In spring's prolific day."
Passio Beat. Apost.
This description will apply equally well to the present basilica. The church is 396 feet long from the steps of the tribune; width of aisle and nave, 222 feet.
The façade of the basilica, the upper part of which has lately been uncovered, is toward the Tiber; it consists of a beautiful mosaic which has taken thirteen years to complete, and is the finest production of the Vatican manufactory. The whole is surmounted by a cross, under which are the words Spes Unica; below it is our Lord enthroned, with SS. Peter and Paul on either side below the steps of his throne. A scene symbolic of the New Testament is below. A rock occupies the centre, from which flow the four rivers of the Apocalypse; on the summit is the Lamb supporting the cross. The cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem are on each side, whilst flocks of sheep between the palm-trees are symbolic of the apostolic college. Below, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel typify the Old Testament. The whole, a triangle, is bordered with a mosaic of fruit and foliage.
At the back of the church is
THE REMURIA HILL.
It is altogether a mistake to suppose that Remus took his stand upon the Aventine and Romulus upon the Palatine; if so, they would both have commanded nearly the same horizon, and messengers need not have been sent from one to the other to tell the number of birds seen. Romulus stood on the Aventine, and Remus on the hill before us, the Remuria.
"Remus pitched upon the ground now called from him Remuria. This place is very proper for a city, being a hill not far from the Tiber, distant from Rome about thirty stadia" (Dionysius, i. 85).
"Romulus buried Remus at Remuria, since, when alive, he had been fond of building there" (Ibid., i. 87).
This hill is called to the present day La Remuria.