Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter

The Catacombs of Marcellinus and Peter are found approximately three kilometers from southeast Rome and the ancient Via Labicana, and date to the 4th century AD.

A few of the images are Moses striking water from a rock, Orpheus/King David playing a lyre, the raising of Lazarus, and Daniel in the lion's den.

Also found within the catacomb of Marcellinus and Peter was a gold glass disk fragment depicting controversial[clarification needed] Jewish and Christian imagery.

The representation of Jonah is unique and stems from two different sources of inspiration: Roman pagan art which influenced the "gestures and visual formulae" and Jewish midrashic origins that played a role in the development of the non-biblical story behind the depicted episodes.

In this scene, Jonah is depicted as naked and is commonly interpreted as symbolic of the sailors throwing all unnecessary cargo overboard in an attempt to keep the ship from sinking in the storm.

The overall agreed conclusion is that the thermal history within catacombs are highly favorable for bone preservation, even more so than that of skeletons exposed to open-air environments.

Bones found in smaller chambers of the catacombs are also affected by diagenesis (the conversion of sediment to sedimentary rock that results in a chemical or physical change) due to the confined space.

During the excavation process, several mass graves dating from the first and third century AD were discovered in the previously unknown funerary space.