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International Catacomb Society

@catacombsociety.bsky.social
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Bridging Disciplines • Supporting Scholarship • Connecting the Public at catacombsociety.org.

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Arthur Urbano 🌍📷🏛️🛫🇮🇹🤌😷 @arturoviaggia.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Gosh, I'm reading the final reports on these projects and the way they both incorporate technologies like LiDAR, 3D imaging and photogrammetry to map spaces in Pompeii and Malta is AMAZING! You should come hear! (More info on the projects in the reposted thread.)
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
TODAY! Starts in just under an hour. Join us!
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Arthur Urbano 🌍📷🏛️🛫🇮🇹🤌😷 @arturoviaggia.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Join us TOMORROW for the annual panel ft. recent recipients of the @catacombsociety.bsky.social Shohet Grant! Here's a video of last year's panel featuring Gregg Gardner, Shana O'Connell, and Alex Walthall (who joined us from Morgantina!) youtu.be/TbS3V3RNwRQ?... #archaeology #AncientBluesky
youtu.be
Shohet Scholars Annual Report (Gregg Gardner, Alex Walthall, Shana O'Connell), Aug. 5, 2025 12:30 PM
YouTube video by International Catacomb Society
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Tomorrow, Sept 16th at 1pm! Register here: zoom.us/meeting/regi...
zoom.us
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Annual Shohet Scholars Lecture . After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: Annual Shohet Scholars Lecture . After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
David Cardona's project, in collaboration Davide Tanasi, documented the Binġemma hypogeal complex in Malta using advanced techniques like drone-mounted Lidar, to clarify the site’s formation, evolution, and typologies, employing remote sensing and 3D imaging. 🏺Join us! ☝️
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Caitlin Barrett's project “Toward an #Archaeology of Lived Experience: Modeling Embodied Identities at #Pompeii,” focused on the Casa della Regina Carolina Project and investigated how people of different genders, ages, and physical conditions would have experienced domestic space. 🏺Join us! ☝️
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
👀Annual Shohet Scholars Panel!👀 Join the ICS and scholars Caitie Barrett and David Cardona to discuss their work modeling lived experience in Pompeii and documenting the underground worlds of Malta! Sept. 16th, 1pm ET Register here: shorturl.at/mWlLi
shorturl.at
RSVP: Annual Shohet Panel, Sept. 16 2026 1pm ET
Join the International Catacomb Society on Zoom for our annual discussion with past Shohet winners Caitlin Barrett and David Cardona, to discuss their respective work in Pompeii and Malta. There will ...
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
"A Synagogue at Ostia Antica": excerpt from "Vaults of Memory: The Roman Jewish Catacombs and their Context in the Ancient Mediterranean World" by ICS founder Estelle Shohet Brettman 🏺 www.catacombsociety.org/a-synagogue-... #archaeology #Rome #ancientBluesky
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Roman mosaics, Eros head unearthed at Türkiye's Pompeiopolis www.dailysabah.com/life/history...
dailysabah.com
Roman mosaics, Eros head unearthed at Türkiye's Pompeiopolis
Türkiye's Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy has said archaeologists excavating the ancient city of Pompeiopolis in the Taşköprü...
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Ancient Jew Review @ancientjewreview.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Our forum on Ellen Muehlberger's Things Unseen: Essays on Evidence, Knowledge, and the Late Ancient World continues this week! Next, an essay from Young Richard Kim @youngrichardkim.bsky.social @emuehlbe.bsky.social @ucpress.bsky.social www.ancientjewreview.com/read/2026/6/...
ancientjewreview.com
Thoughts on Medieval Knowing — ANCIENT JEW REVIEW
It is too early to know what emerita Ellen will be like, so for now, let us enjoy being in the presence of and reading the writings of medieval Ellen.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
👀Annual Shohet Scholars Panel!👀 Join the ICS and scholars Caitie Barrett and David Cardona to discuss their work modeling lived experience in Pompeii and documenting the underground worlds of Malta! Sept. 16th, 1pm ET Register here: shorturl.at/mWlLi
shorturl.at
RSVP: Annual Shohet Panel, Sept. 16 2026 1pm ET
Join the International Catacomb Society on Zoom for our annual discussion with past Shohet winners Caitlin Barrett and David Cardona, to discuss their respective work in Pompeii and Malta. There will ...
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
#Catacombs in Malta! #archaeology #travel lovinmalta.com/sponsored/mu...
lovinmalta.com
Museums By Candlelight Returns To Rabat And Mdina This September
If you’ve ever wanted to experience Malta’s rich history in a completely different light, this is your chance. Museums by Candlelight is returning to Rabat and Mdina on Saturday, 19th September, invit...
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
on national nonprofit day, thinking of all the organizations that keep research going! help us keep funding the humanities and research into the ancient world! #nationalnonprofitday #aug17 #humanities catacombsociety.org/give/
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Rome residents seek refuge from heat in #catacombs (It's probably tourists, though) caliber.az/en/post/rome...
caliber.az
Rome residents seek refuge from heat in catacombs | Caliber.Az
Rome is enduring another sweltering summer, with temperatures regularly climbing above 39C, but relief from the heat can be found beneath the city’s streets, in...
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Ancient Greek City of Stratonicea: Inscriptions on the Bouleuterion Walls Reveal a Late Antique Tax Scandal greekcitytimes.com/2026/08/12/s...
greekcitytimes.com
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
"The site includes a monumental Roman building complex with a semicircular courtyard, colonnades, rooms, and an extensive drainage system." #archaeology #Greece #Athens greekreporter.com/2026/08/12/a...
greekreporter.com
Roman Athens Emerges as New Archaeological Site Takes Shape - GreekReporter.com
An ancient Roman complex uncovered in central Athens will be restored and opened to the public alongside remains of the Themistoclean Wall.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
19 Creepy #Catacombs Around the World You Can Visit @atlasobscura.com www.atlasobscura.com/articles/bes...
atlasobscura.com
19 Creepy Catacombs Around the World You Can Visit
Explore 19 fascinating catacombs around the world, from Paris and Naples to Malta and Mexico, where history, mystery, and the macabre meet
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Jennifer Barry @jennisifire.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Proofs stress me out. It should be an exciting part of the publication process, but the formatting, the strange press rules on how to respond to a question, or add a correction just the right way, throws me off. Anyone else feel this way? I will take formatting footnotes over this phase any day.
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Rebecca Harris @rlharris.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
So honored and excited to have my book reviewed in this format!
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Arthur Urbano 🌍📷🏛️🛫🇮🇹🤌😷 @arturoviaggia.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
St. Lawrence is pictured here on the right holding a cross and codex in this fresco from the #catacomb of San Senatore in Albano Laziale, just outside #Rome. Interestingly only he and Christ have halos. 📷🇮🇹 flic.kr/p/HCXoUu #photography #archaeology #iconography #Italy
flic.kr
Christ with Saints, Catacomb of San Senatore (Albano Laziale, Italy)
Just outside of Rome, the Alban hills rise in an area known as the Castelli Romani. Several towns with ancient roots are located in this beautiful, tranquil setting. Albano Laziale is about 16 miles f...
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Christy Cobb @christycobb.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
It was so fun to talk about my research with one of my stellar PhD students on his podcast @contingenthistory.bsky.socialCheck out our conversation and give him a follow!
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Join a vibrant and growing international community of scholars and enthusiasts by becoming a member of the ICS! www.catacombsociety.org/become-a-mem...
catacombsociety.org
Join – International Catacomb Society
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Here's a gallery of Estelle's photos from the #Jewish Catacombs of Villa Torlonia in #Rome. www.catacombsociety.org/jewish-catac...
catacombsociety.org
Jewish Catacombs of Villa Torlonia – Photogallery – International Catacomb Society
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
You can view some of these archives open access on our website. www.catacombsociety.org/estelle-shoh...
catacombsociety.org
Estelle Shohet Brettman Archaeology Study Collection (1960-1985) & ICS Study Collection (2004) – International Catacomb Society
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Painted wall with loculi and menorah -- Jewish #catacombs of Villa Torlonia, #Rome 📷 Estelle Shohet Brettman #archaeology #photography
Painted wall with loculi and menorah . General view of the back wall in one of the painted rooms of the Catacomb of Torlonia. The eight loculi into the wall interrupts the depiction of a menorah, ethrog & pomegranate
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Painted wall with loculi and menorah -- Jewish #catacombs of Villa Torlonia, #Rome 📷 Estelle Shohet Brettman #archaeology #photography
Painted wall with loculi and menorah . General view of the back wall in one of the painted rooms of the Catacomb of Torlonia. The eight loculi into the wall interrupts the depiction of a menorah, ethrog & pomegranate
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
The founder of the ICS, Estelle Shohet Brettman, began her career as a marine biologist, but by the late 60s and early ’70s, an interest in antiquity led her to become an expert on the iconography of ancient gems and seals, and a docent and lecturer on the subject at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Photo of Estelle Shohet Brettman smiling.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Young woman’s skeleton found in Rabat catacombs: reconstruction project of full remains underway tvmnews.mt/en/news/youn...
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Who are we at the ICS? Here's a list of our current Executive Board, members of the Board of Directors and Advisory Board, and former directors and supporters. www.catacombsociety.org/who-we-are/
catacombsociety.org
Who We Are – International Catacomb Society
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
The mission of the ICS is: ✳️to promote awareness of the Jewish Catacombs in Rome ✳️to support research and scholarship in the fields of archaeology, art history, classical studies and related fields ✳️to circulate exhibits and disseminate publications ✳️to cooperate with educational institutions
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
“The hope is also that our project will serve to foster respect and appreciation for the roots and traditions of all cultures, so closely interdependent in our contemporary world.” Estelle Shohet Brettman (left), founder of the International Catacomb Society
Photo of a woman and a nun seated at a table smiling, with lots of books strewn across the table.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Become a member of the International Catacomb Society! Members receive advance notice of events, access to password-protected features on the ICS web site (incl. our online image database DAPICS), and invitations to member-only tours, lectures and outings. www.catacombsociety.org/become-a-mem...
catacombsociety.org
Join – International Catacomb Society
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Jennifer Barry @jennisifire.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
New profile up: wsrp.hds.harvard.edu/people/jenni...
wsrp.hds.harvard.edu
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
"Inside a rectangular basin, the team found coins, the remains of small animals believed to have been consumed during ritual meals, and several amphora stoppers. One stopper bears an engraved Christian monogram." greekreporter.com/2026/07/20/a... #archaeology #Sicily
greekreporter.com
Ancient Greek City in Sicily Yields Rare Mosaics and Early Christian Finds - GreekReporter.com
Archaeologists in ancient Greek Agrigento uncovered a colorful mosaic and early Christian finds revealing the city's remarkable evolution.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Learn more about our founder Estelle Shohet Brettman (1925-1991) on our webpage. www.catacombsociety.org/about/about-... Here's how she summed up her vision of the ICS:
“A few words about the International Catacomb Society, which I was instrumental in founding in 1980.  The Society’s members, from varied professions, disciplines and faiths, have been dedicated to three priorities: education, ecumenism, and the need to preserve our past.  Their devotion has made possible the realization of the Society’s goal: to create awareness of the need to preserve and document the catacombs, those rare vestiges of history which illustrate the commonalities of origin and expression of Jewish, Christian, and pagan funerary practices during the Roman Empire.  The hope is also that our project will serve to foster respect and appreciation for the roots and traditions of all cultures, so closely interdependent in our contemporary world;  To increase understanding among faiths and cultures by circulating exhibits, sponsoring lectures, and disseminating publications is a major aspect of our work.”
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Jennifer Barry @jennisifire.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Ok! Three drafts of chapters are out to generous readers. One last tricky chapter to deal with. This book is nearly there! It feels weird to be writing about scandal with all the scandals around us but here we are.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Learn more about our founder Estelle Shohet Brettman (1925-1991) on our webpage. www.catacombsociety.org/about/about-... Here's how she summed up her vision of the ICS:
“A few words about the International Catacomb Society, which I was instrumental in founding in 1980.  The Society’s members, from varied professions, disciplines and faiths, have been dedicated to three priorities: education, ecumenism, and the need to preserve our past.  Their devotion has made possible the realization of the Society’s goal: to create awareness of the need to preserve and document the catacombs, those rare vestiges of history which illustrate the commonalities of origin and expression of Jewish, Christian, and pagan funerary practices during the Roman Empire.  The hope is also that our project will serve to foster respect and appreciation for the roots and traditions of all cultures, so closely interdependent in our contemporary world;  To increase understanding among faiths and cultures by circulating exhibits, sponsoring lectures, and disseminating publications is a major aspect of our work.”
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Ellen Muehlberger @emuehlbe.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Deep, detailed review of my recent book in BMCR: bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2026/2026.07...
bmcr.brynmawr.edu
Things unseen: essays on evidence, knowledge, and the late ancient world – Bryn Mawr Classical Review
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Dr Jo Ball @drjeball.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
A #Roman mosaic depiction of a snake in a river scene - love the attention to detail in this piece, especially the patterning on its body, & the tongue sticking out 🐍🏺 #Archaeology #MosaicMonday #AncientBlueSky
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Anthony Majanlahti @anthonymajanlahti.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Found under the #DomusAurea, these in situ C2–C1 BCE floors likely belonged to a single Republican domus in the Carinæ. #Rome resisted "Greek luxury" while it could, but this "a stuoia" mosaic with crustae reflects the style born at the Temple of Capitoline Jupiter. #MosaicMonday #AncientBluesky 🏺
PAVEMENT A STUOIA WITH CRUSTAE, C. 80-70 BCE. TRAJANIC GALLERY LEADING TO THE DOMUS AUREA

​An in-situ Late Republican pavement constructed in an "a stuoia" pattern, imitating woven matting with stone tiles set in alternating perpendicular blocks, punctuated by irregular chips of coloured stone and marble (crustae). Discovered beneath the later foundations of Nero's Domus Aurea and Trajan's Baths on the Oppian Hill, this design directly mirrors the earliest pavement of the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill. While conservative moralists like Cato fought against orientalising "Greek luxury," noble households in the Carinæ were quietly adapting sacred architectural precedents to introduce permanent visual texture into their domestic spaces. This was probably an atrium or œcus floor, a public room to display the family wealth. Just not too much.
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Arthur Urbano 🌍📷🏛️🛫🇮🇹🤌😷 @arturoviaggia.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Today is the feast of St Apollinaris, first bishop of #Ravenna. A basilica was dedicated to him in the 6th c. near the site of his martyrdom by the city's port. The apse is decorated with his image in prayer below a symbolic rendering of the Transfiguration. 📷🇮🇹 flic.kr/p/Gfusy2 #photography #Italy
flic.kr
Apse, Sant'Apollinare in Classe (Ravenna, Italy)
If you go to Ravenna, Italy, you will find that there are two ancient churches dedicated to the city's patron St. Apollinaris. One, in the heart of the city, was built in the early sixth century by th...
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Ellen Muehlberger @emuehlbe.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
And hey: Things Unseen is free--- you can buy it, sure, but it's available open access. Go to this link www.ucpress.edu/books/things... Hit "read book" and boom! There it is
ucpress.edu
Things Unseen by Ellen Muehlberger - ePub + PDF
Scholarship is a powerful tool for changing how people think, plan, and govern. By giving voice to bright minds and bold ideas, we seek to foster understanding and drive progressive change.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Become a member of the International Catacomb Society! Members receive advance notice of events, access to password-protected features on the ICS web site (incl. our online image database DAPICS), and invitations to member-only tours, lectures and outings. www.catacombsociety.org/become-a-mem...
catacombsociety.org
Join – International Catacomb Society
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Dr. Chance Bonar @chancebonar.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
This chapter will be a bit of a follow-up to my OE piece on Eusebius’s Palestinianness, digging more into how he narrated local trauma to craft a shared Palestinian ID & encouraged his readers elsewhere to care about Palestinian Christian suffering everydayorientalism.wordpress.com/2025/05/20/t...
everydayorientalism.wordpress.com
The Father of Church History was Palestinian – #EOPalestine 21
by Chance Bonar Eusebius Pamphilius, bishop of Caesarea Maritima (modern Qesarya/قِيسارْيَة, Israel), is a fixture in the study of ancient Christianity. Living from the 260s to 339 CE and spending …
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Dr. Chance Bonar @chancebonar.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
First look at my contribution to Uden & Várhelyi's _Pain, Trauma, and Suffering in the Roman Empire_! Looking forward to sharing thoughts on Eusebius's production of Palestinian Christian identity via shared trauma + the effects of spatial confinement that produced death-bound subjects
Mines and Prisons as Sites of Insecurity and Confinement in Eusebius’ On the Martyrs of Palestine

Chance E. Bonar

Introduction

Composed in the 310s, Eusebius of Caesarea’s On the Martyrs of Palestine (περὶ τῶν ἐν Παλαιστίνῃ μαρτυρησάντων) narrates the martyrdoms of numerous Palestinian Christians during the reign of Diocletian. In many of the accounts, Christians are not only exposed to various degrees and types of torture narrated in gory detail by Eusebius, but are also incarcerated or condemned to the mines in Palestine, Egypt, or Cilicia. My aim in this chapter is to explore how mines and prisons—as discussed in both classical scholarship and through theoretical interventions offered by carceral and slavery studies—functioned as sites of both insecurity and containment, meant to control the movements and sensory experiences of individuals. Through this type of embodied control that could induce both somatic and psychological trauma, Eusebius’ narration of Diocletian’s persecution highlights how individuals marginalized by the sovereign state may be subject not only to bodily discipline, but also to economic exploitation and the embodied consequences of being crafted as a death-bound subject.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Inside the Roman #Catacombs Under a D.C. Church www.youtube.com/shorts/dTbPx...
youtube.com
Inside the Roman Catacombs Under a D.C. Church | Undiscovered DC
YouTube video by WUSA9
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
CfP: Mortuary Ritual in the Roman Near East: Current Work and Future Directions (University of Groningen, January 28-29, 2027) (h/t @mjcbac.bsky.social) maryjahariscenter.org/blog/mortuar...
maryjahariscenter.org
Mortuary Ritual in the Roman Near East: Current Work and Future Directions | Mary Jaharis Center
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Mosaic portrait of the bishop Quodvultdeus from the #Catacombs of San Gennaro in #Naples #MosaicMonday #archaeology #AncientBlueSky🏺
Round mosaic bust portrait of a stern looking older man dressed in a white robe. He holds a jeweled book in his hands. The mosaic is damaged.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Mosaic portrait of the bishop Quodvultdeus from the #Catacombs of San Gennaro in #Naples #MosaicMonday #archaeology #AncientBlueSky🏺
Round mosaic bust portrait of a stern looking older man dressed in a white robe. He holds a jeweled book in his hands. The mosaic is damaged.
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International Catacomb Society @catacombsociety.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Fresco of a peacock in the #catacomb of Domitilla, #Rome. (Joseph Wilpert watercolor, plate 12.4) #archaeology #earlyChristianity #lateantiquity #art #ancientBluesky🏺
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