Vatican sarcophagi

In the Vatican Museums, one can admire a wonderful collection of early Christian sarcophagi. Most date from the fourth century CE. This was a crucial period in the history of Christianity. In the middle of the previous century Christians still suffered persecutions under the emperors Decius and Valerianus. Around the…

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The Jews of Ostia

I get the impression that very few people bother to visit the remains of Ancient Ostia’s synagogue. These are located some 300 metres outside the Porta Marina, the gate that faced the sea in Antiquity. The location feels rather isolated, and the situation was probably not very different some 2.000…

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