Crypts and Catacombs

We went on this tour through Dark Rome Tours. After I heard that only 2% of tourists see the “underground history of Rome”, I just had to go. Met our tour guide Rachael from Ireland, climbed on the Big Bus and headed to the Catacombs of San Callisto. Immediately we were told there were no photos/cameras allowed in any of the catacombs so what you see here are photos of the postcards I bought at the end of the tour. The San Callisto Catacombs are located right outside the city walls off of the Appian Way. Catacombs are burial places, mostly for Christians in the first through fifth centuries because by law nobody was allowed to be buried inside the city walls and Christians, because of their after-life belief preferred burial to the paganistic tradition of cremation. This site sits upon volcanic tufa stone which is easy to carve away yet hardens with air. This allowed them to burrow five layers deep.

The Catacombs of San Callisto was the burial place of thousands of martyrs and several popes. It was ransacked by the Barbarians in the 9th century so we were forewarned that we would not be seeing any bones there. We did get to walk through some of the tunnels although there are over 12 miles of them and over 500,000 tombs. We saw the frescos still painted on the walls and the cubicolo’s (which are the family burial rooms…see photo #2). Apparently they still hold masses down in the larger rooms.

Back on the bus to Basilica of San Clemente. If you were to walk past this church, I’m not sure you would ever stop to look inside. It is very plain looking from the outside. But this is a church-upon-church. In the 4th century a church was built over a pagan temple dedicated to Mithras from the 1st century. Down in the grottoes there are more very well preserved frescoes by Masolino. Finally back on street level, the current church enjoys the 4th century original alter…what a site.

Last stop, The Cappuccin Crypt. Here we would see bones, bones of over 4,000 monks who died between 1528 and 1870, bones of children who died at a young age, bones on the walls and ceilings in the most artistic way, and finally the wide-eyed tourist. It was an unbelievable site. It felt creepy, yet artistic…is that possible? The soil which many of the monks are buried in was brought from the Holy Land and is claimed to have some miraculous properties. For instance, some of the monks are mummified although they died centuries ago and the windows are wide open to allow humidity to enter the crypt which should enhance the decomposition, not stall it. Also, people leave flowers when they come to pray for the monks because they are still an organization that helps the poor and sick. But the flowers take months to die as well, not the normal week that we have all seen. There is a message on the wall for all the tourists to read, “We were what you are, you will become what we are now…” You can’t argue with that!!!