Catacomba di S. Pancrazio

Useful Information

Location:	Piazza S. Pancrazio, 5/D, 00152 Roma RM. (41.884923, 12.453971)
Open:	SEP to JUL Tue, Thu 9:30-12, Wed 9:30-12, 16:30-18. [2026]
Fee:	free. [2026]
Classification:	Catacomb Roman Catacombs
Light:	Electric Light
Dimension:
Guided tours:	Max=10.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Catacomba di S. Pancrazio, Piazza S. Pancrazio, 5/D - 00152 Roma RM, Tel: +39-0644208069. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

3rd century

catacomb created.

Description

Catacomba di S. Pancrazio (Catacomb of S. Pancrazio) was named after Pancras from Phrygia, who was buried within its walls. They are also called the Catacomb of Ottavilla, both names are explained by the following legend.

After his parents died, Pancras was entrusted to his uncle Dionysius at the age of 8, and the two moved to Rome. It was here that he converted to Christianity. At the age of 14, he was ordered to make a sacrifice to the Roman gods; when he refused, he was threatened with death. Diocletian, the emperor at the time, was impressed by the young Pancras and his courage in refusing to sacrifice to the gods. He offered him money and power to renounce the Christian faith, but Pancras continued to refuse. He was therefore beheaded in May 304 and his body was left on the Via Aurelia. Here, on 12 May 304, he was found by a Christian matron named Ottavilla, who buried him. She wrapped the body and the head in precious linen and buried him in the catacombs located there. Later, after the basilica had been built, his head was enshrined in the basilica, where the body rests in an urn bearing the inscription: ‘Hic decollatus fuit Sanctus Pancratius’ (‘Here Saint Pancras was beheaded’).

At this place was a pagan necropolis on the surface, active since the 1st century BC. The underground catacombs were created at the end of the 3rd century A.D. The basilica above the catacomb was built at the end of the 4th century and the beginning of the 5th century. The site has three different sections, but only one is accessible on the tours, this is only a small part and so the visit to the Catacomb is very short. The entrance is in the right nave, a trapdoor gives access to the tunnels below the square in front of the basilica. The area beneath the left aisle of the basilica, which is the oldest part of the catacombs, is not accessible as the tunnels are unsafe due to numerous landslides. The third sections is placed below the cloister and has Constantinian Christograms, which were dated to the 4th century.