For centuries, the Basilica of Santa Pudenziana was considered the oldest Christian church in Rome. The church was built on the home of the Roman senator Pudens, the remains of which were discovered beneath the basilica. The senator, along with his two daughters Pudentiana and Praxedes, was converted by the apostle Peter, and his home was soon transformed into a domus ecclesiae, a building intended for Christian rites. The origin and dating of the church, although very ancient, are still debated. However, in the acts of the Roman synod of 499 (Synod of Pope Gelasius I), the church linked to the Title of Pudentis (Santa Pudenziana) is mentioned among the ancient Roman basilicas, confirming its importance and antiquity already mentioned. in the 5th century.

In 817, Pope Paschal I transferred numerous bodies of holy martyrs from the Roman catacombs to make them more accessible to the faithful, placing them honorably in various churches in Rome. This important work of translation promoted public veneration and transformed the cult of the martyrs. Thus, the relics of Saint Pudentiana arrived in the church on Via Urbana, dedicated to Father Pudens.

The current structure of the church dates back to the 4th century. The 16th-century renovation, by Francesco Capriani, known as Volterra, modified the interior of the basilica, creating a single nave and an elliptical dome above the altar, frescoed by Pomarancio.

The only trace of the basilica's ancient past is the extraordinary apse mosaic created between 410 and 417 AD during the pontificate of Pope Innocent I. Although the dome's renovation involved the removal of the last two figures of the apostles (making them ten, not twelve), the mosaic has remained intact in all its beauty.

The iconography is The first is that of Christ Pantocrator, depicted majestically enthroned with his right hand raised in blessing (three fingers joined for the Trinity) and his left hand holding the Gospel, surrounded by the apostles and two women crowning Peter and Paul, identified as Saints Pudentiana and Praxedes. In the background, the outline of a city can be seen, probably Jerusalem. At the center of the mosaic stands a gem-covered cross on a mountain, perhaps Calvary. Next to the cross, in a sky animated by pink and blue clouds, stand the four living beings of the Apocalypse: the angel for Saint Matthew, the ox for Saint Luke, the lion for Saint Mark, and the eagle for Saint John.

The façade was restored in 1870 by order of the Archbishop of Milan. of the titular Cardinal Lucien Bonaparte, Napoleon's nephew, preserving a 13th-century frieze and the 16th-century portal of the previous façade. The Romanesque bell tower was commissioned by Pope Innocent III at the beginning of the 13th century.