The Lost Catacomb (4 page)
Bruno
and Nicola now left the caf
é
and made their way towards the Apostolic Palace, the official residence
of the Pope.
The complex was
shielded from view by the basilica of San Pietro and the immense piazza that
fronted it, with its baroque fountains, towering Egyptian obelisk at the center,
and two symmetric colonnades of Doric pillars designed by Bernini that embraced
the elliptical perimeter of the space.
As
they approached the entrance to the Apostolic Palace, Bruno and Nicola were
stopped by a group of Swiss Guards, who were traditionally entrusted with the
protection of the Pope and other key Vatican personalities.
Dressed in broadly striped uniforms,
with white ruffs at the neck, chest armor, plumed halberds and swords, they
came from a long tradition of Swiss mercenaries who had protected Italian
princes during the 15
th
and 16
th
centuries.
And, in fact, all of them actually were
Swiss citizens.
Their
anachronistic attire
—
whose
colors reproduced those of the once powerful Medici family
—
was somewhat
misleading, however, since the Guards were also equipped with mace,
well-trained in karate, and did weekly target practice at the Italian police
force's rifle range at Tor di Quinto
.
The Vatican's
Vigilanza
, in contrast, carried out more covert
work for the Holy See.
Comprised,
for the most part, of former
carabinieri
, it tapped phone lines within
the Vatican and was empowered to arrest and detain people for trial in the
Church's penal court system.
One
of the Guards pointed Bruno and Nicola in the direction of the Cardinal
’
s office, and they made
their way, unaccompanied, down a broad corridor lined with elaborately framed
paintings and marble statuary.
Some
of the building was taken up by the papal apartments and public areas
designated for the entertainment of foreign and other dignitaries.
The Secretariat of State, known several
centuries earlier as the Holy Inquisition, was located on top of the southwest
wing, while Cardinal Rostoni's suite of offices was situated in the northeast
corner.
The
door was open and emblazoned with a gleaming bronze plaque in large Gothic
letters
—“
Administrative
Offices,
Musei Vaticani
and
Pontificia Commissione di Archeologia
Sacra
.
”
The Cardinal
’
s assistant, a
nondescript bespectacled male of indeterminate age in a plain black cassock,
asked them to be seated.
He knocked
on one of the inner office doors, and a distinguished looking man of about
forty-five, with the studious aspect of a scholar, emerged and introduced
himself as Father Francesco Benedetto, chief curator of the Secret Archives of
the Vatican.
While,
officially speaking, the Archives were considered to be headed by the Pope
himself, in reality, the daily administrative tasks were left to highly trained
curators such as Father Benedetto.
He shook their hands graciously and explained that he was to be the
liaison between them and Cardinal Rostoni, and an informal advisor should they
require access to any of the archival holdings.
Speaking
in lightly accented English
—
for
her benefit, Nicola supposed
—
rather
than in the expected Italian, Father Benedetto told them that after their
meeting with the Cardinal he would be happy to escort them to the Secret
Archives and provide them with a brief orientation of its vast network of
fire-proof, climate-controlled rooms.
The Archives, he noted, extended under the
Cortile della Pigna
,
the courtyard where the famous giant pine comb sculpture rested on an immense
stone capital, flanked by two graceful bronze peacocks.
“
As you undoubtedly
know,
”
Father
Benedetto continued,
“
the
Archivo Segreto
houses carefully catalogued sketches and photographs of
excavations and restoration work carried out in the various catacombs in Rome
over the past century or so under the auspices of the Vatican.
You may wish to have a look at them, in
fact, as your work progresses, since most have never been reproduced in
monographs or other research publications.
“
And of course,
”
he added, now
gesturing towards another door,
“
I've
arranged for each of you to receive a
tessera
, that is, a photo ID that
will give you access to the Archives even if I
’
m not there.
”
Nicola
and Bruno followed him into a room of impressive dimensions, with exceptionally
large, mullioned windows on one side, framed by heavy velvet drapes that were
tied back with satin rope cording, offering an expansive view of the Vatican
gardens.
The windowsills themselves
were deep and filled with a few choice horticultural specimens, evidently of a
variety that thrived in bright sunlight.
As
the Cardinal rose from his desk to greet them, he seemed to blanch momentarily
and put a hand on the back of his chair, as if to steady himself.
But then, quickly recovering his
composure, he welcomed Nicola and Bruno cordially, thanking them for agreeing
to assist in the resolution of the catacomb dispute.
He was a tall, thin man, with a sallow
complexion, an aquiline nose and high cheekbones, slightly stooped, but
physically imposing despite his age.
Dressed
in a regal black cassock with red trim and a wide, tasseled red sash, he exuded
authority and a sense of quietly restrained vigor.
A red skullcap or
zucchetto
covered
his thinning, slicked back hair, which was so dark as to arouse Nicola
’
s suspicions about
whether or not its color had come out of a bottle.
She knew that he had to be at least in
his early 80
’
s,
based on what Bruno had told her about his background, but somehow he seemed
much younger than that.
As he
shifted to move back towards his desk, motioning to them and Father Benedetto
to be seated, the sunlight suddenly streamed more intensely through the
windows, gleaming strangely on the large cabochon ruby at the center of his
gold pectoral cross.
For a
moment, Nicola thought the sunlight changed his appearance, somehow making his
skin more transparent and his facial bone structure almost frighteningly
cadaverous.
She shuddered
involuntarily, turning away from the dazzling reflection of light, and decided
that it was only her overactive imagination, fueled by nervous tension.
As he
sat down behind his carved mahogany desk, Rostoni regarded her and Bruno
intently with piercing dark eyes.
“
Professoressa Page,
Professore Recanati,
”
he
finally began,
“
please
make yourselves comfortable.
I
’
d like to lay out our
expectations here at the Vatican before you begin your work.
”
Nicola
shifted uneasily in her seat, and Bruno nudged her elbow surreptitiously.
“
First of all, we do not
expect you to hold to a specific timetable for completion of your assessment,
though we do expect a formal, well-documented report at the end of your examination
of all the relevant data.
And
obviously,
”
he
said with a note of barely concealed aversion,
“
you'll need to submit a copy of your report to the
Marchesa's attorneys as well.
”
“
Of course, Your
Eminence,
”
Bruno
answered for both of them, as Nicola nodded in assent.
“
As you know,
”
Rostoni continued,
“
the authority of the
Holy See and its .
.
.
how shall we say?
.
.
.
responsibilities for the
new catacomb at the Vigna Randanini have been challenged.
This has led to some legal
entanglements,
”
he
said euphemistically,
“
though
at the moment it is unclear just who has the authority to decide the issue
—
the Italian court
system or that of Holy Mother Church.
We at the Commission for Sacred Archaeology are prepared to recognize
only the authority of our own ecclesiastical courts, though the Marchesa
’
s family has brought
the matter to the secular judicial system.
“
Since a restraining
order from the Italian courts has been placed on the new
hypogeum
,
restricting entry as well as the removal of any artifacts that have been found
there, only you two, as disinterested parties acceptable to both sides, will be
allowed access to the area.
The
Marchesa
’
s family
has agreed in writing,
”
he
continued, waving aloft a cream-colored document with a gold crest along the
top,
“
to allow you
to spend as much time as necessary to evaluate all evidence and ensure a fair
resolution of our conflicting ownership claims.
“
A pity, but the
Marchesa's family has apparently been worried about tomb raiding and has
photographed the site thoroughly.
The deleterious influence, no doubt, of certain misconceptions bred by
recent popular films,
”
he
added with obvious distaste.
Without
waiting for them to respond to his apparent reference to Indiana Jones and Lara
Croft, he went on.
“
It
is critical for us to learn if the new burial chamber houses the bones of any
saints or martyrs, or whether the crypt is in fact an underground chapel.
Your analysis of the fresco art and
inscriptions should provide all of the necessary information.
From a legal point of view, the presence
of a chapel dedicated to the worship of a specific saint or martyr
—
or evidence of
primarily Christian tombs
—
would
strengthen our position tremendously.
”
Nicola
listened carefully, recalling that by the 5
th
and 6
th
centuries, catacombs were used mostly for devotional purposes, as underground
sanctuaries or basilicas, and not for interment of the dead.
Hence, accurate dating of the
hypogeum
would be critical in determining its precise provenance and legal status.
“
Of course,
”
Rostoni observed,
“
a further issue
involves ownership of the artifacts found at the site.
The artifacts themselves are treasures
of incalculable worth, both in terms of their intrinsic monetary value, as well
as their historical significance.
They will either find their final resting place in the private
collection of the Marchesa, or they will become part of the Vatican Museums
’
holdings.
It should be obvious that the latter is
our natural preference,
”
he
added dryly.
“
And now,
”
the Cardinal suggested,
“
perhaps some
refreshment is in order before we go on.
”
He
paused and pressed an intercom buzzer on his desk.
“
Giampaolo,
would you please bring us some mineral water?
Four glasses,
grazie
.
”
The
mousy-looking secretary entered quickly with a large silver tray and what
appeared to be a Waterford crystal pitcher with matching tumblers.
The Cardinal took several sips from his
glass and continued.
“
By the way, I should
mention that there has been a bit of agreed-upon, minor reconstruction
undertaken to stabilize the actual entrance to the crypt, to ensure that
there's no imminent danger of collapse.
”
Nicola's
eyes widened at this, and she glanced quickly at Bruno, barely restraining
herself from poking his arm with her elbow. The Cardinal, however, seemed not
to notice, and added,
“
It's
fortunate that almost no intrusive restoration work needs to be carried out in
the crypt itself.
Everything
appears to be in pristine order, I'm told.
Perhaps, at most, some cleaning of dusty surfaces with brushes or very
mild agents may be necessary so that all the details in the frescoes can be
clearly seen.
Everything has been
left intact, including the sarcophagi and marble plaques.
”
