Santa Balbina is a basilica

Basilica

The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...

 church in

Churches of Rome

There are more than 900 churches in Rome. Most, but not all, of these are Roman Catholic, with some notable Roman Catholic Marian churches.The first churches of Rome originated in places where Christians met. They were divided into three categories:...

 Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, devoted to St. Balbina. It was built in the 4th century over the house of consul

Consul

Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...

 Lucius Fabius Cilo

Lucius Fabius Cilo

Lucius Fabius Cilo, full name Lucius Fabius Cilo Septiminus Catinius Acilianus Lepidus Fulcinianus, was a Roman senator of the 2nd century. He was born in Hispania, around 150 AD....

 on the Aventine Hill

Aventine Hill

The Aventine Hill is one of the seven hills on which ancient Rome was built. It belongs to Ripa, the twelfth rione, or ward, of Rome.-Location and boundaries:The Aventine hill is the southernmost of Rome's seven hills...

, behind the Baths of Caracalla

Baths of Caracalla

The Baths of Caracalla in Rome, Italy were Roman public baths, or thermae, built in Rome between AD 212 and 216, during the reign of the Emperor Caracalla.- History :...

. Possibly the ancient Titulus Tigridae, the basilica was consecrated by Pope Gregory I

Pope Gregory I

Pope Gregory I , better known in English as Gregory the Great, was pope from 3 September 590 until his death...

.

The adjoining monastery has a commanding medieval defence tower. Inside the basilica there is a very fine episcopal chair with a Cosmatesque

Cosmatesque

Cosmatesque, or Cosmati, is a style of geometric decorative inlay stonework typical of Medieval Italy, and especially of Rome and its surroundings. It was used most extensively for the decoration of church floors, but was also used to decorate church walls, pulpits, and bishop's thrones...

 decoration from the 13th century. The church was heavily restored in the 1930s when frescoes were discovered on the side walls from the 9-14th centuries. The Baroque frescoes in the apse and the triumphal arch were painted by Anastasio Fontebuoni

Anastasio Fontebuoni

Anastasio Fontebuoni was an Italian Baroque painter, native of Florence. Fontebuoni proved to be one of the Florentine painters are more open to the influence of Caravaggio's naturalism. Fontebuoni was educated in the school of Domenico Passignano. According to Giovanni Baglioni, he visited Rome...

 in 1599. The triumphal arch is decorated with the figures of Ss Paul and Peter while in the apse we can see St Balbina between other martyrs.

An ancient sarcophagus was also discovered during the restoration. It is now used as a font.

In 1270 the first known Hungarian cardinal, István Váncsa was buried in the basilica. Another 13th century Hungarian clergyman, Pál, Bishop of Paphos

Paphos

Paphos , sometimes referred to as Pafos, is a coastal city in the southwest of Cyprus and the capital of Paphos District. In antiquity, two locations were called Paphos: Old Paphos and New Paphos. The currently inhabited city is New Paphos. It lies on the Mediterranean coast, about west of the...

, erected an altar in the church for Saint Nicolas

Saint Nicolas

Saint-Nicolas may refer to the following places:-In Belgium:*Saint-Nicolas, Belgium, in the Province of Liège*The French name for Sint-Niklaas, in Province of East Flanders-In France:*Saint-Nicolas, Pas-de-Calais...

. Both the altar and the grave disappeared during later centuries but a plaque commemorates the offerings of Pál.

The Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Balbinae is Péter Erdő, Archbishop of Esztergom. According to Péter Erdő the Hungarian connections of the church played part in the Pope's decision when he chose Santa Balbina for his titular church. The Cardinal also recommended Hungarian pilgrims to visit the basilica and said he feels a special responsibility for the building. Among the previous titulars, Alfonso de la Cueva, marqués de Bedmar

Alfonso de la Cueva, marqués de Bedmar

Alfonso de la Cueva-Benavides y Mendoza-Carrillo, marqués de Bedmar was a Spanish diplomat, bishop and Roman cardinal. He was born in Bedmar, in what is now the province of Jaén...

 and Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros.

Father Simpliciano of the Nativity

Father Simpliciano of the Nativity

Fr. Simpliciano of the Nativity was a Franciscan and the founder of the Congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Hearts in Santa Balbina, Rome, Italy.-Early days:...

founded the Congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Hearts here.