Legend relates that when Paul was decapitated, his head bounced three times and fountains miraculously sprang up at each place where it touched the ground.

[1][2] However, the springs, called the Aquae Salviae, as in the Latin name for the church, were known in pre-Christian times, and excavations have revealed ancient mosaic pavements.

An original Crucifixion canvas by Guido Reni was previously found in the church, it is now located in the Vatican, and replaced by a copy.

It was donated to the church by Pope Pius IX and is said to have been brought here from Ostia, Rome's port in the imperial period.

The 2010 appointment of Cardinal Mauro Piacenza as Cardinal-Deacon of this ancient church marks its first use as a cardinalatial diaconia.