[1] The arch's vault stood over the crossroads of two important roads, the Via Flaminia and the Via Veientana, interesting remains of which have been brought to light in the area around the monument.

The first official notice regarding the building dates to 1256 and is found in a deed of sale of the Orsini family, where it is mentioned as the site of a tiny village protected by a double wall.

In the medieval period, perhaps the Eleventh century, the arch was transformed into a Greek-cross church through the closure of the four archways and the construction of an apse on the east side.

The toponym Malborghetto (literally "evil-ville" or "pain-ville") is more recent and is thought to refer to the sudden devastation at the hands of the Orsini in 1485 to drive off the Colonna who had taken possession of it with the permission of the Pope.

The attic supported a small roof and was divided on the inside by two walls which created three rooms linked by arched doors.

The architect Giuliano da Sangallo, one of the greatest artists of the Renaissance, is responsible for the first sketched reconstruction of the monument's original appearance.