The nave is frescoed with the Apotheosis of Santa Cecilia (1727) by Sebastiano Conca.

The first church on this site was founded probably in the 3rd century, by Pope Urban I; it was devoted to the Roman martyr Cecilia. Pope Paschal I rebuilt the church in 822, and moved here the relics of St Cecilia from the catacombs of St Calixtus. Fuga's designs for the atrium (1741) of S Cecilia in Trastevere effectively created a framing vista. Among the artifacts remaining from the 13th century edifice are a mural painting depicting the Final judgment (1289-1293) by Pietro Cavallini in the choir of the monks, and the Gothic ciborium (1293) in the presbytery by Arnolfo di Cambio. The crypt is decorated in cosmatesque style, and keeps the relics of St. Cecilia and St. Valerian.