cosmatesque floor was preserved and dates from the 15th century. Likewise, the carved and gilded wooden ceiling of the 16th century was preserved.

At the crossing of the transept you will find the papal altar and its 14th-century baldachin.
This Gothic altar is reserved for the Pope, bishop of Rome at St John Lateran. The baldachin is supported by columns and contains two reliquary busts with the skulls of St Paul and St Peter.

The transept of St John Lateran has retained much of its 16th-century decoration with frescoes showing among other things the foundation of the basilica.

The choir is decorated with a very fine mosaic of the 4th century but largely remade in the 13th century. The mosaic is rich in symbols: the face of Christ is placed above a cross over which the waters of baptism flow. This stream divides into four rivers symbolising the Gospels irrigating the Earth. Mary and St John stand on either side of the cross.

In the apse you can also admire the papal throne.

From the nave, for a small donation, you can access the magnificent cloister of St John Lateran.
The Gothic cloister dates from the 13th century and has retained its fine straight or twisted columns with Cosmatesque inlay. Likewise on the garden side, a pretty Cosmatesque mosaic runs around the cloister.

The baptistery is reached by leaving St John Lateran through the side façade. The octagonal baptistery dates from the 4th century, from the time of the emperor Constantine. For several centuries it was the only baptistery in Rome.

Inside, eight columns of red porphyry support an entablature of eight white marble columns.

In the dome is depicted the Battle of the Milvian Bridge which opposed Maxentius to Constantine. Constantine attributed his victory to the God of the Christians, which led him to convert and to favour Christian worship.

The Holy Stairs — Scala Santa

On the other side of the street, near the Lateran Palace, you will find the building containing the Holy Stairs (Scala Santa).

The Holy Stairs were brought back from Jerusalem by St Helena, the mother of Constantine. This staircase is said to have been that of the palace of Pontius Pilate, which Christ climbed before his death.

It is traditional to climb it on one's knees.

The Holy Stairs lead to the former papal chapel (Sancta Sanctorum), which contains very precious relics including an icon of Christ said to be acheiropoieta (not made by human hand, made by an angel).