My Journey

Sant'Agnese in Agone

Sant'Agnese in Agone is the Baroque church on Piazza Navona, its concave Borromini facade raised over the arches of the ancient Stadium of Domitian, on the spot Roman tradition associates with the public witness of Saint Agnes. A shrine within preserves the reliquary venerated as her skull.

ITALY · ROME 41.8992° N · 12.4731° E
Location
Rome, Italy 41.8992° N · 12.4731° E
Type
Baroque church on Piazza Navona Roman High Baroque, with a concave facade by Francesco Borromini
Dedication
Saint Agnes Shrine and reliquary venerated as the skull of Saint Agnes
Time Needed
30 minutes to half a day Opening hours are limited; mornings are quietest
Why Go

Agnes in the Heart of the City

Come here to meet Agnes where Rome actually walks. This church marks the place tradition links to her public trial and martyrdom, in the middle of one of the city's great squares, and keeps the reliquary venerated as her skull. It is the visible, urban half of her story, the counterpart to her quiet tomb beyond the walls.

A Church Over the Stadium

Piazza Navona follows the shape of the Stadium of Domitian, where the ancient city held its athletic contests, the agones that gave the church its name. Roman tradition places the public exposure and witness of Agnes on this ground, in the arches of the stadium. A medieval church already marked the spot; in 1652 the Pamphilj family, the family of Pope Innocent X whose palace stood on the square, began the present church. Francesco Borromini took over the facade in 1653 and gave it the concave front that defines the piazza. The body of Agnes rests across the city at Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura; here, where she bore witness, a shrine preserves the reliquary venerated as her skull.

Borromini's facade curves inward between its bell towers so that the dome rises close behind it, a design that shaped Baroque churches well beyond Rome. Inside, the Greek-cross plan is faced in coloured marble and Baroque sculpture, and the cupola carries the Apotheosis of Saint Agnes, frescoed from 1670 by Ciro Ferri and finished after his death.

Look Up The Dome and the Apotheosis of Saint Agnes The cupola carries Agnes into glory in fresco begun by Ciro Ferri in 1670. Borromini's plan let the dome rise close behind the concave facade, so the height opens suddenly once you are inside.

The reliquary venerated as the skull of Saint Agnes, in the heart of Rome

Borromini's facade on Piazza Navona

The site of the ancient Stadium of Domitian, linked by tradition to her public witness

A natural city-centre counterpart to her tomb beyond the walls

Spiritual Significance

Agnes remembered where the city still gathers, in the square that keeps the stadium's shape.

For all its Baroque grandeur, the reason to enter is devotional: the shrine of Agnes and the memory of her courage held in the busiest part of the city. It is an easy, meaningful stop for families and pilgrims who want her to feel present in the Rome they are walking through.

Do Not Miss · 4 stops

What to notice.

  1. The Shrine and Skull Relic of Saint Agnes

    A side shrine preserves the reliquary traditionally venerated as the skull of Saint Agnes, with Alessandro Algardi's marble relief of the young martyr. Cautious tradition, carefully kept: her body relics are venerated separately, beyond the walls.

  2. Borromini's Concave Facade

    The facade curves inward between its towers to let the dome rise behind it, one of the most influential designs of the Roman Baroque. Borromini took it over in 1653 and gave Piazza Navona its defining church front.

  3. The Apotheosis of Saint Agnes in the Dome

    The cupola is frescoed with Agnes carried into glory, begun by Ciro Ferri in 1670 and completed after his death. Stand beneath it and look up before leaving.

  4. The Stadium of Domitian Beneath

    Piazza Navona keeps the long oval shape of the ancient stadium whose arches once stood here. Tradition places Agnes's public exposure and witness on this ground, which is why a church was raised on it.

What to notice
  • That this church and Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura divide her story between them. Here is the place tradition associates with her public trial and martyrdom; beyond the walls is her grave.
  • That the name 'in Agone' comes from the athletic contests of the ancient stadium, not from the martyr's agony, even though the older sense was long forgotten.
  • That the relic kept here is venerated as her skull. The Church holds such traditions with care, and so should the visitor: it is a long-standing devotion, not a forensic claim.
Visit Plans · 3 plans · add to a journey

How much time, and what to do with it.

  • Duration 30 min Best for A central pilgrimage stop

    The shrine and the dome

    3 ordered stops

    Step in from the square to the shrine of Saint Agnes, with the reliquary venerated as her skull and Algardi's relief, then stand beneath the cupola to see the Apotheosis of Saint Agnes before returning to the piazza.

    1. The shrine and reliquary venerated as Agnes's skull
    2. Algardi's marble relief of Saint Agnes
    3. The Apotheosis of Saint Agnes in the dome
  • Duration 1 hr Best for Baroque Piazza Navona

    The church and the square

    3 ordered stops

    Add Borromini's concave facade seen from the square and the long oval of the Stadium of Domitian that Piazza Navona still traces. The church and the piazza were shaped together.

    1. The shrine of Saint Agnes
    2. Borromini's concave facade
    3. The stadium shape of Piazza Navona
  • Duration Full day Best for The two churches of Agnes

    Witness and tomb

    Pair this church, which marks her public witness in the heart of the city, with Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura beyond the walls, over her tomb and catacomb. The two together hold the whole of her story.

This is the easy half of Agnes to reach and the harder half to slow down for. Let the shrine, not the square, be the reason you came in.

How to Visit

Entering as a pilgrim, not a tourist.

Enter from Piazza Navona and find the shrine of Saint Agnes, with the reliquary venerated as her skull and Algardi's marble relief, then stand beneath the dome to see the Apotheosis frescoed above. Read the visit alongside Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura, which holds her tomb and body relics. Confirm current opening hours before building a visit around the church.

  • Finding It The church faces Piazza Navona from the west side, across from Bernini's Fountain of the Four Rivers. Its concave facade and dome are unmistakable above the crowds of the square.
  • When to Come Earlier in the morning, before the piazza fills, the church is quieter and reads as a place of prayer rather than a stop between sights. Opening hours are limited, so confirm them before planning around it.
  • At the Shrine Find the shrine of Saint Agnes inside, with the reliquary traditionally venerated as her skull and Alessandro Algardi's marble relief of the saint. This is the devotional reason to enter.
  • Read It With the Tomb This church marks her public witness; her burial and body relics are across the city at Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura. Visiting both, in either order, holds the whole of her story.
  • Dress and Quiet Shoulders and knees covered, as in any Roman church, and quiet inside despite the square outside.
Relics, Tombs, Sacred Objects

What pilgrims come to venerate here.

Skull relic of Saint Agnes

Head relic

Yes, at the shrine within the church

Church of Sant'Agnese in Agone
Traditional

Venerated in a shrine here as the skull of Saint Agnes by long-standing Roman tradition; her body relics are venerated separately at Sant'Agnese fuori le Mura.

Site of the Stadium of Domitian

Traditional martyrdom site

The church marks the site

Roman tradition
Traditional

Tradition places the public witness and martyrdom of Agnes on the ground of the ancient stadium beneath Piazza Navona, which is why the church was built on this spot.

Source note Traditional attributions are presented as tradition, with documentation named where it exists.

Connected Saints

How this place gathers the saints.

This is Agnes's church in the heart of the city, marking her public witness. It belongs with her tomb beyond the walls and with the other young martyrs of Rome.

Saint Agnes Skull relic and martyr-site tradition A Piazza Navona church tied to Agnes's public witness in ancient Rome and the veneration of her skull relic.
Continue Your Pilgrimage · A few steps away

In the heart of Baroque Rome.

  • Church

    San Luigi dei Francesi

    A few steps north, the French national church with Caravaggio's cycle of the calling and martyrdom of Saint Matthew.

Sacred Connections

Two churches, one Roman story

Place and path

This church marks the tradition of Agnes's martyrdom. Continue beyond the walls to the basilica raised over her tomb.

Connections are curated from Eternal Roam's saint, place, relic, route, and Rome records. Traditional attributions are identified in context.

Map · Rome, Italy

Plan around this place.

Editorial sources

Edited from the church's own source, the Wikimedia image provenance in the credits, and Eternal Roam destination records. The name 'in Agone' refers to the ancient athletic contests of the stadium beneath the piazza, not to the martyr's suffering. Relic language is deliberately cautious: a reliquary traditionally venerated as the skull of Saint Agnes.

Official

santagneseinagone.org

Image credits
All photography credits
Last reviewed

June 23, 2026