If there was a ranking of beauty among mummies, then this beautiful little girl would take first place every year. It is impossible to believe that she has been dead for over 100 years. How alive. It seems that she will soon wake up smile and say that this is a prank and you have been played. But unfortunately, she left this world long ago.
She has her own little secret, from which people fall into a stupor, turn pale and lose consciousness. Next, we will talk about the secrets of beauty and the secrets hidden behind the angelic appearance of the most beautiful mummy in the world.
Rosalia Lombardo was only two years old when she died of pneumonia back in 1920. Her untimely death plunged her father into shock and depression. He decided to turn to the famous specialist Alfredo Salafia for help and asked him to save Rosalia's body through embalming and mummification. In order to somehow tame your pain, rub it.
Alfredo Salafia, a skilled embalmer and taxidermist of his day. He performed an incredible, beautiful and complex operation on Rosalia, that even a hundred years after death, it seems that the girl is just sleeping under glass in a wooden box. The girl's body is in the Capuchin catacombs in Palermo, Italy.
Her small cheeks still look firm and healthy plump. Locks of blond hair are neatly gathered above the head and tied with a silk bow. Apart from the beautiful appearance, if I may say so in relation to the dead, small child. Her internal organs are not damaged, which is confirmed by X-ray scanning.
Rosalia Lombardo has long earned the nickname "Sleeping Beauty", gaining a reputation as one of the best preserved mummies in the world.
Rosalia's perfectly preserved body is only part of the story. The girl's visitors swear she blinks and winks at them. In the gif, we see her eyelids opening and closing. Or does it seem so?
Some claim to have seen her eyes. Sleeping Beauty's beautiful blue eyes are also in excellent condition. They are not damaged, as is most of the body. You can see how they shine, as if alive.
Research says that temperature changes inside the crypt can cause Rosalia's eyelids to close and open, producing a blinking effect. But the curator of the Capuchin catacombs, Dario Piombino-Mascali, puts forward a different theory. Piombino-Mascali believes that Rosalia's eye winks are an optical illusion. Caused by the angle of the light coming from the windows onto her face. As the day goes by and the angle of the light changes, the girl seems to open and close her eyes several times.
Piombino-Mascali made the discovery in 2009 when he noticed that workers at the museum had moved her coffin, causing her body to shift slightly, allowing him to see her eyelids better than ever before. Piombino-Mascali realized that Rosalia's eyes had never been completely closed.
Another big discovery was the secret formula that Alfredo Salafia used to embalm Rosalia's body. What further supported it in an impeccable condition.
In 2009, Piombino-Mascali found living relatives of Alfredo Salafia. After talking with them, they agreed to hand over the documents belonging to Salafia, where he wrote down his secret procedure and the formulas of the substances used.
Unlike typical embalming, when internal organs are removed and empty cavities filled with solutions completely dry the body, Dr. Salafiya made a small puncture in the body and injected a mixture of formalin, zinc salts, alcohol, salicylic acid and glycerin. Each ingredient in the mixture did its own unique and delicate job.
Formalin killed all bacteria, glycerin ensured that the body did not lose moisture, salicylic acid destroyed fungi and mold. The magical ingredient was zinc salts, which froze Rosalia's body in its pristine state. They gave rigidity and elasticity to the skin and muscles, preventing the cheeks and nasal cavities from collapsing.
The Sleeping Beauty is one of the eight thousand mummies in the Capuchin catacombs in Sicily. It was one of the last corpses that was accepted into the catacombs.
Rosalia's x-ray shows that her brain and liver are intact. The grid in the picture is the coffin under the body.
Probably the most famous mummy in the whole world is Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. And the most beautiful and young Rosalia Lombardo.
Sleeping Beauty - Rosalia Lombardo - is an amazing phenomenon that occurs with the body of a dead girl on the island of Sicily. A girl named Rosalia Lombardo died a long time ago, but her body is still practically untouched by decomposition.
Rosalia Lombardo holds a special place in the hearts and minds of those who visit the Capuchin Catacombs. "Sleeping Beauty" from Palermo, under this name she became known in the world.
Rosalia Lombardo died of pneumonia in Palermo, Sicily, in December 1920. Her father, General Lombardo, was so heartbroken that he wanted to bury his daughter's body in the catacombs, while preserving her body in its original form. He was lucky that his request was granted, since burials were forbidden in the catacombs at that time, and Rosalia was one of the last to be buried there.
Before placing her body in the catacombs, Rosalia's father hired the famous embalmer Alfredo Salafia. He was an Italian chemist who spent many years perfecting his embalming technique. As a result of his research, he deduced the embalming formula, in which the bodies were preserved unprecedentedly well and for a long time.
Salafiya perfected his embalming skills on animals before moving on to humans. His methods differed significantly from traditional embalming. He simply injected the drug he invented into the carotid artery, in fact, without carrying out any other preparatory steps for embalming the body. Didn't even draw blood.
Salafiya worked so well that the embalming he performed was able to stop the ravages of time. The girl's body is so well preserved that even in this photograph, taken in 1995, it seems that Rosalia is just sleeping.
Photo. Mummy of Rosalia Lombardo
Salafiya died in 1933, taking the secret of his formula with him to his grave. However, long studies led to the fact that his secret was revealed: he used formalin - to destroy all bacteria, salicylic acid to stop the growth of fungi, alcohol, which contributes to the rapid drying of the body, while glycerin prevents its complete drying out (because of which the skin does not become too brittle and does not crack).
However, the main secret of Salafiya was in the use of zinc salts. They hardened Rosalia's body, preventing the formation of corrosion and depressions on her body, for example, on her cheeks and in the nasal cavity, which is why the girl still looks like she is alive.
But even apart from the appearance of Rosalia, her story is amazing for other reasons. She has the same name as the patron saint of Palermo, Saint Rosalia.
Legend has it that Saint Rosalia was born into a noble family and dedicated her life to religion. At the end of her life, she was led to a cave by two angels, where she spent the rest of her life as a hermit, and died in 1166.
Five hundred years later, a plague struck Palermo, and Rosalia appeared to a sick woman and then to a hunter, telling them where to find her remains. The hunter found her body in a cave, and Rosalia's remains were carried around the city, after which the plague stopped.
Photo. Catacombs of the Capuchins in Palermo
Another amazing moment in this whole story is the girl's eyes. Sometimes, several days and nights a year, they slowly open and close, as if a girl is trying to throw off the shackles of eternal sleep.
Over the years, the number of eyewitnesses has increased, who were ready to swear that, visiting the catacombs, they noticed that the girl's eyes were slightly open, while, as in previous times, they were definitely tightly closed.
In a number of cases, people photographed Rosalia's face during the day, and indeed, in the photographs it was noticeable that the girl's eyes seemed to be slightly open.
The camera, installed for 12 hours in the catacombs, recorded how the girl's eyes slowly opened, then closed again.
Many consider this a real miracle, someone is a paranormal phenomenon. There are those who try to rationalize this phenomenon by saying that the eyes are affected by changes in temperature and humidity.
In 2009, it was noticed that the body was finally starting to show signs of decay. Currently, Rosalia has been placed in an airtight container.
However, Rosalia's body is still in excellent condition, and in its new vault, it will lie for many, many more years.
Rosalia Lombardo was born on December 13, 1918 in the city of Palermo in Sicily. She died on December 6, 1920, not having lived a week before the age of 2. What is special about this little girl? Her father was shocked by the terrible tragedy and was very upset by the death of the baby. He approached the embalmer Alfredo Salafia (1869-1933) and asked him to embalm the child's body to prevent it from decomposing.
Mummy of Rosalia Lombardo
Salafiya ball has its own effective embalming technology. He complied with the heartbroken father's request and used his embalming solution. It included such elements as formalin, alcohol, glycerin, salicylic acid, zinc salts and some other chemical compounds. This solution under pressure filled the arteries and dispersed through the blood vessels. Thus, the girl's body was mummified and preserved to this day. Currently, it is in a glass coffin in the farthest part of the Capuchin Catacombs in the chapel of Santa Rosalia.
In the early years, the child's mummy had a fresh, natural appearance. The girl seemed to be sleeping. Therefore, it was called "Sleeping Beauty". Almost 100 years have passed, but Rosalia has changed little. Thousands of tourists aspire to see it every year. They come from all over the world just to look at this little body for just a few seconds.
The state of the mummy is constantly monitored by employees
It should be said that the true truth about Rosalia Lombardo was lost in a series of decades. She is said to have been the daughter of an Italian general named Mario Lombardo. But there are no official documents telling about her parents. There are no photographs of living Rosalia. It is only known that she was born a very weak and fragile child. In her short life, she experienced so much pain and illness that they would be enough for two adult lives.
At the end of the 20th century, there was talk that the girl's mummy had long since turned to dust and was replaced by a wax copy. This theory was voiced in a documentary at the very beginning of the 21st century. To refute the rumors, X-ray equipment was delivered to the catacombs and the coffin with the body of Rosalia was enlightened. As a result of this, not only the skeletal structure was discovered, but also organs that turned out to be intact. The brain was perfectly visible, only its volume was reduced by 50% due to mummification.
In 2009, a documentary was released in which Rosalia Lombardo was shown in full. Viewers were able to see her body both outside and inside. Filming confirmed the integrity of all organs. Hands were also shown lying at the sides. No one had ever seen them before, as they were hidden under the outer cover.
X-ray showing the ribs and arms of the mummy
An interesting event happened to the girl's eyes. A few years ago there was a report about the opening of her left eye. It opened up about 5mm. The right eye also opened slightly, but only by 2 mm. Under the eyelids were blue eyes. The reason for such a terrible phenomenon was called a change in temperature in the room. But some exalted personalities stated that his spirit returned to the body of the deceased child. It is not known who is right, but the fact remains.
The beautifully preserved mummy of a girl excites the imagination of many generations of people. Its innocence and purity, forever frozen in time, attract more visitors than any other mummies found in the Capuchin Catacombs. For many artists, Rosalia Lombardo has been a source of inspiration for decades.
In addition to palaces and museums, there is one attraction in Palermo that is not recommended for the faint of heart and impressionable. The twilight and special atmosphere in this place only add to the sensations. We are talking about the famous Capuchin Catacombs, a kind of City-Museum of the Dead under the Capuchin monastery in the suburbs of Palermo (Italy).
A bit of history
The first Capuchins appeared in Sicily in 1534 and settled near Palermo, west of the city. They were given possession a small church of the Norman era - the chapel of Santa Maria della Pace.
Next to it, the monks eventually built a monastery and a chapel, with most of the finances for the construction coming from the townspeople, as donations. In 1565 it was decided to reconstruct the church, completely changing its outlines and structure. Repair work for a number of reasons stretched over several decades.
With the growth of the monastery and the numerical increase in the brotherhood, the monks faced the question of a worthy place for the burial of the dead brothers. The first burials appeared here in 1599, namely, in the monastery crypt. The bodies of the monks who had died a year or two before were also transferred here. Gradually, the free space became less and less, and the monks were forced to expand the burial premises, tearing out a number of tunnels and corridors.
The church of Santa Maria della Pace acquires its current appearance in 1934, when the church premises were reconstructed. Church interiors and works of art of the 16th-18th centuries have been preserved in the interiors of the church.
Description and photo
Funeral catacombs are a crypt with a burial place of more than 8 thousand people- many corridors along which they stand, lie, sit numerous mummified bodies of long-dead people. Some mummies are buried in coffins ranging from simple to exquisite, some in wall niches.
The location of the burials has its own peculiarity - not everyone was buried here, each of the dead had its own separate corridor.
Two corridors, the longest and parallel to each other, are corridor of men and corridor of professionals. In the latter, "people of art" were buried - poets, artists, sculptors, architects. There is even a legend according to which Diego Velasquez himself, the famous Spanish painter, is buried in this corridor.
The corridor of men is also impressive in size. Buried here first influential nobles and representatives of the clergy, and then noble and wealthy citizens (especially those who donated considerable sums to the parish). Until 1739, permission for burials in the crypt was issued only by archbishops or leaders of the Capuchin order. Being buried in an underground crypt was considered very prestigious among the townspeople.
Perpendicular to these corridors are corridor of women, corridor of monks, corridor of virgins, corridor of children and babies. The corridor of women was the only one that was bombed in 1943. Many mummies were completely destroyed, and those that remained were placed in niches and on shelves. Moreover, almost destroyed faces and bright, well-preserved clothes from different eras contrast sharply ...
Separately, there is a corridor of priests, where tourists are not always allowed. There are also closed rooms where the highest church ranks are buried.
The peculiarity of the atmosphere in the catacombs is such that it prevents the decomposition of bodies. All the mummies, thanks to the special temperature of the crypt, were preserved quite well.: some are completely preserved, you can even see in detail the outfit of the era to which the mummy belonged - from the dress of an ordinary city dweller to the luxurious outfit of a noble nobleman.
And there were some minor mishaps about the clothes. Eminent citizens who bequeathed to bury themselves in the crypt gave the Capuchin monks special instructions on how many times a year their outfits should be changed ...
In this video you can see the mummies of the Museum of the Dead - Capuchin catacombs in Palermo (beware, this is not for the faint of heart!):
Read about other less scary ones in a separate article. And you will find the entire list of famous places on the island of Sicily.
Secrets of Little Rosalia Lombardo
The crypt has another secret, one secret for which tourists visit this place.
In the chapel of Saint Rosalia there is a small coffin, and in it rests the body of a two-year-old resident of Palermo - Rosalia Lombardo, who was buried here in 1920. She died of pneumonia, and suddenly, and the inconsolable father could not understand that his beloved daughter had died.
The baby's father turned to Alfred Salafia, a well-known embalmer at the time, with a request to keep the baby's body incorrupt. After persuasion, Alfred agreed and carried out the will of Signor Lombardo.
Alfredo Salafia never revealed the secret of his magical composition to anyone, so it remains a mystery how the girl's body has not undergone any changes for many decades- not only soft tissues, but also eyeballs, hair and eyelashes remained unharmed.
It seems to tourists who come to the chapel that the baby simply fell asleep, and the inhabitants of Palermo themselves call Rosalia Lombardo "our Sleeping Beauty" ...
It has been suggested that the baby is in a lethargic dream, or that she is a doll in general. But the results of an x-ray study conducted by a group of scientists in 2009 confirmed that this is a real deceased child whose body has not undergone any changes.
However, even after the study, another problem was thrown to the scientists: an impartial technique recorded two weak electromagnetic impulses of the child's brain, as if Rosalia was in a state of sleep.
Chapel attendants claim that sometimes a faint lavender scent emanates from the girl's body. Scientists are still unable to explain this phenomenon, but deeply religious people consider Rosalia a "messenger of God".
For more information about the Sleeping Beauty mummy Rosalind Lombardo, see the video:
Learn more about - another vibrant place in Sicily. And about the city of Cefalu on the same island and its interesting places.
Opening hours, ticket prices
Catacombs are available for viewing from 9 am to 5 pm(during the high season, the opening hours are extended to 19 hours). Lunch break is from 13:00 to 15:00.
Baby angelic face Rosalia Lombardo captivates with beauty. Plump lips, tender cheeks and closed eyes - she has remained this way for almost a century. The body of two-year-old Rosalia was embalmed using a special technology, and today "Sleeping Beauty" considered the best preserved mummy in the world. However, this mummy has its own secret, which will shock everyone who dares to look at it.
Baby Rosalia was only two years old when she died of pneumonia in 1920. The inconsolable father, not knowing how to survive the pain of loss, turned to the famous embalmer and taxidermist Alfred Salafia for help with a request to save the body of an angelic child. The specialist coped with the task perfectly: for a century the body of the crumbs lay in the burial catacombs in Palermo (Italy). The girl's body looked beautiful, it seemed that she had fallen asleep for a while and was about to wake up. Puffy cheeks, elegant hair with a bow - Rosalia looked like a living thing.
When scientists discovered the mummified body of Rosalia, they gave her the name "Sleeping Beauty". Having illuminated the body with X-rays, they were amazed: the internal organs remained incorruptible. Today, the body of Rosalia Lombardo is considered one of the best preserved mummies in the world.
The mummy of Rosalia also has its own mystery: visitors who come with an excursion to the catacombs assure that you can see how the baby opens her blue eyes. What they see causes fear among tourists. According to one version, the “wink” effect occurs due to temperature changes inside the crypt, the skin of the eyelids shrinks, slightly opening the pupils. However, exhibition curator Dario Piombino-Mascali believes that the winking eyes are an optical illusion. As the sun illuminates the catacombs, the rays fall on the girl's face so that her eyes look ajar. During the day, this phenomenon can be observed several times. Dario found the answer in 2009, when museum workers moved the girl's coffin, and it became clear that the eyelids were ajar.
It is also interesting that Dario found the relatives of a talented embalmer, and they have preserved documents with a detailed description of the procedure for embalming the body. Instead of removing all the internal organs, Alfred Salafia made a puncture in the body and gradually introduced substances one by one, which ensured the perfect preservation of the body over time. Formalin killed the bacteria, glycerin was used to prevent the body from drying out, salicylic acid was used as an antifungal agent. In addition, Salafiya used zinc chloride to make the body petrify, and there were no further dips in the cheeks and nasal cavity.
