After the museum we walked into town and passed the St. Paul's Catacombs. We got tickets and went inside. There was an informative display area at the entrance and we looked at most of the items before a crowd arrived. We took that clue to head out and go down into the catacombs. These burial grounds have been in use since Roman times and are very extensive. The folks that dug these were much shorter and the ceilings in the catacombs were low and lower. Even Leslie had to duck under a few times. we poked around and spent a good amount of time underground. Eventually a tour bus arrives and disgorged a glut of people into an already cramped space so we took off and headed into town. The St. Paul's Cathedral dominated the center of town and we walked around until a few drops of rain fell. That was our cue to head back.
On our walk a fine old wall
Cool plant
Snails on the flowers
So many snails
Every where a rehab
A blast of yellow
What do we have here?
This mpa shows the underground areas in yellow. It does not give you a scale but the top part is a city block long
The opening display area shows bones of an adult
Bones of an infant and the funerary jar that they were found in
A sample burial with jars and other customary additions
A variety of totems also found in the catacombs
Oil lamps and other ceramics
Exterior decorations
32 steps down
The lighting was an eerie amber color
A stable walkway has been constructed with railings to hand on while bending over to get through low spots
Arches and niches were carved out of the rock
Some spaces were rather large
Smaller openings could be used and reused for infants. The high mortality rate for infants means these types of tombs were very prevalent
Passageways went for long distances
This could be a family 'plot' or an arcosolium tomb
Carved pillars on either side of an arch indicate that this was a bladacchino tomb. one of the fanciest types that was intended for the wealthy or important folks
These are window tombs where the tomb is reached through a window
Within the tomb a depression was made for the head to rest in
The lighting is rather spooky
Some passageways were very tight and I had to turn sideways to get through
An indication of how large this complex is
This tomb had an inscription that dated it to 560 CE
Who is that in the gloom?
A section of the roof had a few extra inches carved out so I was able to stand up fully
Peek a BOO
with no master plan or extensive record keeping, excavation of a new tomb often broke into an older catacomb and that excavation would have to be stopped
Watch your head
Looking through a small hole
Small stone steps
The carving marks are still visible
Looking through another hole to more steps. These were from more recent times
Deeper into the dark. We went down there but were suddenly crowded out by a tour that flooded the catacombs with people
Cats of the catacombs
Not much decorations aboveground
A chicken or two
The rest of town becons us from afar
Very fancy lighting
Proto peaches
In the bathrooms they had informative signs about Roman customs. This one reminds us that urine was used to wash the clothes
A tough of running water was used to wash your hands
Sea sponges were used for toilet paper
Romans made it a point to wash their arms and legs daily and each 8 days, on market day, they would wash all the bits
We continued on into town and into a small chapel
The bigger church, St. Paul's Cathedral, was not open to visitors
It was generously decorated with statues
Wingacourt museum held religious artifacts
Secular items were also in the museum
St. Paul's was large
With lots of corners
Doors abound
Wooden front doors
Part of a grand facade
Smaller outbuildings
Also nicely decorated
This way to salvation
Perhaps the fires of hell?
This looked like a meteorite from across the street
Carriages for hire
More impressive stonework on the ride back
Amazing detail
