The story
Feast of Saints Peter and Paul at the Vatican in Saint Peter's Basilica
The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, celebrated June 29 at St Peter's Basilica, marks Rome's patronal solemnity and the day the pope blesses and confers the pallium, a woolen stole symbolizing communion with new metropolitan archbishops. It is the only citywide public holiday in Rome tied to the city's patron saints, closing shops, schools and banks.
On June 29, Rome closes for a reason that predates the modern state entirely: the city's two patron apostles, Peter and Paul, both believed to have been martyred in Rome under Nero, share a feast day that remains the only citywide holiday tied to Rome's own patron saints rather than a national or Vatican calendar event.