Church Of San Giorgio In Velabro In Rome, Italy Editorial Photo

The church of San Giorgio in Velabro next to the arch of Janus in the rione of Ripa in Rome, Italy. According to the founding legend of Rome, the church was built where Roman history began: it is here that the she-wolf found Romulus and Remus. The ancient Arcus Argentariorum is attached to the side of the church`s façade. After a restoration of Pope Gregory IV 9th century, a portico was added and in the first half of the 13th century the the tower bell . The apsis was decorated with frescoes by Pietro Cavallini in the 13th century. The building as we see it today is largely a product of the 1920s restoration. Between 1923 and 1926, the Superintendent of Monuments of Rome, Antonio Muñoz, completed a more radical restoration programmed, with the aim of restoring the building`s `medieval character` and freeing it from later additions. This was done by returning the floor to its original level and so exposing the column bases reopening the ancient windows that gave light to the central nave. However, five years` further restoration followed the explosion of a car bomb, parked close to the facade, at midnight on 27 July 1993. That explosion caused no fatalities but left the 12th century portico almost totally collapsed and blew a large opening into the wall of the main church.