St. Stephen's was locked up, leaving us to admire this doorway with a pope memorialized between two half shells overhead. This depicts Pope St. Stephen -- not the martyr we usually see depicted sprouting arrows like a porcupine. Instead, this Stephen was the 3rd century Pope who invented mass vestments. (Before that priest wore street clothes. While this may not be world peace, it has endured much longer: Today Stephen's sole brother Benedict XVI wears Prada loafers.) This church replaced a 12th century church on the same spot -- and used stones from the city's defensive walls. The Venetians constructed the first church of St. Stephen as part of a Benedictine monastery.
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