The church of Santa Sabina is a wonderful surprise that perfectly embodies the flavor of Rome. The beautifully classical building bridges the Rome of Antiquity with the Rome of the Church.
Santa Sabina was completed in 432, and is located on the Aventine Hill which, rising alongside the Tiber, looks across to the Palatine Hill. Behind the church is a lovely park overlooking the Tiber, with a clear view of St. Peter's in the distance. It is also a nice spot to enjoy the curved brick wall of the apse of Santa Sabina. Remember that we are in Rome, and the architecture is descended directly from the Romans! The flying buttresses and extravagant decorations associated with many European churches are found further north. As Augustus said, Rome was a city of brick, and many of the constructions display the brick proudly. Although he claimed to have left it a city of marble, the masterful brick work is evident throughout.
Having rested your feet and mind in the park, it is time to enter the church, where you are presented with a magnificent example of the basilica style church. The form has become relatively standard for churches throughout the world, with a central nave and side aisles running the length. Of course this church has beautiful columns with magnificent Corinthian capitals supporting the curved arches. All of these elements mark these clearly as a Roman building. If you have come from the Roman forum, this is form of the Basilica Amelia or the Basilica Julia.
Saint Sabina, who gives her name to the church, is a martyr beheaded in AD 125 or 126 She was converted to Christianity by her servant, Serapia, also a martyr, and she actually lived in the house upon which the church was built. The church is said to be built over her home, and, upon completion her remains were essentially brought home. The archaeological evidence does show that his was a neighborhood of wealthy Romans, and, the church is built on the remains of houses.
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