The catacombs are a vast underground burial site near Rome. The early members of the Christian church buried their dead there. Their tombs were cut into the rock of a sacred area beneath the countryside near Rome.
Christianity was outlawed by the Emperor Nero and Christians were persecuted. Many thousands were killed. They had to hold religious services in secret, so they gathered in the underground tombs. For a time, they were safe from attack there, but from about 250 AD, even the burial grounds were not safe. The Christians then blocked up the entrances and made secret ones. The tomb stretched for miles in the underground galleries, like an enormous mine. They were reached by steps often as deep as 12 meters under the ground. It is said that they would be longer than the whole of Italy if the passages were in a straight line
When the emperor Constantine became a Christian, Christianity was made the official religion of the Roman Empire and the catacombs were visited by many pilgrims. But by then, the Roman Empire was being attacked by warlike people from the East. The Goths conquered the city in AD 410, and the entrances of the AD 410 catacombs were filled up in order to protect them. By the 12th century, everybody had forgotten about them. They had been so well hidden that it was not until 1578 that one was found, and the Roman authorities began to uncover them.
The bodies of the dead were placed in inches cut into the walls. Originally, they were covered with tiles or stone walls. Many of these crumbled away over the centuries, and present-day visitors to the tombs find themselves walking between long rows of skeletons.
The catacombs are a vast underground burial site near Rome. The early members of the Christian church buried their dead there. Their tombs were cut into the rock of a sacred area beneath the countryside near Rome.Christianity was outlawed by the Emperor Nero and Christians were persecuted. Many thousands were killed. They had to hold religious services in secret, so they gathered in the underground tombs. For a time, they were safe from attack there, but from about 250 AD, even the burial grounds were not safe. The Christians then blocked up the entrances and made secret ones. The tomb stretched for miles in the underground galleries, like an enormous mine. They were reached by steps often as deep as 12 meters under the ground. It is said that they would be longer than the whole of Italy if the passages were in a straight lineWhen the emperor Constantine became a Christian, Christianity was made the official religion of the Roman Empire and the catacombs were visited by many pilgrims. But by then, the Roman Empire was being attacked by warlike people from the East. The Goths conquered the city in AD 410, and the entrances of the AD 410 catacombs were filled up in order to protect them. By the 12th century, everybody had forgotten about them. They had been so well hidden that it was not until 1578 that one was found, and the Roman authorities began to uncover them.The bodies of the dead were placed in inches cut into the walls. Originally, they were covered with tiles or stone walls. Many of these crumbled away over the centuries, and present-day visitors to the tombs find themselves walking between long rows of skeletons.
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