The Cappuchin Crypt (Rome)

The Cappuchin Crypt has to be one of the most bizarre tourist attractions in Italy, if not the whole of Europe. This hasn't stopped its increasing popularity among visitors on cheap city breaks in Rome, and it is certainly a departure from the usual round of ancient ruins and renaissance palaces. It is a small and rather claustrophobic series of underground catacombs located underneath the Capuchin Church of the Immaculate Conception, located on well-to-do Via Veneto. There are six underground chapels filled with the skeletal remains of over 4,000 Capuchin friars who died between the 16th and 19th centuries.

 

Some people may find it a little grotesque and morbid, especially as it has been created by a religious order, but it is all done with no shortage of artistic flair and a little irreverence. Each of the small chapels has bones and skeletons strategically placed to form ornate decorations or hanging as light fixtures. Each one has a name such as the Crypt of the Skulls and the Crypt of the Three Skeletons, leaving you in no doubt of its contents. It is perhaps not the ideal place for family city breaks in Rome, but it is a strangely enchanting and thought provoking place.

 

It is said that the floor of the crypt is covered with earth from the Holy Land, and over the centuries members of Rome nobility have begged to be laid to rest here. Some of the skeletal displays are very intricate indeed, and these monks were not short of a sense of humour. You will see a clock made entirely out of foot and finger bones and even a full size skeleton in full grim reaper regalia. The Cappuchin Crypt has captivated visitors for over 150 years and inspired people such as Mark Twain and perhaps unsurprisingly, the Marquis de Sade, who visited in the 18th century. It certainly makes for a weird and wonderful Rome weekend break that is unlikely to be forgotten in a hurry.