Cripta dei Cappuccini

After spending the morning in Vatican City, and hoofing it through the Piazza Navona en route to the Pantheon, it was only 4pm so we decided to hop on the Metro to the Capuchin Crypt, which turned out to be the most unique attraction we saw while in Rome. I was surprised there were so few others there. It includes a small museum with artifacts and historical descriptions, and culminates in different rooms each housing a different arrangement of bones. There are 3,700 total bones from the friars of the order. There are unfortunately no photos allowed, but for only 7 or 8 euro, it’s well worth it. Prepare to be wowed.

Or in English, the Chapel of our Lady of the Conception of the Capuchins. This is in Rome Italy. OK this is not for the faint of heart. But if you want to see something different this is a good one. The other one is the old Basilica di San Clemente which takes you underground and back in time. (And I also thoroughly enjoyed the Agora meat and fish market in Athens… but I digress!) The Chapel of Cappuccini is an exercise in human bone artistry. Virtually everything is made of bones including altars, archways and chandeliers. Even entire children’s skeletons are displayed. The macabre part is how they treat the human bones as a medium for the artwork. The chapel is near a metro stop, but still hard to find as you have to know it’s the building with the 2 sets of stairs, which you must go up, and it has odd hours, I think 9 to 12 and 3 to 6. It is a small chapel with maybe 5 to 6 rooms and you are restricted to a narrow hallway so it can be a little tight but it only takes a few minutes to go through. And yes it is a chapel so you must take your hat off.