Vaults of Memory offers twentieth-century viewers a record of the catacombs of Rome. Glimpses of the Jewish catacombs of Villa Torlonia and Vigna Randanini, as well as of Christian and pagan cemeteries, document the present condition of paintings still visible on the walls and ceilings of these underground burial places. Photographs of fresco and relief, vaulted ceiling and mosaic floor, ritual vessel and crude graffito present a visual essay of Jewish and early Christian images, symbols, and epigraphy more than fifteen hundred years old. Augmented by artifacts and impressions, the exhibition reflects the intersections of religious thinking of the various sects in ancient Rome. In funeral iconography, Graeco-Roman myths are mingled with Old Testament themes, both of which influenced early Christian expressions of hope for the deceased.
About the Author
Estelle Shohet Brettman was the daughter of a doctor who inspired in her a love for Judaic Studies and the ideals of ecumenism. She was a graduate of Girls' Latin School and majored in sciences at Radcliffe, from which she was graduated in 1945. She began her career as a marine biologist, but by the late 1960s 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.
In 1980 she founded the International Catacomb Society. The society is dedicated to the preservation and documentation of the Roman catacombs & those rare vestiges of history that illustrate the common influences on Jewish, Christian, and Pagan iconography and funerary practices during the time of the Roman Empire. The society also strives to increase knowledge of the catacombs by circulating exhibits, sponsoring lectures, and disseminating information and publications.
