Catacombs
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Catacombs are human-made subterranean passageways for religious
practice. Any chamber used as a burial place is a catacomb, although the word
is most commonly associated with the Roman Empire.[1]
Many are under cities and have been popularized by stories of their uses as a
war refuge, smugglers' hideouts, or meeting places for cults.
Etymology
The first place to be referred to as
catacombs was the system of underground tombs between the 2nd and 3rd
milestones of the Appian Way in Rome, where the bodies of the apostles Peter
and Paul,
among others, were said to have been buried. The name of that place in late Latin was catacumbae, a word of
obscure origin, possibly deriving from a proper name, or else a corruption of
the Latin phrase cata tumbas, "among the tombs". The word
referred originally only to the Roman catacombs,
but was extended by 1836 to refer to any subterranean receptacle of the dead,
as in the 18th-century Paris catacombs.[2]
Around
the world
Catacombs in the world include:
- Austria
– Catacombs of St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna
- Australia – Catacombs of Trinity College,
Melbourne University
[source?]
- Czech Republic – Catacombs of Znojmo
- Egypt
– Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa
(or Kom al Sukkfa, Shuqafa, etc.) in Alexandria
- England – Catacombs of London
and others
- Finland
– Catacombs of the Helsinki Orthodox cemetery at Hietaniemi cemetery
- France – Catacombs of Paris. Mine workings were used at end of the 18th century and
had no religious purpose other than as an ossuary
for storing the bones of cleared graveyards.
- Ukraine
– Odessa Catacombs
- Italy
– Catacombs of Rome; Catacombs of Naples;
Capuchin catacombs of Palermo and others
- Malta
– Rabat Catacombs[3]
- Peru
– Catacombs of the Convento de San Francisco,
Lima
- Spain – Catacombs of Sacromonte
in Granada
- Slovenia
– Catacombs of Huda Jama near Laško
and others
- United States - Catacombs of Indianapolis
There are also catacomb-like burial
chambers in Anatolia, Turkey; in Sousse, North Africa; in Naples, Italy; in Syracuse, Italy;
Trier,
Germany; Kiev,
Ukraine. Capuchin catacombs of Palermo, Sicily
were used as late as 1920s. Catacombs were available in some of the grander
English cemeteries founded in the 19th Century, such as Sheffield
General Cemetery (above ground) and West Norwood Cemetery (below ground). There are catacombs in Bulgaria
near Aladzha Monastery[citation needed] and in Romania as medieval underground galleries in Bucharest.[4]
In Ukraine
and Russia,
catacomb (used in the local languages' plural katakomby) also refers to
the network of abandoned caves and tunnels earlier used to mine stone,
especially limestone. Such catacombs are situated in Crimea and the Black Sea
coast of these two countries. The most famous are Odessa Catacombs and Ajimushkay, Crimea,
Ukraine. In the early days of Christianity, believers conducted secret worship
services in these burial caves for safety and reverence for the dead. Later,
they served as bases for Soviet
World War II
guerrillas (see also Great Patriotic War). Ajimushkay catacombs hosted about 10,000 fighters and refugees.
Many of them died and were buried there, and memorials and museums were later
established (it is now a territory of Kerch city).
Catacomb
decorations
Catacombs, although most notable as
underground passageways and cemeteries, also house many decorations. There are
thousands of decorations in the centuries-old catacombs of Rome, Paris, and other known and unknown catacombs, some of which
include inscriptions, paintings, statues, ornaments, and other items placed in
the graves over the years. Most of these decorations were used to identify,
immortalize and show respect to the dead.
Inscriptions
Although thousands of inscriptions
were lost as time passed, many of those remaining indicate the social rank or
job title of its inhabitants; however, most of the inscriptions simply indicate
how loving a couple was, or the love of parents and such.
Paintings
Paintings can also be seen
throughout the burial chambers on the walls and ceilings. The paintings
conveyed the same ideas as the inscriptions found throughout the catacombs.
Bacteria
In recent years unique strains of
bacteria have been discovered that thrive in catacombs, inducing mineral
efflorescence and decay. These include Kribbella
sancticallisti, Kribbella catacumbae, and three types of non-thermophilic (low-temperature) Rubrobacter.[5][6]
The original wiki link can be found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catacombs
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