A short walk from the Colosseum, the Church of Saints Cosmas and Damian reveals a true “lasagna of history.”
Everything began with the Temple of Romulus (son of Emperor Maxentius) in the Roman Forum, built in the 4th century AD.
After the fall of the Roman Empire, the temple was abandoned. In 526, Pope Felix IV converted it into a church, the first Christian church in the Roman Forum.
It became the Church of Saints Cosma and Damiano, two brothers who were physicians, persecuted and killed for their Christian faith.
Over the centuries, the church suffered from flooding and humidity due to the low level of the area. So in the 1600s, Pope Urban VIII raised the floor by 7 meters and built a new church on top of the original one.
Here’s a closer look at the current church and its underground.
See the video transcript
When by the Colosseum in Rome, walk this way. You’re in for a hidden gem that many people miss. Take Via dei Fori Imperiali and then turn left. Here you’ll find this little church called Santi Cosma e Damiano. Now, step inside. Walk through this beautiful cloister and look for this door. This church is such a lasagna of history, and you know why? This is the church built in the 1600s. But this church was built on top of a medieval church, which used to be an ancient Roman temple, and this is, in fact, the Temple of Romulus in the Roman Forum. But there’s more. There’s a secret gate in the cloister, ask the guardian to let you in, which will lead you downstairs, and here you’ll find the original church, which is right below the modern one.
📍 You’ll find it in Via dei Fori Imperiali, 1
