Leant to the tuff rock of the Civita Vecchia, the Santa Marina Church is placed at the inside of the ancient Ardea cemetery. According to an inscription on the access portal, the church is supposed to be erected in 1191 by Cencio Savelli, the future Pope Onorio III.
The construction was preceded by a small arcade, of which a few traces of pictorial decorations remain. Two “stilofori” lions (bases of the original columns) precede the entrance.
The architrave is illustrated with the image of three monks. One of them, in the centre, portrays the Ardea Patron Saint. A legend tells that Santa Marina lived like a monk, never revealing her true feminine identity. After having suffered from an unfair and defamatory accusation, she was moved away from the monastery. Here, below the church entitled to her, is the cave where she retired as a hermit.
