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THE ROMAN CATACOMBS. 119 
of burial were in use; but towards the end of the fourth cen- 
tury burials in the catacombs became more rare, and by the 
year 410 they had ceased altogether. About this time grand 
basilicas began to be built over the tombs of the more cele- 
brated saints—S. Peter, S. Paul, S. Agnes, S. Sebastian, and 
others. This naturally caused a great destruction of subterra- 
nean graves. This went on until the time of Pope Damasus 
(364) who devoted himself with singular zeal and prudence to 
the preservation of the catacombs. He made new staircases, 
strengthened the walls, made regulations for the guidance of 
the pilgrims, and finally, made short sets of verses in honour of 
some of the martyrs, which have been of the greatest service 
in fixing the geography of the cemeteries and re-constructing 
their history. These inscriptions are beautifully engraved 
on marble, invariably by the same artist—Furius Dionysius 
Filocalus. In 557 much mischief was done by the Goths, 
and again by the Lombards in 756. ‘Towards the end of the 
ninth century the catacombs ceased to be frequented for 
purposes of devotion, and, unt:l the sixteenth century, they 
were quite neglected and practically unknown. 
In 1578 the catacombs were re-discovered by some labourers 
who were digging for puzzolana; but it is a great pity that the 
ecclesiastical authorities at Rome did not forbid the removal of 
relics by private individuals as Pius IX did in 1851. How- 
ever, fortunately for our knowledge, there arose about forty 
years ago a great scholar, who has worked with the greatest 
patience, most scrupulous caution, and in a thoroughly scien- 
tific spirit—Giovanni Battista de Rossi. The result has been 
a re-construction of the history of the catacombs, and there 
is probably now no group of ancient monuments which can 
be classified more exactly, and with greater certainty. 
Tbe Roman catacombs are a vast gallery of Christian art. 
At first the Christians decorated their tombs in much the 
same manner as did their Pagan neighbours. The roof was 
divided into geometrical figures by means of lines and gar- 
