Santa Maria Maggiore is a Papal Basilica and one of Rome's Seven Pilgrim Churches, regarded as the first Marian sanctuary and the largest Marian church in Rome. Visitors come to venerate notable Christian relics including the holy crib of the Child Jesus and the revered image of Salus Populi Romani depicting the Madonna and Child as protectress of the Roman people. The basilica, originally built under Pope Sixtus III in 432 CE and completed in its current form in 1743, features Roman, Romanesque, and Baroque architectural styles.
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