点评:The basilica of St. John Lateran is the highest-ranking and oldest of all the papal basilicas, as well as the seat of the bishop of Rome, the Pope. It has the distinction of being the only archbasilica in the world and although it is technically on Italian territory, it is the property of the Vatican state. It is also the oldest public church in Rome as there has been a building on this site since Pope Sylvester I consecrated the first version of the basilica in 324 AD/CE. It contains beautiful architecture from the Middle Ages, spectacular statues of the twelve apostles from the 17th century, and several papal tombs.
Although the basilica is open to the public for free visits during certain hours, you should bear in mind that it's a functioning church. My girlfriend and I visited in the morning and there weren't too many people, so it might be better to visit early rather than in the afternoon, though this church is not nearly as busy as St. Peter's as it's located outside Rome's historical centre.
翻译:圣若望拉特朗大教堂是所有教皇大教堂中级别最高、历史最悠久的,也是罗马主教——教皇的所在地。它是世界上唯一的宗座圣殿,虽然严格意义上来说位于意大利境内,但实际上属于梵蒂冈国所有。它也是罗马最古老的公共教堂,自教皇西尔维斯特一世于公元324年祝圣这座大教堂的第一座以来,这里就一直有建筑。它拥有中世纪时期的精美建筑、17世纪十二使徒的宏伟雕像以及几座教皇陵墓。
虽然大教堂在特定时段免费向公众开放,但请记住,它是一座仍在正常运作的教堂。我和我的女朋友是早上去的,人不是很多,所以最好早点去,而不是下午去,不过这座教堂并不像圣彼得大教堂那么繁忙,因为它位于罗马历史中心外。