he Capuchin Catacombs in Palermo on the island of Sicily south of the mainland came about half by accident. It all began in 1599 when Brother Silvestro of the recently formed Capuchin order of monks died. The Capuchins were break-aways from the Franciscians--they wanted to return to a purer interpretation of St. Francis' edict to help the poor and helpless. Brother Silvestro's body was placed in a well. The tufaceous (porous limestone) soil in the region did it's work and nine months later it was discovered his remains had mummified. After that, monks by the hundreds wanted to be mummified upon death, and cells called strainers were carved into the soil of the crypt and bodies placed there. Next the general population got in on the fun. By the time mummification was outlawed in 1881, the crypt contained close to 1,000 mummified bodies.

he sleepy village of Ferentillo lies north east of Roma. Getting there took us 4 hours, by train, bus, and walking through the valley. We finally reached the town and ascended, finding la Chiesa di S. Stefano, a 16th century church with a crypt of mummies beneath. As in just about every place we went in Italy, we had to wait for the crypt to reopen in the afternoon, so we spent 2 delicious hours lying in the sun and watching the odd dog or cat stroll lazily down the cobble-stone paths. Only a small part of the crypt has been excavated. Mummies here are protected by glass cases due to thefts in the past.

n our journey up through the Italian Alps, we finally reached Bolzano near the Austrian border, a pleasant city with a distinct Austrian flavor--carts selling bratwurst lined the downtown streets, which were closed to traffic. We went to Bolzano to visit The Ice Man, found in the Alps between Italy and Austria in 1991 by mountain climbers. His remains have been studied, as well as his clothing and the artifacts he carried. Now he lies in a hermetically sealed glass tomb at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology. From the wounds to "Ützi's" head and shoulder it appears he was attacked, likely for unwittingly trespassing into another's territory 5,300 years ago, when he lived. This mummy affected Nancy deeply. Seeing a roomful of mummies, there is a sense of 'them'. Ützi died alone, in the freezing Alps in the 4th millenium B.C. That he is so well preserved is a miracle. He may still be alone, but at least now he has visitors, some of whom care that he existed.