Italy is the final resting place for several of the twelve apostles, making it a major center for Christian pilgrimage. Most famously, St. Peter is buried in the necropolis beneath St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, Rome. St. Paul (often grouped with the twelve) is buried beneath the altar of the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls. In Rome's Basilica dei Santi XII Apostoli, you can find the shared tomb of St. Philip and St. James the Less. Furthermore, St. Bartholomew is said to be buried on Tiber Island in Rome, and St. Matthew is interred in the Cathedral of Salerno. Outside of Rome, St. Andrew's head is kept in the Cathedral of Amalfi (though his primary tomb is in Greece), and St. Thomas has a shrine in Ortona. The presence of these relics is why Italy has historically been the administrative and spiritual heart of the Catholic Church, as many of the foundational figures of the faith ended their ministries and lives on Italian soil.