The Catacombs of St. Agnes held the remains of the famous and very young Roman martyr Agnes. Her family probably already owned the hypogeum. The legend is that Agnes endured tremendous torments at the age of twelve. She refused to marry a Roman nobleman and was sentenced to death. Because Roman law did not permit the execution of a virgin, she was dragged through the streets naked and taken to brothel. As she prayed, her hair grew and entirely covered her body. Then tied to a stake to be burned alive, the wood would not burn, so she was beheaded – or as some legends have it, stabbed in the throat…
… After her death, Romans and many foreign pilgrims visited her tomb. She was venerated by the Emperor Constantine’s family. His daughter, Constantina, had a huge circular basilica built near the cemetery. The present day basilica was built by in the 7th century. Unfortunately, the catacomb is rather poorly preserved because it was visited without interruption over the course of the centuries.
Catacombe di Sant’Agnese/ Catacombs of St. Agnes
Via Nomentana, 349
00162 Roma, Italy
Telephone +39 06 861 08 40
Website http://www.santagnese.org/
Closed on Sunday mornings and on Monday afternoons
Hours: 9.00 – 12.00 and 16.00 – 18.00
8 € full price; 5 € reduced fee (effective 01/01/2010)
As you can see from the map above, the Catacombs of St. Agnes are located in the northeast section of the city. There are not any metro stations out here on Via Nomentana, so you’re going to have to ride the bus – or take a taxi. Probably the best buses to go out here are the bus 90 and bus 60 – both express buses..
The bus stops are marked by the dots on this depending on which direction you’re coming or headed. The bus 60 is a very popular bus. You can catch it at the Circo Massimo Line B Metro, the Colosseo Line B Metro, on the Via Fori Imperiali (road that runs in front of the Colosseo), adjacent to Piazza Venezia, and on Via Nazioanle. The stop to get off at if you’re coming from this direction is NOMENTANA/XXI APRILE . It is marked on the map by the red ball.
Here’s the entire bus 60 run to this stop from downtown: CAVE ARDEATINE 
, CIRCO MASSIMO , COLOSSEO , FORI IMPERIALI/CAMPIDOGLIO , P.ZA VENEZIA , NAZIONALE/QUIRINALE , NAZIONALE/TORINO , CERNAIA , PORTA PIA , NOMENTANA/REGINA MARGHERITA , NOMENTANA/XXI APRILE . To come back into downtown, jump back on the bus 60 in the same area, just on the opposite side of the street – see the green ball in the Google Map above.
The bus 90 stops at Catacombs at the SAME bus stop as the bus 60… The bus 90 STARTS at the Roma Termini Train station. So this is a great bus to catch if you’re staying in that area – or if you prefer to ride the metro to shorten your trip. From Roma Termini, it is only six stops to the Catacomb of St. Agnes stop, NOMENTANA/XXI APRILE . Here’s the route of bus 90 from Roma Termini to the Catacombs of St. Agnes: TERMINI 
, VOLTURNO/CERNAIA , PORTA PIA , NOMENTANA/REGINA MARGHERITA , NOMENTANA/VILLA TORLONIA , NOMENTANA/XXI APRILE , Jump on the bus to head back to termini and multiple bus and metro connections.
To go to a specific Catacomb page on the Ron-in-Rome website, click on any link below
A good map can do more than tell you where you are at … it can help you see more in less time and give you peace of mind. You’re never lost when you have a good map! These are a few of the recommended maps you can purchase! For more maps and travel accessories, head to our Travel Store, Magellan’s Travel Supplies, or look in amazon.com. Non-USA Guests can search for travel accessories at amazon.co.uk.
A good map can do more than tell you where you are at … it can help you see more in less time and give you peace of mind. You’re never lost when you have a good map! These are a few of the recommended maps you can purchase! For more maps and travel accessories, head to our Travel Store, Magellan’s Travel Supplies, or look in amazon.com. Non-USA Guests can search for travel accessories at amazon.co.uk.
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Header: Catacombs of Santa Agnese – Photos by jimforest
