Catacomb is a term that refers to peculiarly grouped rooms located underground and looking like a branched chain. They can be of either artificial or natural origin.
What were the catacombs used for?
Most often, the catacomb is the creation of human hands. They are also called quarries.
In ancient times, these long narrow corridors played the role of rooms for burials or religious rites. Using the lateral passages of the crypt, pagans, Saracens, Jews and Christians buried the dead there. To do this, they laid the body in a niche prepared in the wall, and covered it with slabs of marble or tile. From the inscription on the wall it was possible to find out who is in this burial.
The first Christians used them as a refuge, hiding from persecution and persecution. Subsequently, these places became popular with pilgrims from all over the world.
The origin of the oldest known quarries dates from the beginning of the second century. The investigated catacomb is "Time machine", revealing to us the traditions and cultural heritage of antiquity. It is from the artifacts discovered here that historians and archaeologists can gain knowledge about the era of the decline of Rome, learn about the first martyrs and saints of Christian teaching, admire the oldest frescoes and mosaics, read ancient inscriptions, and also explore the attributes used during the ancient rites.
The famous catacombs in world history
The catacomb is the unexplored secrets of the ancients. Among the most famous catacombs in the world, it should be noted the Roman, Maltese, Suskie (Tunisia), Znojmovskie (Czech Republic) catacombs, as well as Kom el-Shukaf, located in Egypt.
I especially want to note the catacombs of Paris, because these winding caves have a length of up to 300 kilometers.
About 6 million people rest in this place. The Parisians, building their city, took stones from here, and over time they turned a huge quarry into a large cemetery.
Modern tourists have the opportunity, while traveling, to plunge into the ancient world of history and try to unravel the secrets of our ancestors by visiting the most mysterious places on our planet - the catacombs.