Saturday, July 28th

Hello, my name is Briana Cravens. I am an undergraduate studying forensic science with a focus in biochemistry at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. 

Briana

On Saturday July 28th, Dario Piombino-Mascali took the group to the Basilica Concattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta. There we learned about how the church is directly owned by the Vatican which makes it richer and more privileged. 

The main altar

When people of the church would pass away they wanted to be buried as close as they could to the sacred relics (saint) as they could in the church. This is also referred to as Ad Sanctos or “Buried next to the Saints”. The nuns would occasionally open the bodies from the back and remove their organs. When examining the gallbladder they found three stones that they believed represented the holy trinity. Other types of preservation included anointing the body with perfumed oils, filling the body with preserved materials or excarnation. Nitrogen is very good for preserving heritage. Also, low humidity helps better preserve the body. 

The blessed Antonio Franco from Naples

Catholic remains are very important in Italy because they provide a lot of information on saints and religion. Different saints are shown with different items (symbol). I learned that each city can be represented by a saint, but often more than one city have the same saint. Also, different churches in each city and have their own saint. Three different ways to approach the study of saints: bodies, paintings, and biographies. Paintings and biographies can be bias while the bodies are not. 

The apse of the church

Keep checking on the page to see what the group is up to the rest of the week! Thank you!

Thursday, July 26, 2018

My name is Kyler Hirte and I'm studying Criminal Justice at Western Oregon University. I just finished my fourth year of school and walked in the Spring. This is my last class requirements for my degree and I could not be happier to such an amazing place studying at fascinating field. So far the people are great, the food is better, and the curriculum is captivating. 

Kyler

Today we went to the Crypt Coachman in Palermo, which is only a few blocks away from the city center. Palermo, to the outside of the church. However, once inside the church above the crypt, we were all amazed at the beauty inside the church. There was excellent artwork surrounding the pews and beautiful architecture all around. After some admiration for the church, we were led into the crypt down below.

The Coachman crypt

I noticed immediately. First of all, with Jesus in the corners.

The second thing I had been used to house all the mummies, once the embalming procedures had been finished. Later we would find out that they had to be sheltered from bombings. 

The last thing I had caught was a large hole in the middle of the room. Mummies to be laid down.

The tour guides told us that in this crypt, at least when the crypt was actively being used, that there was a hierarchy of mummy placement and that the closer the mummies were religious ladder.

The niches

Where we had walked down, we were a couple of important features. One was that there were open ossuaries in the floor that were covered only by a grate. The visible remains were mostly made up of skulls and skull. In the purgatory, pleading to Saint Mary to let the souls go to heaven. The tour guide described it as one of the most important paintings in Palermo.

The preparation room

Soon after, we went into the embalming chamber which revealed the whole reason why we were there. In the small room, it was several shelves that were used for housing people who had recently died. But they were one of the key differences, there were pipes in the shelf that led to the outside of the church above. The pipes were unique and helped the mummification process in a positive way.

Hung out and eaten at a few restaurants for lunch and dinner. 

The ossuary