Mummies from Palermo. DARIO PIOMBINO-MASCALI, ARTHUR C. AUFDERHEIDE, STEPHANIE PANZER AND ALBERT R. ZINK. 1 The X-ray investigation.
Mummies from Palermo DARIO PIOMBINO-MASCALI, ARTHUR C. AUFDERHEIDE, STEPHANIE PANZER AND ALBERT R. ZINK
1 The X-ray investigation of little Rosalia Lombardo, a two-year-old child embalmed by Professor Alfredo Salafia in 1920. The examination revealed a remarkable preservation of some internal organs, including brain and liver. Portable radiographic devise provided by SEDECAL, Madrid, Spain and CANON Europe.
Capuchin friars settled in Palermo, Sicily, in 1534. This
a finding considered to be a direct intervention of God.
emerging order longed to return to the primitive
On that occasion, it was decided that those corpses
lifestyle in solitude and penance as practiced by St
should be stored in another burial, for which excava-
Francis, and was given permission to build its convent
tions had already commenced. Historical sources indi-
next to the pre-existing church of Santa Maria della
cate that, in 1599, 40 out of those 45 mummies were
Pace, just outside the town (Farella, 1982; Di Cristina
transferred to a new room created behind the main
et al., 2007).
altar (Farella, 1982).
Like their Franciscan and Camaldolese counter-
By 1601, due to the increased number of friars who
parts, the Capuchins worshipped their dead, who con-
were living and dying in Palermo, an additional room
tinued to be present in daily life through prayers and
and a chapel were also created, and by 1619 the first
commemorations (Farella, 1975). At that time, the bod-
corridor was formed, initiating the process of creation
ies of deceased friars were disposed of by putting
of a burial place reserved for the friars, later known as
them in a large pit dug close to the church. In fact,
the Capuchin Catacombs. Literary evidence also
according to the Capuchin founding regulations of
revealed that around 1680 that corridor reached the
1536—namely the Constitutions of St Eufemia—no bur-
area beneath the main altar, incorporating the very first
ial was permitted inside the churches belonging to that
burial where the early mummified friars were placed.
order (Farella, 1982).
During the 16th century, noblemen supporters of the frith
At the end of the 16 century a casual exhumation of
ars also began to be admitted in the site. That place of
one such burial revealed forty-five preserved cadavers,
burial became so common that by 1732 it nearly reached the present size, and consisted of four corridors creating a four-sided setting. In fact, requests for burial increased so much that by 1787 the subterranean cemetery was opened to whomever requested admittance (Farella, 1982; Di Cristina et al., 2007). After 1823 this huge and extraordinary burial place was completed, and the following works were only for ordinary repairs. It is important to note that, for the great number of people willing to spend eternity in this sacred cemetery, burial there was at a premium; the well-off were mummified or buried in the holy ground of the place under a marble tombstone, while the populace was placed in simple pits or in common graves located in an outside area (Farella, 1982). Today, access to this unique burial place is located on the main square, between the Communal Cemetery and the Convent gates. Over eighteen hundred bodies, many of which still retain soft tissue, are displayed along the sides of the corridors. Many of them are stored in wall niches or shelves while others lie in
358 | DARIO PIOMBINO-MASCALI, ARTHUR C. AUFDERHEIDE, STEPHANIE PANZER AND ALBERT R. ZINK
wooden coffins, some of which were finely carved. Over time, bodies were grouped according to sex, age, and occupation, so that eventually five different areas for the friars, priests, men, women, and even professionals, were created, including a special repository for chil-
MUMMIES FROM PALERMO | 359
mechanisms most likely involved include the dryness of
2 Three clothed bodies in an upright position, hung in one of the Capuchin Catacombs’ corridors. Remnants of soft tissue are clearly visible on the first two from the left.
the chambers, carved into the tophus; a cool, but not frigid temperature which—at least in the winter—may have retarded tissue degradation; and, to some extent, ventilation provided during the exposure to the open air
dren. Almost all the mummies are clothed—some with
in a nearby area covered by a shelter (Aufderheide and
precious materials—and wear hats, shoes or even
Aufderheide, 1991; Aufderheide, 2003).
gloves. Crowns of thorns or ropes around the neck,
From an anthropological perspective, this particular
which served as symbols of penitence, are still visible
treatment of the dead appears to be consistent with the
on some of the friars’ bodies.
secondary disposal, first analyzed by Robert Hertz in
During a visit to the underground world of mummies,
his landmark study on “The collective representation of
any tourist may wonder why such a practice took place
Death” (1978). During his attempt to discover some
4 A remarkably well-preserved anthropogenic mummy from Palermo, tentatively dated to the 19th century. The embalming technique employed for his preservation included a T-shaped abdominal incision aimed at removing the internal organs, stuffing of the cavity and arterial embalming through injection from the right carotid artery. Note the use of glass eyecaps onto the stuffed orbits.
in Palermo. In fact, the Palermo Catacombs are not one of a kind: many of Sicily and Southern Italy’s churches and convents hold mummified corpses. Historical and archaeological evidence shows that during the Modern Era, this treatment of the dead was practiced quite frequently. It was originally reserved for the clergy, and later extended to the nobility and the bourgeoisie, who were eager to have their bodies permanently displayed. Supposedly, this treatment was aimed at reinforcing
general rules of human attitudes towards death, Hertz developed the idea that funerary rituals rose as a challenge aimed at transforming the negative aspect of death into something positive and transcendental. The French anthropologist argued that within a society, the death of an individual provided a shock to the collective consciousness and initiated a period of transition for both the living and the departed. The end of life represented a rite of passage for the deceased who entered a liminal state, which, among the living, was paralleled by the time between death and the initial disposal of the body and the secondary, final disposal. The
3 A friar’s mummy, still in an excellent state of preservation. Note the facial features, still identifiable, and the hair and beard.
these elites’ social personae and perpetuating their
change of status necessary to place the deceased in his,
memories.
or her, correct supernatural dimension only occurred
Shortly after death, bodies were taken to special
following a specific treatment, according to which
preparation rooms, and laid on storage places in the
corpses were in some manner disposed of shortly after
form of wall niches, stone seats, or grids conceived to
death and later, at a culturally sanctioned time, they
allow draining of the body fluids and promote sponta-
were retrieved and moved to a permanent place. Fur-
neous desiccation of the cadavers. In the case of
thermore, he argued that the journey of the soul to the
Palermo, one such chamber is still visible along the Pro-
Hereafter was mirrored by the transformation of the
fessionals’ corridor. This cell is a rectangular room with
body into clean bones, and that only after the decaying
a vaulted, stone-lined ceiling. A low wall, extending
process was over the soul was admitted to the land of
round three sides of the room and paralleling the
the dead: an advent represented by the secondary, final
related walls, is topped by horizontal terracotta tubes,
disposal and followed by a final ceremony.
slightly spaced along the length of the room walls.
Although Hertz based his conclusions on ethno-
Unclothed bodies were laid supine on the tubes to allow
graphic observations, mainly describing primitive popu-
oozing of the corporeal liquids into the space between
lations of Borneo, a body of historical, archaeological
the two walls. The cell was then sealed for a period of
and anthropological evidence supports the fact that
about a year (Pari, 1870; Farella, 1982; Aufderheide
some mortuary treatments following his model were
2003). After this time lapse, when dehydration was at
also practiced within the hearth of Catholic Europe, sug-
an advanced stage, bodies were exposed to the air,
gesting the existence of an archaic representation of
washed with vinegar, clothed and finally left exposed or
death that has now almost disappeared (Pezzini, 2006).
coffined. In case the process was not effective and
It should be noted that, at least initially, the aim of
skeletonization occurred, straw or tow could be stuffed
the draining structures found in Italian crypts and
into the areas of soft tissue loss.
chapels was not mummification per se, but may have
As of today, no experimental study has been carried
been an attempt to speed up the decay of the bodies
out to duplicate the effectiveness of this process, but the
and reach the ‘dry and pure’ status, that Hertz postu-
360 | DARIO PIOMBINO-MASCALI, ARTHUR C. AUFDERHEIDE, STEPHANIE PANZER AND ALBERT R. ZINK
MUMMIES FROM PALERMO | 361
who devised a new method of permanent preservation of tissues for dissection and funeral preparation, said to contain non-poisonous chemicals (Piombino-Mascali and Johnson Williams, 2009). The bodies of the American Vice-Consul Giovanni Paterniti (1911), Ernesto Salafia, a well-renowned fencing master (1914) and brother to the embalmer, and little Rosalia Lombardo (1920), also known as the “Sleeping Beauty” because of her remarkable preservation status, were preserved in this way. The ingredients upon which he relied—always kept secret—were recently identified: a mixture of formalin, glycerine, zinc salts, alcohol and salicylic acid (Piombino-Mascali et al., 2009). Interestingly, the major5 The mummified body of Antonino Prestigiacomo (1844) hung in the men’s corridor. This corpse, anthropogenically treated, was likely embalmed with an injection of arsenic and mercury, preservatives, popular during the 19th century.
ity of the chemicals, with the exception of the zinc, is still
living conditions; modern biotechniques, such as the
widely used in cadaver preparation, something that
identification and amplifications of ancient pathogens’
makes Salafia a forerunner of modern embalming. It is
DNA shall provide significant biomedical data, even
also known that the chemist used paraffin wax injections
useful for modern-day medicine; and finally, the envi-
to keep the deceased’s facial features lifelike and plump,
ronmental monitoring of the crypt shall guarantee
dating back the origins of modern restorative art of
future preservation strategies for this fascinating mor-
some ten years (Piombino-Mascali, 2009).
tuary site, so important for Sicilian history.
Today, the Catacombs are one of the most visited Palermo museums, run by a number of friars who allow tourists in for a small fee. Even an untrained eye, however, could recognize the precarious condition of their
lates. In fact, some mummies were originally produced
mercury solutions, which were never prohibited by Ital-
because specific environmental conditions existed,
ian law despite their poisonous properties (Di Colo,
historical residents, currently in extreme danger as a
without human intervention.
1910). Furthermore, cinnabar and red lead were often
result of several unfortunate events including fires,
Spontaneous desiccation, however, can by no means
used to color the embalming solutions and give the
flooding, and heavy bombing of Palermo during World
be considered the only method to preserve human
deceased a lifelike appearance. Additionally, the use of
War II, worsened by the uncontrolled growth and build-
bodies. During epidemics, corpses were also dipped in
glass eyes and cosmetics was not uncommon. A num-
ing activities that afflicted Palermo in the 1960s,
lime, a chemical conducive to the mummification
ber of mummies held in the Catacombs that were
together with increased urbanization and car traffic.
process (Farella, 1982). Additionally, medical treatises
recently inspected shows traits that were, in fact, con-
These issues—accompanied by the lack of proper cura-
indicate that, by the early 19th century, novel and more
sistent with this information (Piombino-Mascali, 2009).
tion and interest by the local authorities—have perma-
elaborate methods of preservations were devised, com-
Although the 19th century saw the highest peak of
nently damaged much of this unique historical heritage,
prising evisceration, immersion and arterial injection
utilization of this remarkable mortuary site, that century
progressively affecting the soundness and stability of
(Marinozzi and Fornaciari, 2005). Local scientists
saw the end of the practice of burial inside the Cata-
the structure, and leading to a gradual deterioration of
involved in such experimental activities include physi-
combs. In fact, shortly after the National Unification
the mummies. Major conservation issues that were
cians Placido Bugliarelli, Giambattista Gallo, Giovanni
(1861), the custom of ‘draining’ the dead was no longer
identified include increased humidity levels, tempera-
Gorgone, Filippo Parlatore, Gioacchino Romeo, and,
permitted, due to the establishment of a modern, ratio-
ture fluctuations and acidic formations.
most notably, Giuseppe Tranchina, who in the early
nalistic awareness of hygiene. New graveyards had
1830s set up a method of embalming which relied solely
been founded, and burials outside of them was no
on an injection into the carotid artery, thus rendering
longer accepted. The Capuchin Catacombs, brought
the removal of internal organs useless and obsolete
under municipal control, continued to be used for
(Gorgone, no date; Solina, 1835, Tranchina, 1836; Piom-
another seventy years, but as a ‘temporary’ deposit to
bino-Mascali and Mallegni, 2008). His technique was
store coffins before final interment in a cemetery. As of
used for the preparation of notable figures such as
today, the most recent identified coffin lying in one of
Prince Corrado Valguarnera di Niscemi (1833), Cardinal
the corridors is that belonging to Giovanni Licata di
Giacinto Placido Zurla (1834) and Queen Maria Cristina
Baucina, Count of Isnello, who died in 1939.
di Savoia (1836). During this period the ingredients
Among the last entombments in the Catacombs are
employed for body preservation were mainly arsenic or
corpses treated by Alfredo Salafia, a local taxidermist
Only recently has the value of human remains and 6 An astonishing image of Giuseppe Barbara (1879), a young adult male who was possibly treated with lime.
their associated artifacts been drawn to the attention of the local institutions, and projects have been planned to carry out a complete study and conservation of this important biocultural source of heritage. Specifically,
7 A child resting in the women’s corridor. The amazing preservation of this case is due to a specific embalming process, of which the details are still unknown. Note the use of artificial eyes.
the latter shall include a thorough historical, anthropological and archival research, necessary for a deeper understanding of these once living Sicilians’ identity and their social and emotional responses to death; a bioarchaeological and paleopathological investigation shall focus on reconstructing their lifestyle, habits and
