Our day started with a tour of the Catacombs of San Gennaro. These started in the early second century as a pagan burial grounds. By the third century they were used by the Christians. Located in east-to-cut tufa rock, the catacombs came to have the same basic shape as the early Christian churches in Rome -a wide central aisle and two lateral aisles.
By the sixth century an upper level had been added. Poor people were buried in the ground, middle class people in the walls, and wealthy families in niches decorated with pictures.
A final use came in the early eighth century. Naples was ruled at this time by a Duke who, like his predecessors, was heavily influenced by (under the control of?) Byzantium and the Eastern Roman Empire. The local Bishop didn’t agree with Byzantine religious practices, so he used the Catacombs, located outside the city walls, for services. His baptismal font, dug into the tufa, still remains - large enough for full immersion as was the practice at that time.
We then took a long walk through several parts of the city, mostly just a bit scruffy - very “lived-in”. As it is Saturday, there are lots of people around, especially in the evening when the streets are jammed with people, walking, eating and always, always talking!
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