Table of Contents
Manuel Bravo explains Saint Peter’s tomb while touring a Vatican project that builds a digital twin of the basilica with Microsoft and Iconem. Romans called the hill Mons Vaticanus, later used by Nero for a circus. After the fire of 64, Christians were killed there, Peter among them, and buried outside the walls in a street of house-like tombs. Constantine set the first altar over that grave and filled the cemetery in. Christians preferred a basilica, Bravo says, because temples kept crowds outdoors. Julius II later replaced the old church. Digs under the nave found the cemetery, a shrine known from the writer Gaius, and Greek graffiti read as Peter is in here. Bones of a man about sixty to seventy, wrapped in purple and gold, still carried soil from a grave in open ground. Bravo presents them as Peter’s. Above are the Confessio, wool bands for new archbishops, doors with inverted crosses, and a Greek marble altar from the Forum of Nerva. A photo model now lets visitors watch that grave become the church.
Key points
- Bravo roots the Vatican name in the old hill of seers, later the site of Nero’s circus and a roadside cemetery.
- Peter and other martyrs, in his account, were buried there after the executions that followed the fire of 64.
- Constantine placed the first altar over that grave, and Christians preferred a basilica because a temple could not hold a congregation inside.
- Excavators found a shrine, Greek pilgrim graffiti read as Peter is here, and bones of an older man wrapped in purple and gold.
- Bravo presents those bones as Peter’s and shows the Confessio, inverted crosses, and the marble altar stacked above them.
- A Microsoft and Iconem digital twin, shown in a rooftop exhibit, is how he says the public can now inspect the tomb and the building.
Short quotes
This was also the burial place for Saint Peter and the other martyrs who were executed in the circus.
Manuel Bravo, The tomb of Saint Peter explained
He places Peter’s grave in the cemetery beside the circus where the executions happened. Watch at 1:13
Roman temples were designed for housing large statues of gods and performing sacrifices outside, so they often had limited interior space.
Manuel Bravo, The tomb of Saint Peter explained
This is why, in his telling, Christians adopted the civic basilica instead of the temple plan. Watch at 3:14
When the necropolis was excavated, a small shrine was found right beneath the altar.
Manuel Bravo, The tomb of Saint Peter explained
The dig under the altar recovered the shrine later tied to the second century writer Gaius. Watch at 10:56
The backside of these doors feature two upside-down crosses, which symbolize the way that Saint Peter was crucified.
Manuel Bravo, The tomb of Saint Peter explained
The inverted crosses, he says, recall the manner of Peter’s execution. Watch at 15:03
Video by Manuel Bravo. Watch on YouTube.