“Every time I visit the Vatican I find myself in awe of the magnitude of the Basilica and the historical beauty of the Art in the Sistine Chapel. But never in my wildest dreams did I think my Vatican experience could get any better until I was fortunate enough to be invited to the Necropolis. Here I felt as if I was in some kind of time warp, that I had travelled back through the centuries, this experience was so overwhelming I had goose bumps the whole time!"
“Let me tell you a little about the Vatican Necropolis, not to be confused with the Vatican grottoes. The Grottoes are located above the Necropolis, just below the Renaissance Basilica and above Constantine’s 4th century Basilica. The Vatican Grottoes contain chapels dedicated to various Saints and tombs of kings, queens and Popes, dating from the 10th century.
The Vatican Necropolis lies under the Vatican City, at depths varying between 5–12 metres below Saint Peter's Basilica. The Vatican sponsored archeological excavations under the Basilica in the years 1940–1949, these excavations under the Vatican City revealed an amazing find. A necropolis, dating back to the 3rd century! It unearthed a world of treasures; numerous Mausoleums were discovered, each classified with different letters.
The necropolis was not originally one of the Catacombs of Rome, but an open air cemetery with tombs and mausolea; it was the resting place of St Peter, buried here after his martyrdom in ca. 64 AD. Despite laws protecting the Necropolis, the Emperor Constantine planned to build a Basilica on the site of St Peter’s final resting place. He had the area excavated, with orders to preserve St Peter’s tomb. The rest of the Necropolis became submerged in soil and debris during the construction, and largely forgotten.
Later, in the early 2000s, more of the Necropolis was uncovered during the building of a car park. The tombs under the Vatican are spread through 22 Mausoleums, and lead right through to the famous Field P. It is here that the apostle Peter is believed to be buried at St Peter’s Tomb. The location is directly below the altar of the world renowned St Peter’s Basilica.
The Vatican necropolis tour is an exclusive experience, with entry on special arrangement only. Vatican Scavi reservations are definitely hard to come by! Inspire Me Travel is incredibly fortunate to have an arrangement with our Italian agent to have access to these tours. The essential requirement is to always book in advance! No more than 200 people per day are allowed to visit the Necropolis, in contrast to the 25,000 people per day who visit the Vatican itself.
Please note though, the conditions inside the Necropolis aren’t for everyone … it can feel quite claustrophobic! Therefore, you can count yourself part of an exclusive group of people who have seen the remains of St Peter! You’ll just have to get past the Swiss Guards that guard the Vatican Necropolis entrance first!”
Article by Karen Slater
Inspire Me Travel
