Church of St. Maria Antiqua

Santa Maria Antiqua al Foro Romano Ancient Church of Saint Mary in the Roman Forum
Oratory of the Forty Martyrs, by the entrance to Santa Maria Antiqua in the Forum Romanum
Basic information
Location	Rome, Italy
Geographic coordinates	41°53′27.6″N 12°29′8.1″E / 41.891000°N 12.485583°E / 41.891000; 12.485583Coordinates: 41°53′27.6″N 12°29′8.1″E / 41.891000°N 12.485583°E / 41.891000; 12.485583
Affiliation	Roman Catholic
Country	Italy
Year consecrated	5th century
Ecclesiastical or organizational status	Inactive
Architectural description
Architectural type	Church
Architectural style	Byzantine architecture
Groundbreaking	5th century
Specifications
Length	30 metres (98 ft)
Width	20 metres (66 ft)

Santa Maria Antiqua (English: Ancient Church of Saint Mary) is a Roman Catholic Marian church in Rome, Italy, built in the 5th century in the Forum Romanum, and for a long time the monumental access to the Palatine imperial palaces.

Located at the foot of the Palatine Hill, Santa Maria Antiqua is the oldest Christian monument in the Roman Forum. The church contains the earliest Roman depiction of Santa Maria Regina, the Virgin Mary as a Queen, from the 6th century.

Built in the middle of the 5th century on the north-western slope of the Palatine Hill, Santa Maria Antiqua is the earliest and most significant Christian monument within the Roman Forum. The church contains a unique collection of wall paintings from the 6th to late 8th century. The discovery of these paintings have given many theories on the development of early medieval art and given distinctive beliefs in archaeology. The church was abandoned in the 9th century after an earthquake buried the buildings; it remained sealed for over 1000 years until its rediscovery in the early 20th century. Therefore, Santa Maria Antiqua represents a key element for the understanding of the cultural and urban development of the Roman Forum from Antiquity into the first centuries of the Christian period. From 1980 to 2012 the monument was closed to the general public and limited to scholars who applied for a special visit. Following a conservation program carried out by the Soprintendenza per il Patrimonio Storico in partnership with World Monuments Fund, the church is now open for tours.

Santa Maria Antiqua is a ruined church in the Roman Forum, and is part of the Foro Romano e Palatino archaeological site which requires a ticket purchase in order to get access inside. The church itself is not always open to the public, owing to ongoing digging which has started in 2004 under the aegis of the World Monuments Fund. Thanks to centuries of sealing off, its walls showcase a cycle of beautiful colourful frescoes depicting the Virgin Mary and Infant Jesus, popes, saints, and martyrs, thus forming one of the largest and most important collections of pre-iconoclastic Roman and Byzantine art in the world. These frescoes date to a period of iconoclasm when in the East, figures in churches were destroyed.