Church of San Callisto

As mentioned, there are many churches in Trastevere and they all have their history and their works of art to admire, in addition to the fact that all these sacred places of worship have their own spiritual value that no one would ever question.

The church we will talk about today is the Church of San Callisto, a place of worship that you will find in Piazza San Calisto. A place full of many other architectural treasures that you can admire during the visit to the church we will talk about today.

Are you curious to find out more about this church whose name you may have read in some tourist brochure or on some website or social network?

Then continue reading our article and find out everything you need to know about how to visit it, if you are planning a visit to this city.

The Church of San Callisto and its history

According to tradition, the Church of San Callisto was built where Pope Callisto I took refuge from persecution, but this hiding place was not enough, in fact he was still found and killed, drowned in the well of the house.

In this place, however, before the Church of San Callisto an oratory was built which only after a few centuries became a small church which was then gradually enlarged.

This, in 1600 was entrusted to the Benedictine monks and a few centuries later, as happened a little throughout Rome, the Church of San Callisto was damaged by the French occupation.

Finally, the Church of San Callisto is the seat of the cardinal’s title of San Callisto.

Why visit the Church of San Callisto?

The Church of San Callisto is not very well known or very large, but despite its size, it has many features and works of art that deserve to be seen.

The beauty of the Baroque style of the Church of San Callisto can already be seen from the external facade, but it is its interior that is most striking.

Entering the Church of San Callisto, in fact, we are kidnapped by its nave with pairs of pilasters and its coffered ceiling.

We proceed slowly in the Church of San Callisto and admire the mural painting “Glora di San Callisto” and then turn to the presbyterium and finally admire the works in the side chapels, among which two angels attributed to Gian Lorenzo Bernini stand out.

In short, although the Church of San Callisto is a small place of worship, entering it we cannot help but observe beauty and magnificence in every corner. For this reason, the Church of San Callisto deserves to be visited.

How to visit the Church of San Callisto

We repeat it every time we talk about a church and we repeat it again in this case: the first thing you must have to visit the Church of San Callisto is respect for the sacredness of the place.

It does not matter what your religion is or if you do not worship any deity: when you enter a church or a sacred place in general, you must respect that place and those who frequent it for reasons of faith.

It may seem superficial, but we believe that respect is a value not to be lost and, therefore, it is important for us to reiterate this concept every time.

Having said that, unfortunately it must be said that the Church of San Callisto has particular timetables which, unfortunately, change very often during the course of the year.

Therefore, if you want to visit the Church of San Callisto, we suggest you take it as an optional visit during your holiday in Rome and Trastevere, as it is not possible to know if and when you will find it open and available to visit.