page_title: Vatican Necropolis
section_title: St. Peter's Grave (Field P)
hierarchical_section_title: Vatican Necropolis / Excavations / St. Peter's Grave (Field P)
caption_attribution_description: English: Reconstruction of the area around the tomb of Saint Peter Red = "Trophy of Gaius" and Red Wall Blue = Pre-Constantinian tombs Grey = Field P Green = The apse of the old basilica Deutsch: Rekonstruktion des Gebiets um das Grab des Apostel Petrus Rot = "Trophy of Gaius" und Rote Wand Blau = Römische Gräber aus der Zeit vor Konstantin I. Grau = Feld P Grün = Apsis von Alt. St. Peter
context_page_description: The Vatican Necropolis lies under the Vatican City, at depths varying between 5–12 metres below Saint Peter's Basilica. The Vatican sponsored archeological excavations under Saint Peter's in the years 1940–1949 which revealed parts of a necropolis dating to Imperial times. The work was undertaken at the request of Pope Pius XI who wished to be buried as close as possible to Peter the Apostle. It is also home to the Tomb of the Julii, which has been dated to the third or fourth century. The necropolis was not originally one of the Catacombs of Rome, but an open air cemetery with tombs and mausolea.
  The Vatican Necropolis is not to be confused with the Vatican grottoes, the latter of which resulted from the construction of St. Peter's Church and is located on the ground level of the old Constantinian basilica.
context_section_description: The field named P (Peter Campus) is the small area in which the suspected grave of the Apostle Peter is located. Peter was, according to tradition, after his martyrdom in the Circus Nero, buried here. Some 100 years after the death of Peter, a shrine was erected over his grave. This shrine is adjacent to the so-called Red Wall. Immediately adjacent to the suspected Peter grave, some other tombs were found. The arrangement of the graves suggests that the place of Peter's tomb was the site of some early veneration. The shrine, also called the "Trophy of Gaius", is named for the theologian Gaius of Rome who lived in Rome during the time of Pope Zephyrinus (198-217 CE). Consider this quote from Eusebius of Caesarea:
   I can show the tropaia of the apostles.  Because if you want to go to the Vatican or on the road to Ostia, you'll find the tropaia of those who founded this church.
  The Greek term used by Gaius—tropaion—usually means a monument or a trophy of victory. Eusebius interpreted the quote 100 years later as an indication of honorific graves. On the right side of the "Trophy of Gaius" is attached at right angles, the so-called Graffiti Wall, named after the large number of Latin graffiti to be found there. During the excavations in the grave the mortal remains of the Apostle Peter were not found.  There were, however, in a marble-lined hole of the graffiti wall, some human bones.  The archaeologist Margherita Guarducci suggested that during the time of construction of the Constantinian basilica, the remains of the Apostle Peter were removed from his original grave and placed in the opening. The archaeologist pointed to inscriptions in the wall behind the pillar monument including the letters PETR… EN I, as the designation of Peter relics. Other archaeological sites in Rome also have similar graffiti, suggesting that therein is a commemoration (by Christians) to Peter and Paul as martyrs. 
  Following the discovery and subsequent scientific study of these bones, on June 26, 1968 Pope Paul VI claimed that the relics of Saint Peter had been identified in a manner considered convincing.
caption: A reconstruction of the area around the grave of the Apostle Peter.
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "CanoScan LiDE 210", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "1200", "Image YResolution": "1200", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Paint.NET v3.36", "Image DateTime": "2011:11:27 17:05:12", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "222", "Image WhiteBalance": "Auto", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "1200", "Thumbnail YResolution": "1200", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "450", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "14356", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2011:11:27 17:05:12", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "5795", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "6003", "EXIF FileSource": "Reflection Print Scanner"}