The inscription on the stone covering the lead-lidded pots states they contain bones from several martyrs including Hippolytus and Anastasius, and from Popes Cornelius, Callixtus, Felix and Peter.
Inscription from the church of Santa Maria in Cappella in Rome
The church of Santa Maria in Cappella, owned by the Doria Pamphilj family, is located in the Trastevere neighborhood of Rome and was consecrated on March 25, 1090.
The bone fragments dont directly challenge the millennial tradition that Saint Peter was martyred on the Vatican Hill and buried beneath the present-day Basilica bearing his name. During certain period in history, relics of important saints were regularly split up. If authentic, the relics from these early Christian saints would have been collected from various sites and placed inside the medieval altar where they have now been discovered.
Archaeologist Cristiano Mengarelli, who has studied the altar and the inscription on the pots, attested that the assortment of relics is typical in the consecration of other churches documented for this period.
Inscription from the church of Santa Maria in Cappella in Rome
The church of Santa Maria in Cappella, owned by the Doria Pamphilj family, is located in the Trastevere neighborhood of Rome and was consecrated on March 25, 1090.
The bone fragments dont directly challenge the millennial tradition that Saint Peter was martyred on the Vatican Hill and buried beneath the present-day Basilica bearing his name. During certain period in history, relics of important saints were regularly split up. If authentic, the relics from these early Christian saints would have been collected from various sites and placed inside the medieval altar where they have now been discovered.
Archaeologist Cristiano Mengarelli, who has studied the altar and the inscription on the pots, attested that the assortment of relics is typical in the consecration of other churches documented for this period.