rome3catacombs

"46 martyrs known by name are buried in the catacombs...May your pilgrimage to the catacombs help you to renew your faith and, .......to obtain from God the grace to proclaim it courageously, always and everywhere".

The following is taken from a leaflet I obtained when I finished my sojourn at the Catacombs. I recommend all to visit them - an unforgettable experience.

Giovanni Battista de Rossi, the archaeologist who first explored and studied them, called these Catacombs of St. Callixtus "the Catacombs par excellence, the first cemetery of the Community of Rome, the glorious burial place of the Popes of the 3rd century".

" The Christian Catacombs of Rome are of great interest to us; they can be regarded as "the cradle of Christianity and the archives of the primitive church", because they illustrate the life, the usages and customs of the Church of the 3rd Century, as well as its creed, the whole of the truths believed by it.

The Symbols

The symbols used by persecuted Christians recall a spiritual reality.

Some of these can be seen in the image to the left. The Good Shepherd with a lamb on his shoulders represents Christ the saviour and the soul which he has saved. The Fish was a symbol very dear to the early Christians. In Greek "fish" is 'Ichtus''. Placed vertically, the letters of that word form an acrostic, that is to say they are initials of five words, which mean "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour".

* On the walls you can see the inscriptions of 5 Popes, next to which name there is a title of epi(scopos): bishop. On two inscriptions there is also the sign of Mtr (Martyr).

Through her own free will, Cecilia gave up her life to defend the Christian Faith. (Her image is the middle one in the above picture). The statue, a copy of the famous work by Stefano Maderno, 1599, reminds us of her martyrdom and, by the position of her fingers, according to tradition, she expresses her devotion to the Unity and Trinity of God. (If you look closely you will see that she displays her forefinger on her left hand and thumb and two fingers on her right. I remember the guide telling us the significance and it was very moving. The guide also told us that her head is positioned in such a manner as she was beheaded).

A view of the Catacomb taken from outside. I took this photo and the one below. The image above is taken from the leaflet as no photos were allowed in the Catacombs.

The Galleries

Over three centuries the catacombs of St. Callixtus covered an area of 90 acres of land, with galleries 12 miles long. In some places the cemetery reaches four levels, more than 20 meters deep. (On the right is a photo taken above the catacombs. 20 minutes earlier I had been below ground, walking through the gallery you can see in the first image at the top of the page. I only walked through a small section of the second floor, which contains many of the images and so on).