St. Peter's Basilica

Image: Wikimedia Commons

In the heart of Vatican City, St. Peter's Basilica rises over the tomb of the Apostle Peter, buried here after his martyrdom in Nero's circus according to tradition. The present church was built between 1506 and 1626 on the site of the fourth-century basilica erected by Emperor Constantine, and bears the genius of Bramante, Michelangelo, Maderno and Bernini. The largest of Rome's four papal basilicas and often called the largest church in the world, it shelters Michelangelo's Pietà and welcomes pilgrims from every nation as the beating heart of Catholicism.