Sculpture of the Dead at Palais des Papes
When I visited Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome, I remember that there was a part which has a lot of the former popes buried. This seems to be a tradition when it comes to popes. Even in cathedrals, there would be priests or bishops buried in the more important cathedrals. Perhaps they wish to be nearer God when are buried. This was also practiced by the lay as there would also be normal folk buried in these places. By normal folk, I would be talking about people who are not part of the clergy, but they are most probably rich and important people in the community.
Tomb of a Pope at the Palais des Papes
The Palais des Papes, being the residence and place of work of seven popes would also have places like these. I happen to run into one of these places and I wasn’t really surprised to see these things anymore. A typical tomb would be carved of marble and have carvings all around it. While the carvings aren’t anything special, what probably stands out most is the present of a sculpture of the one actually buried in the tomb. They would typically be carved lying down in prayer. If he was a priest or even a pope, they would be dressed in their habit. This always creeped me out, but it seemed to be practice that was done back then. I’m glad that is not something done these days.
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