Skeletons adorned with luxurious jewels and lavish vestments were discovered in an underground tomb in 1578 and, centuries later, remain on display in some religious institutions worldwide. Known as the "Catacomb Saints," the remains of would-be martyrs were entombed below Rome.
Photos of them have been shared across social media platforms, including Reddit, Instagram and Facebook and described by publications like Smithsonian Magazine as "fantastically bejeweled."
The objects are indeed real – they are the centuries-old skeletal, human remains exhumed from Rome's underground catacombs.
St. Alexander in Waldsassen Basilica, Bavaria. (Paul Koudounaris)
During the 16th century, Catholic imagery and churches were destroyed in parts of modern-day Netherlands, Belgium and Northern France during Beeldenstorm, an "iconoclastic fury," that lasted from August to November 1566.
In response, the Vatican ordered thousands of skeletons to be exhumed from the catacombs of Rome, decorated, and placed throughout German, Austrian, and Swiss towns.
Catacombs refer to underground cemeteries often built below European cities to house the bodies of the deceased. Bodies of Christians were exhumed from the catacombs of Rome, or underground cemeteries.
According to the Rome Museum, construction of the catacombs began in the 2nd century and lasted for roughly 300 years. During this time, pagan, Jewish and Christian citizens of Rome were buried across more than 60 catacombs below Rome – five of which are open to the public today. Roman law forbade burying the dead above ground when the catacombs were built.
St. Deodatus in Rheinau, Switzerland. (Paul Koudounaris)
Over time, the
American author and art historian Paul Koudounaris wrote about the catacomb saints in his 2013 book "Heavenly Bodies," reviving international interest in their macabre stories. In an email to Snopes, Koudounaris recalled his research, noting that the "Catacomb Saints" were an "important part of the Catholic church's counter-reformation strategy.
"In rebuilding the faith, the Catholics also needed to reestablish relics against the criticism they had come under, and they intended to do that with the biggest and most fantastic relics ever seen — full-bodied jeweled skeletal relics," said Koudounaris.
"But were these actual saintly relics? Well, no. In fact, no one knew who most of the bones belonged to. They were sending bones of presumed martyrs, not actual saints, hence calling them Catacomb Saints, but a martyr had a status not entirely dissimilar to a saint."
Koudounaris estimates that between 500,000 and 750,000 souls "found a final resting place in the sprawling Roman catacombs."
German historian Trevor Johnson described the Catacomb Saints in a 1996 issue of the Journal of Ecclesiastical History. He wrote that the "dry bones" of the saints were given new meaning when the Catholic church awarded the remains new identities and religious meanings.
For his decades-long efforts in the catacombs, Antonio Bosio, an Oratorian priest, became known as the "Columbus of the Catacombs." Bosio "devoted his energies to the detection, exploration and description of the remainder of Rome's subterranean cemeteries" and claimed to have found 174,000 martyrs in the crypt.
As Johnson noted, many graves marked simply with an "M" were assumed to have been
It's unknown who these people were, though they could have been early Christian martyrs. Regardless of their status in life, their remains were dressed and decorated as Catholic saints in death.
From their rediscovery until the 19th century, the catacombs were ransacked for their relics and remains. Once excavated, bones were taken to the Apostolic Society for authentication. This involved providing a certificate that included the actual or perceived identity of the martyr, the cemetery of origin, and the recipient's name, serving as the "first stage in the fabrication of a saint," wrote Johnson.
Given the absence of any identifying inscriptions on the majority of their tombs, at this juncture the various heaps of bones often had to be provided with suitable names. Some were rather desperate inventions, pride of place perhaps belonging to the (touchingly frank) St Anonymus. Other appellations reflected the alleged qualities of the martyr in question (such as Felix or Justus), drew their inspiration from the name of the reigning pontiff, or, in what appears to be a smart marketing ploy, were identical with those of their intended recipients.
After a newly compiled extraction of bones was given a name, church members would select relics to adorn the remains and seal them in glass boxes for shipment to places like Bavaria, Austria and Switzerland.
Their most distinguishing feature was the saints' "completeness," wrote Johnson, adding that the skeletons were presented as "holy bodies," not a relic but a "glorious body."
Enveloped in robes, bedecked with pearls and beads, many of the remains were mounted in lifelike postures, left standing or seated, or reclined on velvet cushions. Their skulls were almost always turned toward the viewer with gems placed in the eye sockets.
St. Felix of Gars am Inn, Germany. (Paul Koudounaris)
It's believed that thousands of "Catacomb Saints" were sent across Europe during this time. Their arrival at a new location was said to have been a politically significant event, resulting in them being nominated as the patron of their host town.
Oxford published other photos of well-known "Catacomb Saints."