The Via Ostiensis Necropolis in Rome: endurance, change, and a complex transition to the paleochristian funerary world

The archaeological remains of a vast and well-preserved necropolis, which has become the focus of a new interdisciplinary research project, follow the Via Ostiensis in Rome. These monumental tombs were continuously used by the middle echelon from the 2nd century BCE until the 4th century CE, and illustrate the transition from cremation to inhumation as the preferred burial custom. Most of the exposed burial spaces retain deposits of human remains in situ. A new interdisciplinary research project aims to completely re-examine the entire area and its material, including human remains, epigraphic material and artefacts. The Via Ostiensis Necropolis is a privileged site for investigating the transition of funerary practices, rituals, and mentalities towards death elicited by Christianity, illustrated most clearly by the shift from cremation to inhumation. This transition is observable in the reorganization of the spaces and the funerary architecture, where, despite the shift from paganism to Christianity, both types of burial practices coexist, and the later burials respect the sacredness of the cremations previously deposited.