Basilica of San Pietro in Vincoli

This basilica takes its name from the chains said to have bound Saint Peter during his imprisonment, displayed in a reliquary beneath the high altar. Most visitors come, however, for Michelangelo's monumental statue of Moses, carved for the unfinished tomb of Pope Julius II and celebrated for the fierce vitality of its horned, bearded figure. The rows of ancient Doric columns lining the nave were reused from earlier Roman structures. Reached by a stairway from the Suburra, the church sits a short walk uphill from the Colosseum.