December 2, 2013: Underground Rome

Today we had the unique experience of exploring the excavation site under St. Peter's Basilica.

St. Peter's Basilica is located in the Vatican City. When stepping into the Vatican City, you actually are leaving Italy and entering an entirely different state. St. Peter's Basilica was the first church constructed for Christians following the Edict of Milan. Constantine experienced two major issues while constructing this building; the north to south hills, and mausoleums. Since Constantine was dedicated to building directly over the spot where Peter's remains lived, he removed the roofs of the mausoleums, filled them in, and built a foundation to support his basilica. As a result, years later the site under St. Peter's was excavated to reveal several mausoleums.This is the spot we got to experience. Rome is unique in the sense that ground level has continued to get higher and higher since building over existing buildings was a common practice. What was not common, however, was to disrespect the dead in the way Constantine did by destroying these mausoleums. His actions did not sit well with many pagans living in Rome given the fact that there was a long standing belief that mausoleums were literally where the dead lived. In the crypt under St. Peter's, much of the art was associated with resurrection and eternal life. Examples of this is the use of peacocks and egyptian art like the bull of death. There was one mausoleum I found particularly interesting, and that was one that belonged to a Christian. It is important to remember that at this time, Christianity was not legal in the Roman kingdom. Often, if someone was Christian they handled their faith discreetly. Signs that pointed to the fact that this person was a follower of Christ was a mosaic of Jesus, as well as scenes that showed the story of Jonah and the Whale and one that showed a fisherman. These images would later become closely associate with Christians. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed in the crypt, but it was a truly amazing experience.