Late Baroque façade of the Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano, completed after a competition for the design by Alessandro Galilei in 1735

Lateran and Laterano are the shared names of several architectural projects throughout Rome and Vatican City. The properties were once owned by the Lateranus family of the former Roman Empire. The Laterani lost their properties to Emperor Constantine who in turn gave it to the Roman Catholic Church. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Left-Wing Democrats) Area  - City Proper  1290 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,546,807 almost 4,000,000 1... The Roman Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Ancient Roman polity in the centuries following its reorganization under the leadership of Octavian (better known as Caesar Augustus), until its radical reformation in what was later to be known as the Byzantine Empire. ... Constantine. ... The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the Christian Church whose visible and spiritual head on Earth (representing Jesus Christ) is the Pope, currently Pope Benedict XVI, and whose adherents constitute almost half of all Christians worldwide. ...

The most famous Lateran buildings are the Lateran Palace, once called the Palace of the Popes, and Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano, the cathedral of Rome, which is extra-territorially a part of the Vatican city-state as a result of the 1929 Lateran Treaties. As the official ecclesiastical seat of the Pope, St. John Lateran holds the Papal cathedra in its apse. The Lateran is Christendom's earliest basilica, and is located on one of the 7 hills of Rome, the Caelian. From the beginning of the 4th Century, when it was given to the Pope by Constantine, the Palace of the Lateran on Piazza San Giovanni in south-east Rome was the principal residence of the Popes, and continued so for about a thousand years. ... The Palace of the Popes is the name shared by several locations in which the popes of the Roman Catholic Church have taken residence. ... The late Baroque façade of the Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano was completed by Alessandro Galilei in 1735 after winning a competition for the design. ... A cathedral is a Christian church building, specifically of a denomination with an episcopal hierarchy (such as the Roman Catholic Church or the Lutheran or Anglican churches), which serves as the central church of a diocese. ... City motto: Senatus Populusque Romanus – SPQR (The Senate and the People of Rome) Founded 21 April 753 BC mythical, 1st millennium BC Region Latium Mayor Walter Veltroni (Left-Wing Democrats) Area  - City Proper  1290 km² Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density (city proper) 2,546,807 almost 4,000,000 1... Motto: None Anthem: Inno e Marcia Pontificale Capital Vatican City1 41°54′N 12°27′E Largest city Vatican City1 Official languages Latin2 Government Head of State Secretary of State Governor Elective monarchy Pope Benedict XVI Angelo Cardinal Sodano Edmund Cardinal Szoka Independence -Treaty signed Lateran Treaties 11 February 1929... The Lateran Treaties of February 11, 1929 provided for the mutual recognition of the then-Kingdom of Italy and the Vatican City. ... The pope is the Patriarch of the West and Bishop of Rome, and leader of the Catholic Church. ... The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chicago preaches from his cathedra, placed in front of the altar on special occasions. ... The Caelian Hill (Latin Collis Caelius, Italian Celio) is one of the famous seven hills of Rome External link Samuel Ball Platner, A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome: Caelian Hill Categories: Italy geography stubs | Ancient Rome ...

The inscription at the base of the columns on either side of the central entrance door reads: SACROS LATERAN ECCLES OMNIUM URBIS ET ORBIS ECCLESIARUM MATER ET CAPUT. It translates to "Sacred Lateran Church Mother and Head of All Churches of the City and the World".

The doors to the orginal Roman Curia are the main entrance doors to the Basilica de San Giovanni in Laterano. These doors are very inpressive bronze doors, decorated with acorns. Most of the orginal churches in Rome contain Roman artifacts. Some of the churches also are built over original churches. These churches preserve many of the vestiges of the old Roman Empire. The Roman Curia is the administrative apparatus of the Holy See, coordinating and providing the necessary organisation for the correct functioning of the Roman Catholic Church and the achievement of its goals. ...

Constantine "The Great" gave San Giovanni to the Pope. Attached to the Lateran is a baptistry, one of the oldest in Christiandom. The baptistry contains the story of Constantine's victory at the Milvan Bridge in 312 AD.