 The façade of the basilica, with a giant order of columns, stretches across the end of the square and is approached by steps on which stand two statues of the 1st-century apostles to Rome, Saints Peter and Paul.The basilica is cruciform in shape, with an elongated nave in the Latin cross form but the early designs were for a centrally planned structure and this is still in evidence in the architecture.The central space is dominated both externally and internally by one of the largest domes in the world.