We are pleased to announce that we have started to write a guidebook to the churches of Rome. We are hoping to produce a book that will be most useful to the interested visitor to that wonderful city. The many layers of Rome can be a bit daunting when confronted all at once in a church: classical columns, a Byzantine mosaic, a Baroque tomb, Cosmatesque flooring.

We hope that The Churches of Rome will help this curious traveller by identifying wherever possible the history, architecture interior and ex-terior, and the art within, so the user of our book can come away from the amazing wonders of Rome's churches knowing better what they have seen. We shall avoid the silly pronouncements of so many guide-book writers about what is "good" or "bad." But we will have as many germane facts as we can muster, and we will of course point out our favorites, some overlooked, some in every art history book.

This will not be a book top-heavy with glossy illustrations. Rather than looking at a color reproduction of the mosaic in front of them, our readers will be able to concentrate on the glorious art around them, and then read about it in our book. There will be floor-plans for most of the churches.

This website now is just a way of making this announcement. We foresee publication in 2009. Eventually, this site will expand to include color photographs, an interactive map, a restaurant list, maybe even a blog.

But for now, we welcome any ideas, questions, or suggestions you may have. Email us at: info@churchesofrome.com

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And please join our email list; we will let you know when the book is finished, or if we add interesting content to the site. Email us at: guests@churchesofrome.com

--Robert Barrett and Debra Ferguson