The Catacombe di Priscilla (Via Salaria 430, Rome, in the Parioli-Salario residential quarter, 6km north of the historic center, managed by the Benedictine Sisters of the Priscilla) are the most art-historically significant of the major Roman catacombs: the Priscilla catacomb contains the oldest surviving image of the Virgin Mary in the history of Christian art, the early 3rd-century fresco (approximately 230-240 AD, in the Cubicolo dell'Annunciazione section of the catacomb) depicting a seated woman with an infant child and a standing male figure pointing to a star, the specific iconographic formula that art historians have identified as the earliest certain depiction of the Madonna and Child with a prophet, predating the established Marian iconographic tradition by several decades.
The specific art-historical significance of the Priscilla oldest Virgin Mary fresco: the image (damaged but legible in the original position in the catacomb cubicle) predates by approximately 70 years the next oldest certain Virgin Mary depiction (the Lateran Virgin, approximately 300-350 AD), and its specific position in the Priscilla catacomb (the burial site of the senatorial Acilii Glabriones family, among the earliest documented Christian aristocratic families in Rome) contextualizes the image within the specific social milieu of the 3rd-century Roman Christian community, the aristocratic families who had converted to Christianity and who used the catacomb format for family burial before the Constantinian legalisation of Christianity in 313 AD.
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Catacombe di Priscilla: Frescoes, Visit, and Art History
The Greek Chapel
The Cappella Greca (the Greek Chapel, the most decorated space in the Priscilla catacomb, named for the Greek language of many of its inscriptions): the fresco program covering the chapel walls and ceiling (the Susanna cycle, the Three Young Men in the Furnace, the Resurrection of Lazarus, and the specific 3rd-century iconographic program that the Priscilla catacomb's scholarly literature identifies as the most theologically and artistically rich pre-Constantinian Christian decorative ensemble in existence): the chapel visit (covered in the guided catacomb tour) is the specific art-historical highlight of the Priscilla experience. The specific Priscilla fresco quality: the Priscilla frescoes are in better general condition than the Domitilla equivalents, maintained by the Benedictine Sisters' careful management of the catacomb atmosphere (the humidity and temperature controlled to prevent further fresco deterioration).
Catacombe Di Priscilla: skip-the-line & guided tours
Compare skip-the-line tickets and guided visits for Catacombe Di Priscilla.
See availability & prices →Compare tours on Viator →We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.The Guided Visit
Catacombe di Priscilla visit (Via Salaria 430, open Tuesday-Sunday 9:00-12:00 and 14:00-17:00. Closed Monday. Admission approximately €10 adults. Guided tours every 30-45 minutes in Italian, English, French, Spanish, German. Duration approximately 50 minutes): the tour covers the Greek Chapel, the cubicolo dell'Annunciazione (the oldest Virgin Mary fresco), the Velatio fresco (the unique Priscilla fresco sequence depicting three phases of a woman's life, the veil, the orant posture, and the family scene, interpreted as a narrative of a Christian woman's life from marriage to motherhood to death), and the standard catacomb tunnel sections.
Q&A: Catacombe di Priscilla
Which Rome catacombs should I visit. Priscilla, Domitilla, or San Callisto?
For the art-historical interest: Priscilla (the oldest Virgin Mary, the Greek Chapel frescoes, the most artistically significant single catacomb in Rome). For the architectural interest: Domitilla (the underground basilica, the largest network, see the Domitilla guide). For the papal and martyrological history: San Callisto (the papal crypt, the Cecilia connection, the most "officially important" catacomb in the Christian historical tradition). If visiting only one: Priscilla for the visitor primarily interested in early Christian art. Domitilla for the visitor primarily interested in architecture and underground space. San Callisto for the visitor primarily interested in the papal and martyrs' history.
