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The Bones and Face of the Apostle Paul

According to the Vatican, the traditional “tomb of Paul” has been authenticated. Pope Benedict XVI announced that “tiny fragments of bone . . . belong to someone who lived in the first or second century.” “This seems to confirm the unanimous and undisputed tradition that these are the mortal remains of the Apostle St. Paul.”

The skeptical would note that a lot of people lived in the first and second centuries. However, these bones were within a tomb traditionally identified with Paul. I wouldn’t call that proof, but it seems to point in the direction of authenticity. At least, it is unlikely that somebody in the Middle Ages set this all up. CNN has a report.

Additionally, what is believed to be the earliest portrait of Paul was unveiled. The painting dates to the 4th century and shows the apostle with a thin face and a dark pointy beard. You can see for yourself here.

Previous coverage of the excavation of Paul’s tomb was mentioned here and here.

Tagged Discoveries, Excavations, Italy

Pompeii’s Dead

A new book on Pompeii by classics scholar Mary Beard of Cambridge University is considered in a travel article in the Globe and Mail. Beard believes that most of those who died were either slaves or those who intentionally chose to take their chances.

Beard argues that Pompeii’s population was smaller than previously thought, about 12,000, and that most escaped the volcanic eruption, taking the bulk of their possessions with them.
That would explain why relatively few corpses (1,100) and household effects were later found. Some citizens and slaves – half the population were slaves, many of them Jews brought from Israel after the Roman destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70 AD – must have been stranded or chosen to stay. There were, after all, remains of 21 fresh bread loaves found in Pompeii’s ovens, when excavations began in the mid-18th century.
Beard’s book is too new to have changed the way local tour guides and historians treat the Pompeii saga, but for anyone contemplating a visit to one of the world’s greatest archeological sites, it’s a useful read.

The article continues with a look at the nearby ruins of Herculaneum and the modern city of Naples.

It ends with advice that I wish someone had given me: do not even think about driving a car in Naples.

Mount Vesuvius from the south

HT: Explorator

Tagged Italy, Tourism