The Tomb of St. Peter
The Tomb of St. Peter
| This is the heart and holiest place in the basilica.
It was and is the goal of countless pilgrims who come to Rome from allover
the world to videre Petrum. Petrus est hic. Peter is here, for two thousand
years, in a humble, simple tomb over which the magnificent triumphal basilica
was built. It seems that Jesus' words have a material value as well: "You
are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church." Here we are in the
spiritual and physical center
of Christianity. From the tomb of St. Peter, the Gospel spread throughout Europe and then to the whole world. After the Holy Sepulchre from which Jesus rose, this is the most venerated tomb in the world. In the year 195 Gaius wrote, "Go to the Vatican on the Via Ostia and there you will find the trophies, (the tombs) of the founders of this Church." In the sacellum above Peter's tomb in a richly decorated
niche is a fine silver casket containing the Palls, white wool stoles embroidered
with six black crosses that the pope gives to the patriarch and metropolian
as a constant
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