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Via Merulana

Italy road stubsStreets in Rome R. I MontiStreets in Rome R. XV Esquilino
Via Merulana
Via Merulana

Via Merulana is a street in the Rione Monti of Rome, Italy. It is south of the main train station (Stazioni Termini) of Rome, near the Oppian Hill. The street connects two major papal basilicas: the Santa Maria Maggiore to the St John Lateran. The name derives from family that owned the land during the medieval period. The present street was initiated by Pope Gregory XIII in the late 16th century and finished not long after by Pope Sixtus V. On the route described above are the facades of the church of Sant'Antonio da Padova and the adjacent Franciscan convent. Previously the site was occupied by the Villa Giustiniani Massimo. At the intersection with the Roman Via Labicana is the facade of the ancient church of Santi Marcellino e Pietro al Laterano. On the intersection with via di San Vito is the church of Sant'Alfonso di Liguori all'Esquilino of the Order of the Redemptorist Priests. Instead, on the intersection with via Mecenate is the Auditorium of Maecenas, a nymphaeum part of the Gardens of Maecenas. Other institutions on the route include the Museo Nazionale d'Arte Orientale and the Pontifical University Antonianum. The ancient church of San Matteo in Via Merulana was destroyed in 1810. The street is included in the crime novel That Awful Mess on Via Merulana by the Italian writer Carlo Emilio Gadda.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Via Merulana (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Via Merulana
Via Merulana, Rome Municipio Roma I

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Wikipedia: Via MerulanaContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 41.8897 ° E 12.5032 °
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Address

Palazzo Merulana - Fondazione Elena e Claudio Cerasi

Via Merulana 121
00185 Rome, Municipio Roma I
Lazio, Italy
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Phone number

call+390639967800

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Via Merulana
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Nearby Places

Lateran Baptistery
Lateran Baptistery

The domed octagonal Lateran Baptistery (Italian: Battistero lateranense) stands somewhat apart from the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran, Rome, to which it has become joined by later construction. This baptistery was founded by Pope Sixtus III in 440, perhaps on an earlier structure, for a legend grew up that Constantine the Great had been baptized there and enriched the structure. However, it is more likely that if he was baptized it was in the Eastern part of the Roman Empire and possibly by an Arian bishop. This baptistry was for many generations the only baptistery in Rome, and its octagonal structure, centered upon the large octagonal basin for full immersions, provided a model for others throughout Italy, and even an iconic motif of illuminated manuscripts, "The fountain of Life". Around the central area, where is the basin of the font, an octagon is formed by eight porphyry columns, with marble Corinthian capitals and entablature of classical form. On the ceiling of the Baptistry is the story of the Battle of the Milvian Bridge (312 AD). An ambulatory surrounds the font and outer walls form a larger octagon. Attached to one side, towards the Lateran Basilica, is a fine porch with two porphyry columns and richly carved capitals, bases and entablatures. The Baptistery was subject to an elaborate restoration during the pontificate of Pope Urban VIII. While its interior architecture was consolidated and embellished after plans of Gian Lorenzo Bernini, a fresco cycle with scenes from the life of Constantine was added by Andrea Sacchi on the walls of the ambulatory. In the meantime the early Christian liturgy of Easter baptisms was reanimated by the Baroque popes, baptizing adult "turchi ed ebrei" ("Turks and Jews") in a public ceremony on Easter eve. Its plain brick exterior was later on embellished with a frieze designed by Francesco Borromini in 1657, incorporating the arms of Pope Alexander VII.