Lateran

(ˈlætərən) n1. (Roman Catholic Church) Also called: Lateran palace a palace in Rome, formerly the official residence of the popes2. (Roman Catholic Church) any of five ecumenical councils held in this palace between 1123 and 15123. (Roman Catholic Church) the basilica of Saint John Lateran, the cathedral church of Rome[from Latin: the district is named after the ancient Roman family Plautii Laterani]

Lat•er•an

(ˈlæt ər ən)

n. the church of St. John Lateran, the cathedral church of the city of Rome; the church of the pope as bishop of Rome.

Thesaurus

Noun

Lateran - the site in Rome containing the church of Rome and the Lateran PalaceLateran Palace - a palace that served as the residence of the popes until the 14th centurycapital of Italy, Eternal City, Italian capital, Rome, Roma - capital and largest city of Italy; on the Tiber; seat of the Roman Catholic Church; formerly the capital of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire

Lateran

(lăt`ərən), name applied to a group of buildings of SE Rome facing the Piazza San Giovanni. They are on land once belonging to the Laterani; it was presented to the Church by Constantine. The Lateran basilica is the cathedral of Rome, the pope's church, the first-ranking church of the Roman Catholic Church. It is officially named the Basilica of the Savior, familiarly called St. John Lateran, from a monastery of St. John formerly nearby. The basilica, built perhaps before 311, was restored in the 5th and the 10th cent., rebuilt in the 14th and the 15th cent., and altered again in the 16th, the 17th, and the 18th cent.; the main facade was added in 1733–36. Much of the decoration dates from the Middle Ages and includes the mosaics of the apse, which are among the most celebrated. Frescoes by Gentile da Fabriano and Pisanello have disappeared. However, eight 13th-century frescoes in the Sancta Sanctorum chapel (St. Laurence's chapel), painted over and barred to the public in the 16th cent., were restored and opened to the public in 1995. The Lateran baptistery, built probably in the 4th cent., was much restored. The Lateran palace, the papal residence until the 14th cent., survived, greatly changed, until the 16th cent., when it was demolished to make way for the much smaller present palace. It now contains the pontifical museum of Christian antiquities. The older palace was the scene of the five Lateran Councils, and the new one of the signing of the Lateran Treaty.

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Lat•er•an

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Words related to Lateran

noun the site in Rome containing the church of Rome and the Lateran Palace

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