The ceiling is wood, centuries old. The church rests over the entrance to one of
the catacombs. The tombs are now empty (never did learn what they did with the bones!)
The site contains approximately seven miles of tunnels, arranged in multiple layers, and
was the final resting place of approximately 160,000. Given life expectancy and childhood
diseases, approximately one third of the burials were children. There are some very elaborate
tombs with vaulted arches and fancy decoration surviving here. The soil is a hard clay that
is fairly easy to carve or dig in its moist, undisturbed state. Once it is exposed to air
it hardens to rock-like consistency. Many graves were small niches in the side of the tunnel
that were sealed, sometimes with decorative marble bearing the name and dates of the interred.

Apparently much misinformation has been diseminated over the years. The catacombs were not
secret; non-Christians, as well as Christians were buried here - legally - and many of
the symbols found had roots in multiple traditions.