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30/07/2010 (3:35)
Carol Glatz: Right beneath our feet there are countless hidden treasures from ancient times. And oftentimes major works of art are concealed under layers of paint or just plain grime.
On today’s Vatican Report we’ll look at what archeologists have uncovered recently at a few of Rome’s most sacred sites. I’m Carol Glatz CNS Rome Correspondent
CW: And I’m Cindy Wooden. A Roman archeologist once said that if you could slice Rome down the middle it would look like a hundred-layer cake. Each new layer of history is just piled on top of the old. While that prospect excites historians, it can make city engineers grumble because any kind of urban renewal -- like putting in fiber optic cables, a new subway line or an underground parking garage -- can come to a screeching halt for months when bulldozers unearth even the tiniest ancient piece of pottery.
CG: Archeologists this summer are wrapping up studies they did on the oldest prison in Rome. The Mamertine prison is a dark, humid, domed structure located near the Roman Forum. Tradition says Sts. Peter and Paul were imprisoned there, and archeologists said they found evidence that helps support that belief. They found proof that by the 7th century the site was a place for venerating St. Peter.
They also discovered and restored colorful 11th and 14th century frescoes depicting St. Peter and Jesus. They removed brick and wooden floors in the prison and figured out what this sacred site had been used for in pre-Christian, pagan Rome.
CW: It turns out the site was considered sacred as far back as the 5th century BC. Because there was an underground spring that bubbled up in this spot, ancient Romans made special offerings to the water nymph there, perhaps in the hope that her life-giving flow of water would never run dry.
At some point the domed structure became a maximum security prison and served that purpose until the 4th century AD. Enemies of the Roman Empire, especially political foes, were tossed into the watery pit. The current project’s head archeologist said the Romans believed the prisoners would be carried away or just disappear into the netherworld -- a fate worse than death. But according to tradition, the Romans took a more direct approach with St. Peter, crucifying him upside down and burying him here, where St. Peter’s Basilica was later built.
CG: Some other treasures uncovered this year were the oldest existing paintings of Sts. Peter, Paul, Andrew and John. Armed with lasers, archeologists blasted away a thick crust of calcium carbonate to reveal the ancient frescoes in Rome’s Catacombs of St. Thecla. Experts said the fourth century images show that widespread devotion to the apostles began much earlier than what most Church historians believed.
But sometimes a hidden treasure isn’t all it’s hyped up to be. The Vatican newspaper a few weeks ago suggested that a painting found in a Jesuit church in Rome was by the Renaissance master Caravaggio. But the head of the Vatican Museums debunked the claim and said people’s artistic judgment is being impaired by a bad case of Caravaggio-fever. I’m Carol Glatz.
And I’m Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service.
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