A short distance from our tourist accommodations, Little Blue and Little Red, next to the Basilica of Saint Paul, lies Schuster Park, a green area redeveloped in 1999 on the occasion of the Jubilee. Previously known as Parco della Crocetta and later as Parco Paolino, the park takes its current name from Cardinal Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster (1880–1954), a Benedictine monk of the Abbey of Saint Paul, where he later became abbot. Cardinal and Archbishop of Milan from 1929, he led the Milanese diocese during the difficult period of World War II. During this time, he demonstrated great human qualities (he obtained, among other things, the suspension of the execution of Indro Montanelli, saving him from the SS). He was beatified in 1996 by Pope John Paul II.
The triangular shape of the park is due to the ancient intersection separating Via Ostiense from today’s Lungotevere San Paolo, a road once used to access the Basilica’s quadriportico. Its current layout is largely the result of works carried out for the Jubilee of 2000. In particular, a new entrance to the quadriportico was created through a small internal road in the park, lined with a long bench. This area also hosts one of the district’s senior centers. Further redevelopment took place for the Jubilee of 2025, including a new info point near the Basilica entrance.
Schuster Park is an ideal place for a break after visiting the Basilica. Here you can walk, relax on the benches, and enjoy the view of the monument. The park also includes a playground for children, making it a perfect destination for families. Moreover, in summer, it hosts cultural events and open-air concerts. The park has thus become one of the main gathering places of the San Paolo district.
La foresta d’acciaio
The Steel Forest
At the far end of the green area, opposite the Basilica, in 2007–2008 a striking artwork was created: The Steel Forest. Designed by a group of artists and professionals led by sculptor Giuseppe Spagnulo, the work commemorates the victims of Nassiriya. On November 12, 2003, a Carabinieri base in Iraq was attacked by terrorists, causing the death of 28 people, including 19 Italians. The victims’ names are remembered on a commemorative plaque near the installation, later joined by two more plaques honoring those who fell in Iraq between 2003 and 2006, and in Afghanistan.
The artwork consists of 19 steel menhirs, each weighing 8 tons and about 4 meters high. Arranged in a curved line in two rows, they form a short path visitors can walk through.
Also part of Schuster Park is the Ostiense Necropolis.
