She saw Sister Margaret Mary plodding along with cautious steps toward the target while the Morettis were gazing at the early-third-century Arch of Septimius Severus. The 75.5-foot-tall by 82-foot-wide triumphal arch was built in 203 to celebrate Roman Emperor Septimius Severus’s victory over the Parthian Empire (ancient Iran) during the Roman-Parthian Wars. Facing the Roman Forum on the left is Santi Luca e Martina honoring Saint Martina, the patron saint of Rome, who was martyred in 288. The first church in her honor was erected in the early seventh century. This version was finished in 1669.
