The largest church in Rome after St Peter’s, this vast basilica stands on the site where St Paul was buried in 67 CE. The original basilica dates to the 4th century but little of this remains after various rebuilds and a devastating fire in 1832. In fact, much of what you see today is a 19th-century reconstruction. Fortunately, some early features remain, including the 5th-century triumphal arch, with its heavily restored mosaics, and the 13th-century baldachin (ciborium) over the high altar.
Before you go inside, take a moment to ponder the colonnaded quadriportico. This palm-tree'd courtyard is centered on a statue of a fierce-looking St Paul carrying a sword and book of epistles. Behind him, the entrance porch gives onto an 8-ton central door and a facade crowned by gold mosaic work.
When you get inside, it's hard not to feel overawed by the scale of the interior, which measures 135m by 60m. At the head of the echoing space, you'll find the Gothic baldachin under the triumphal arch, and, to its right, the Candelabro Pasquale, a carved 13th-century candelabrum. In front is a small excavated area of the original basilica.
Before you leave, check out the papal portraits beneath the right nave windows. Legend holds that when there's no room for another portrait, the world will fall: there are currently five spaces left.
With a ticket, you can also visit the lavender-scented 13th-century cloister. Particularly striking here is the polychromatic 13th-century mosaic work on the columns.