Inside St. Peter’s Basilica near the Baldacchino, there is a staircase that allows you to descend to the Holy Vatican Grottoes.
Built below the floor of the church, but raised above the Constantinian Basilica of the fourth century, the Grottoes contain the burials of the Popes from the tenth century onwards.
The holiest place is the tomb of Peter, where the aedicule is located, built in the fourth century by Emperor Constantine, on the alleged burial of the Apostle.
Between 1590 and 1591 the Vatican Grottoes were built, but their origin is older and dates back to a design variant of 1520.
The Vatican Grottoes are arranged in three naves with cross vaults on square pillars that run for about 50 meters under the large central nave of the Basilica and have as their fulcrum the burial of the Apostle Peter.
In 1620 the Grottoes were also used to collect fragments of the many monuments that adorned the primitive Basilica.
The Grottoes took on their current appearance only in the last century, when Pius XI expressed the desire to be buried at the tomb of St. Pius X, which was located in the lower part of the room.
Under the pontificate of Pius XII, in 1939, important excavation, enlargement and enhancement works were started, with the addition of new rooms.
Among the last Popes buried in the Vatican Grottoes are Paul VI, John Paul I and Benedict XVI.
A visit to the Grottoes is a unique journey through twenty centuries of faith, history and art.
