A Basilica is a building of ancient design and important architectural data that today serves as a religious site for Christian worship. Its history and function through generations has been diverse, since initially it was a center destined for the audiences of the king in the Roman town, later, they became a place of meeting and litigation for citizens in general. According to its etymology, the term derives from Latin, with a hint of Greek that ended up defining it as the "Royal House" as it was the place of the Roman throne.
With the influence of Christianity in the crown that dominated ancient Rome, rituals and cults at the beginning of this culture began to be carried out in buildings with a similar structure, after the fall of the Roman Empire, Catholicism continued its course through cultures, including its constructions that adopted the terminology of Basilica.
The shape of the Basilicas is key for these constructions to be defined as such, they are always made up of an odd number of naves, the central one being the one with the greatest thickness and height. At the top of this nave is the presidency or main room where the highest representatives of the campus meet. Its height gave rise to the construction of large decorated windows called apses through which a good amount of light passed that contrasts with the semi-darkness produced by its tall and thick columns which support the central nave. At the rear, a large main portico serves as the main entrance, current designs include easily accessible side entrances.
In ancient Rome, two types of basilicas were built, the major and the minor: The major basilicas, there were seven and they are called thus because they were the first to be established in the Roman empire: San Juan de Letrán, in which the Pope serves as Bishop of Rome, Saint Peter of the Vatican, the principal of Christianity today, Saint Mary Major, of the Patriarch of Antioch, Saint Paul Outside the Walls, formerly assigned to the Patriarch of Alexandria, Saint Lawrence Outside the Walls, for the Patriarch of Jerusalem. Saint Sebastian of the Catacombs or Saint Sebastian Outside the Walls, Holy Cross of Jerusalem. It is important to note that in the first four only the pope can officiate the service (mass). The basilicas for their part are the rest of the buildings that are distributed throughout the world, which, added to the headquarters of Christianity that have been given this attribute, add up to more than 2000 today.
