Explore Ravenna

The Tomb of Dante is a small neoclassical temple built in 1780–1782 to a design by Camillo Morigia, beside the Basilica of San Francesco. Inside, the urn holding the poet's remains carries a Latin epitaph, above it a 1483 marble relief of Dante by Pietro Lombardo, and a lamp burning oil from the Tuscan hills hangs from the ceiling.

Sant'Apollinare Nuovo is a basilica built by the Ostrogothic king Theodoric the Great in the early 6th century as his Arian palace church. Its nave walls carry two long mosaic processions of martyrs and virgins above views of Ravenna and the port of Classe; the portico dates from the 16th century and the round bell tower from the 10th.

The Baptistery of Neon is an octagonal brick baptistery beside Ravenna Cathedral, begun around 400 under Bishop Ursus and completed by Bishop Neon in the mid-5th century. Its dome mosaic shows the Baptism of Christ in the Jordan, ringed by the twelve apostles. It is one of Ravenna's eight early Christian monuments on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

San Vitale is an octagonal brick church begun in 526 under Bishop Ecclesius and consecrated in 547 by Bishop Maximian, paid for by the banker Julius Argentarius. Its apse and presbytery hold 6th-century mosaics, including the panels of Emperor Justinian and Empress Theodora with their courts; it is one of Ravenna's eight UNESCO World Heritage monuments.

The Mausoleum of Galla Placidia is a small cross-shaped brick chapel built between 425 and 450, once joined to the church of Santa Croce. Inside, mosaics cover the vaults and walls: a dark-blue dome set with gold stars, the Good Shepherd and Saint Lawrence. Despite its name, the empress Galla Placidia was buried in Rome, not here.