Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter
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The Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter are found approximately three kilometers from southeast Rome and the ancient
Via Labicana The Via Labicana was an ancient road of Italy, leading east-southeast from Rome. It seems possible that the road at first led to Tusculum, that it was then extended to Labici, and later still became a road for through traffic; it may even have su ...
, and date to the 4th century AD. The
catacombs Catacombs are man-made subterranean passageways for religious practice. Any chamber used as a burial place is a catacomb, although the word is most commonly associated with the Roman Empire. Etymology and history The first place to be referred ...
were named in reference to the
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
martyrs
Marcellinus and Peter Saints Marcellinus and Peter (sometimes called ''Petrus Exorcista'' - Peter the Exorcist;Alban Butler, Kathleen Jones, Paul Burns, ''Butler's Lives of the Saints'' (Continuum International Publishing Group, 1997), 14. it, Marcellino e Pietro) are ...
who may have been buried there according to legend, near the body of St. Tiburtius. During
excavations In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...
performed from 2004 to 2010, an estimated 20,000 skeletons were discovered in these catacombs; the skeletons were buried in ''loculi'' (individually buried within a niche), ''arcosolia'' (a burial under an arched recess), or ''cubicala'' (individuals grouped together into a burial chamber). The catacombs "cover 3 hectares with 4.5 kilometers of subterranean galleries on three different levels". Within the catacombs is a variety of
fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
es representative of pagan and Christian traditions and a few small artifacts. The significance of the pieces of art can be traced to the time period they were commissioned and some possible influence from the inhabitants of the catacombs.


Wall paintings

The fourth-century catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter contains a mixture of pagan and Christian imagery (both old and new testament). One room located within the catacomb, labeled as room 79, depicts imagery that demonstrates this mixture. A few of the images are Peter striking water from a rock,
Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with Jaso ...
playing a lyre, the
raising of Lazarus Lazarus of Bethany (Latinised from Lazar, ultimately from Hebrew Eleazar, "God helped"), also venerated as Righteous Lazarus, the Four-Days Dead in the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the subject of a prominent sign of Jesus in the Gospel of John, ...
, and
Daniel in the lion's den Daniel in the lions' den (chapter 6 of the Book of Daniel) tells of how the biblical Daniel is saved from lions by the God of Israel "because I was found blameless before him" (Daniel 6:22). It parallels and complements chapter 3, the story of S ...
. Another room within the catacomb, room 66, contains paintings of athletes. These examples of the intermingling of different types of images provide evidence about the shift towards Christian imagery. Also found within the catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter was a gold glass disk fragment depicting controversial Jewish and Christian imagery. The disk fragment is decorated with a tomb with a freestanding column on either side and a menorah located in its front.


Significance of the artwork

The culture of Rome was captured in the art through the blend of pagan and Christian imagery, a slow transition that occurred as a result of the gradual shift towards Christianity. By the fourth century, images of Christ and the apostles could be found within the catacombs, represented more realistically than previous paintings. Another common theme that arose in catacomb frescoes was the story of
Jonah Jonah or Jonas, ''Yōnā'', "dove"; gr, Ἰωνᾶς ''Iōnâs''; ar, يونس ' or '; Latin: ''Ionas'' son of Amittai, is a prophet in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran, from Gath-hepher of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th cent ...
.


Jonah fresco

The representation of
Jonah Jonah or Jonas, ''Yōnā'', "dove"; gr, Ἰωνᾶς ''Iōnâs''; ar, يونس ' or '; Latin: ''Ionas'' son of Amittai, is a prophet in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran, from Gath-hepher of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th cent ...
is unique and stems from two different sources of inspiration: Roman pagan art which influenced the "gestures and visual formulae" and Jewish midrashic origins that played a role in the development of the non-biblical story behind the depicted episodes. Located on a ceiling within the catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter is a fresco recounting the story of Jonah. The different scenes depicted are: Jonah boarding a ship from Joppa to Tardish to avoid his given task; Jonah being thrown into the raging sea as penance for disobeying God; Jonah being swallowed by a large fish where he resided for three days and nights; Jonah being spewed from the fish and preaching repentance to the Ninevites; and the final scene of Jonah sitting under the shade of a booth he built to watch for the impending destruction of Nineveh. The depictions of the story of Jonah were given validation by evangelists and led to the further adoption within art of the time. There are several theories regarding the significance of the story of Jonah. One theory is tied to a Hebrew prayer from the Hellenistic-Mishnaic period that was the "basis for the Christian ''Ordo Commendationis Animae"'' and says, "He who answered the prayer of
onah The Hebrew word ''onah'' (Hebrew:עוֹנָה) is used in Jewish law to refer to the interval at which a husband must satisfy his wife's conjugal needs. The word also appears in the laws of niddah. In rabbinic Hebrew, the word literally means "due ...
He will answer us." A second theory is that the story depicts the mercy of God, an idea that would be highly desired for those departing from the world and into eternity. The scenes of the story of Jonah in the catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter, while traditional in context, contains variations from some of the traditional representations. A similarity to most other catacomb representations of Jonah is in the scene where he is thrown off of the ship heading away from Nineveh. In this scene, Jonah is depicted as naked and is commonly interpreted as symbolic of the sailors throwing all unnecessary cargo overboard in an attempt to keep the ship from sinking in the storm. There are some who believe that this depiction could have origins in marine pagan art. One aspect of the image of Jonah being thrown overboard that is more rare in catacomb paintings is that Jonah, instead of going headfirst into the ocean, appears to be lowered into the sea feet first by the sailors. This image is more traditional of Jewish midrashic interpretation, lending to the theory that the painting in the catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter is more Jewish than Christian in origin and importance. Another aspect of the scenes of Jonah that supports this theory is the large fish that was represented, a ''
ketos In Ancient Greek ''kētŏs'' (, plural ''kētē''=''kētea'', ), Latinized as ''cetus'' (pl. ''ceti'' or ''cetē'' = ''cetea''), is any huge sea creature or sea monster. According to the mythology, Perseus slew Cetus to save Andromeda from bein ...
'' rather than the traditionally depicted Leviathan.


Skeletons excavated

In recent years, there have been several studies conducted on the catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter analyzing how the conditions within the catacombs effect the preservation of the skeletons. The overall agreed conclusion is that the thermal history within catacombs are highly favorable for bone preservation, even more so than that of skeletons exposed to open-air environments. Bones located within larger catacomb chambers have been found to be significantly better preserved than bones located within the catacomb's smaller chambers. The hypothesis that many pathologists are working with is that bones located in close proximity to the catacomb walls are subject to some environmental conditions, specifically runoff and increased humidity; bones discovered near the center of the chambers are not subject to such conditions. This explains why bones located within smaller chambers are not in as good a condition because nearly every skeleton would be located close to the walls of the chamber. Bones found in smaller chambers of the catacombs are also affected by diagenesis (the conversion of sediment to sedimentary rock that results in a chemical or physical change) due to the confined space. From the years 2004 to 2010, the central areas of the catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter underwent excavation. During the excavation process, several mass graves dating from the first and third century AD were discovered in the previously unknown funerary space. The mass graves consisted of tens to hundreds of articulated skeletons, depending on the size of the chamber they were located in. Artifact dating and radiocarbon dating performed at the time verified the dates in which the skeletons were buried within the catacombs; the bodies appear to have undergone "complex burial rites" that consisted of some of the bodies being covered in plaster or amber and wrapped in textiles. The ages of the skeletons within the catacombs is difficult to pinpoint; however, it appears that it ranges from young adults to adults and that both sexes are present. One theory that pathologists have regarding the circumstances that resulted in the mass graves' existence is that there was some form of an epidemic during this time.


See also

*
List of ancient monuments in Rome This is a list of ancient monuments from Republican and Imperial periods in the city of Rome, Italy. Amphitheaters * Amphitheater of Caligula * Amphitheatrum Castrense * Amphitheater of Nero * Amphitheater of Statilius Taurus * Colosseum Bath ...
*
Mausoleum of Helena The Mausoleum of Helena is an ancient building in Rome, Italy, located on the Via Casilina, corresponding to the 3rd mile of the ancient Via Labicana. It was built by the Roman emperor Constantine I between 326 and 330, originally as a tomb for hi ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Catacombs Of Marcellinus And Peter
Marcellinus and Peter Saints Marcellinus and Peter (sometimes called ''Petrus Exorcista'' - Peter the Exorcist;Alban Butler, Kathleen Jones, Paul Burns, ''Butler's Lives of the Saints'' (Continuum International Publishing Group, 1997), 14. it, Marcellino e Pietro) are ...
Rome Q. VII Prenestino-Labicano