Experience description

The two martyrs, St Marcellinus and St Peter, were slain in the persecution of 304 AD and lost their heads – quite literally – in Rome. It gets worse. Before they were killed, they were forced to dig their own tomb with their own hands.

Explore the history of the ancient catacombs, which span an area of 18,000 m2. Your guide will lead you through this underground graveyard, which spans three levels and was excavated between the 3rd and 5th centuries AD. Roughly 20,000 and 25,000 people will be resting in peace around you, along with numerous martyrs of the persecution of Diocletian.

See the tombstones that cover the niches (known as loculi), and get a peek at early Christian inscriptions on the marble tombstones. A fascinating look into the history of Rome.

Visit the Mausoleum of Saint Helena, connected to the basilica by a rectangular atrium. Around 329 AD, Constantine the Great's mother Helena was buried here in a large red porphyry sarcophagus.

Additional information