In Rome, a new museum has appeared, which should become another object “must see” the Italian capital. Pope Francis signed a decree last March that made the Lateran Palace, an ancient and richly decorated building that housed papal administration services, a public space.
It is known that almost every tourist in Rome is seeking the Vatican. It is believed that, in addition to the frescoes of Michelangelo and Raphael, all the shrines of the Christian world are concentrated there. However, this is a misconception: until the end of the 14th century, the centre of Catholicism was a sacred complex in a completely different place – on the hill Lateran. Today, the Lateran Basilica and adjacent buildings are more interested pilgrims (they climb the Scala Santa and fall down to the oldest icons). The 17th-century Lateran Palace of the Pope is astonished by the power of fresco paintings, which are not inferior to the Vatican.
Photo: vatican.va, shutterstock.com
