Atlas Obscura on Slate is a blog about the world's hidden wonders. Like us on Facebook, Tumblr, or follow us on Twitter. Eight thousand corpses in varied states of decay inhabit the musty, ill-lit ...

Very little is known about more than 160 children interred in Sicily’s world-famous Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo, and why their slight and often mummified bodies were placed there in the first place.

Some of the children are so well preserved they look like "tiny little dolls." When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. The mummified and ...

The Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo serve as both a macabre tourist attraction as well as an extraordinary record of history. Today the catacombs are lined with around 8,000 mummies, often hung like ...

The first ever comprehensive study of mummified children in Sicily’s famous Capuchin Catacombs is being led by Staffordshire University. Dr Kirsty Squires, Associate Professor of Bioarchaeology, and ...

Today, in places you may not have known but now feel the need to visit at least once in your life, we’re going to take a look at the Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo. As its name suggests, this site is ...

Sicily is renowned for its stunning beaches, charming villages and towns, as well as an abundance of ancient ruins and archeological sites. The Mediterranean island attracted over 16 million visitors ...

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The Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo display approximately 1,284 bodies — 163 of which are children. Researchers at Staffordshire University in England will use X-rays to examine the juvenile mummies.

Very little is known about more than 160 children interred in Sicily’s world-famous Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo, and why their slight and often mummified bodies were placed there in the first place.