Restoration returns Rome's Scala Santa to original beauty

(ANSA) - Rome, April 11 - After 300 years the Scala Santa (Holy Stairs), one of Rome's holiest sites, has returned to its original beauty after a restoration in which the marble steps were freed of a wooden cover that Pope Innocent XIII had installed in 1723. Housed in a sanctuary next to the basilica of St. John Lateran, the Scala Santa is a set of 28 white marble steps that Catholics believe Jesus Christ climbed on his way to trial by Pontius Pilate. They are believed to have been brought to Rome by St Helena, mother of Constantine, the emperor who introduced Christianity to the Roman empire. It will be possible to admire the stairs for 60 days up until Pentecost, when they will be covered up again. The restoration of the steps and of the sanctuary's 16th-centry frescoes were presented for an extraordinary opening on Thursday. - Nella cerimonia di apertura straordinaria della Scala Santa, accanto alla Basilica di San Giovanni, sono stati presentati i restauri dei gradini e degli affreschi cinquecenteschi a cura dei laboratori dei Musei Vaticani. Dopo la benedizione, i fedeli i sono messi in fila per salire in ginocchio la Scala.