One of the four major papal basilicas of Rome, Santa Maria Maggiore, is the first Marian sanctuary in the Western world. It is located on the Esquiline Hill in Rome, Italy. Sometimes referred to as “Our Lady of the Snows” in honor of a miraculous snowfall that took place on the site on August 5, 352 CE, Santa Maria Maggiore is home to one of the most important depictions of the Madonna and Child known as the “Salus Populi Romani.”  It also contains an extraordinary collection of early-Christian mosaics and papal tombs, including those of St. Pope Pius V, Sixtus V, Paul V, and, most recently, Pope Francis. Buona visita!