My sister-in-law Amy just got back from a cruise of the Mediterranean. Needless to say, jealousy oozed from every pore of my body. As I was flipping through her pictures I was reminded of just how much I love Italy. She travelled to Pompeii, which is among the most fascinating places I have ever visited, my beloved historic Rome, and many other places filled with fascinating sites and delicious food. I loved Rome, and had the opportunity to go to a place called the Capuchin Crypt. This is the MOST fascinating place I have ever been. The crypt is below the church, you are strongly encourage (basically charged a fee) to make a donation to enter the crypt. What happened is, they dug up a buried and dead order of Capuchin Monks, and decided to make a chapel out of their bones. Why not? This sounds like a totally normal thing to do right? Ummm, no. It is weird, it is wrong, maybe even morbidly grotesque, but it is fascinating. All of the decoration and design is made of human b
ones, the chandeliers, the mosaics, the alters, EVERYTHING. They have separated each of the rooms out by theme; 1st is the room of the skulls. The decor of this room is done with skulls, and is topped off with I believe 5 monks still in their brown robes, 3 in front and two laying on the sides, with leathery pieces of skin still clinging to their faces. 2nd is the pelvis room. 3rd is the leg and thigh bone. 4th and Last has the skeleton of a baby holding a reaper and scales plastered to the ceiling. At the end of my tour and trip to Italy, I had a greater appreciation of our lovely clean, bright, chapels. The Cathedrals are amazing, dark, looming, beautiful, and terrifying, but they aren't right. The feeling is obviously one of fear, where as our chapels are obviously of hope. If you happen to find yourself in Rome, don't miss out on an excursion to the capuchin crypt. Leave the crypt and then go and do a session at the new temple, you will never question your beliefs again.
My sister-in-law Amy just got back from a cruise of the Mediterranean. Needless to say, jealousy oozed from every pore of my body. As I was flipping through her pictures I was reminded of just how much I love Italy. She travelled to Pompeii, which is among the most fascinating places I have ever visited, my beloved historic Rome, and many other places filled with fascinating sites and delicious food. I loved Rome, and had the opportunity to go to a place called the Capuchin Crypt. This is the MOST fascinating place I have ever been. The crypt is below the church, you are strongly encourage (basically charged a fee) to make a donation to enter the crypt. What happened is, they dug up a buried and dead order of Capuchin Monks, and decided to make a chapel out of their bones. Why not? This sounds like a totally normal thing to do right? Ummm, no. It is weird, it is wrong, maybe even morbidly grotesque, but it is fascinating. All of the decoration and design is made of human b
ones, the chandeliers, the mosaics, the alters, EVERYTHING. They have separated each of the rooms out by theme; 1st is the room of the skulls. The decor of this room is done with skulls, and is topped off with I believe 5 monks still in their brown robes, 3 in front and two laying on the sides, with leathery pieces of skin still clinging to their faces. 2nd is the pelvis room. 3rd is the leg and thigh bone. 4th and Last has the skeleton of a baby holding a reaper and scales plastered to the ceiling. At the end of my tour and trip to Italy, I had a greater appreciation of our lovely clean, bright, chapels. The Cathedrals are amazing, dark, looming, beautiful, and terrifying, but they aren't right. The feeling is obviously one of fear, where as our chapels are obviously of hope. If you happen to find yourself in Rome, don't miss out on an excursion to the capuchin crypt. Leave the crypt and then go and do a session at the new temple, you will never question your beliefs again.
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