Mummies On Display - In Churches No Less
The tourist to Italy is apt to find a surprising number of opportunities to gawk at mummies displayed in glass cases or in underground caverns--with flesh, hair and even clothing intact. The mummies of Farentillo (Umbria) or in Urbania (Le Marche) are displayed in churches, and date from the 16th century or so. Often, the mummy's history is known and scientists have studied them down to the microbiota of the gastrointestinal tract. Yes, scientists lust after desicated old bodies for the opportunity to study ancient disease, attempted cures, and nutrition. Museum guides can help you understand the process. In short, mummies make a fascinating, if gruesome peek into the past. Plus, they can scare the heck outta the kids.
Napoleon Unintentionally Brings Mummies to Light
Most of the discovery of natural mummies under churches was an unintended consequence of the Napoleonic Edict of Saint-Cloud handed down in 1804, which forbade burial in churches and within settlements for hygenic reasons. Churches, like those at Ferentillo and Urbania, began to move their internal cemeteries to new ones outside city limits. Excavators found (no doubt to their horror) that corpses buried below or within these churches did not decay as one might expect--the bodies still contained flesh and hair. In both cases, scientists later discovered a particular fluid-absorbing mold or fungus in the soil that preserved the bodies through desication before bacterial decay could set in.
Monumental Cemetery Architecture - A Result of the Edict of Saint-Cloud
With the new regulations in place, a Renaissance in cemetery planning and architecture took place. For example, Cimitero Monumentale in Milan, all 250,000 square meters of it, is a popular tourist attraction.Churches and Intentional Mummification, Oh My!
Over the years, churches have played a large part in intentional mummification, a practice which ended in the late 1800s when a law was passed that made it illegal.
In Sicily, mummification can occur when bodies were simply subjected to the dryness of Sicilian air. At the Catacombe dei Cappuccini in Palermo, Sicily, the bodies are preserved through a natural process, as at Farentillo and Urbania (visiting information below).
Some churches helped this process along:
Up until the past century, after the death of an important personage, the body was placed and left for several months in the vault of a church, probably in a seated position, with the cadaveric sewage collected in large stone or pottery vases named "cantarelle". Even today, in Naples, the expression "drain off!" is an omen of death still addressed to people (Fornaciari 1984a; 1986). After a few months the body, still flexible but no longer draining, was laid horizontally in special tubs covered with volcanic soil, rich in minerals, which completed the dehydration and mummification processes. The corpse, by then completely desiccated and mummified, was dressed and positioned in its coffin (Fornaciari and Gamba 1993). ~ Italian Mummies
Otsi - Mummification in the Cold Alpine Air
Perhaps the most famous mummy in Italy is Otsi, the hunter found buried in the Italian alps after some foul play.
Where to See Mummies in Italy
The Mummies of Ferentillo (Umbria) - Of the two fungus-induced mummy museums, the one below Santo Stefano church in Ferentillo is perhaps the most interesting. If you know a bit of Italian, you can find out about the mummies, about scientific research done on the mummies and the soil in the cemetery, and about the general health of the mummies and the circumstances surrounding their deaths. The mummies here are also in a better state of preservation than the ones in the Church of the Dead.
The Church of the Dead (Urbania, Le Marche) - A display of 18 mummified corpses are displayed behind the altar of the Church of the Dead, known as the Capella Cola until the discovery of the mummies in 1836. Closed Mondays and November 2. Seasonal guided visits.
Catacombe dei Cappuccini (Palermo, Sicily) - More than 8000 mummified bodies line the walls and corridors of the catacombs. 1 Piazza Cappuccini, Palermo. Daily 9am-12pm & 1pm-5pm - Sundays only by reservation.
For more on visiting Italian Catacombs, see Catacombs in Italy.
Otzi The Iceman - A mummy from around 3300 BC, found in the alps in 1991, on display at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, Italy.
