Franciscan Monastery Crypt

Few people realize catacombs are beneath the Franciscan Monastery in Washington, DC. Built-in the late 1800s by monks, the catacombs are replicas of Roman tombs. Their purpose is to offer Americans a spiritual pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Although only a few bodies are interred here (most are in Rome), religious statues and replicas of Holy Land shrines are displayed with in-depth descriptions of the lives of the saints.

The crypt does contain the remains of two people. The first is Saint Innocent (Saint Innocentius), an eight-year-old child martyr murdered during the Roman oppression of the Second Century. While his head is made of wax and covered with a wig, the child's hands are the bones covered with gauze.

The other tomb retains the bones of  Saint Benignus, a loyal disciple of Saint Patrick of Ireland. Benignus was known as St. Patrick’s psalm singer. His bones were buried here, but his head remains in Rome. Tours are available for free by visiting MyFranciscan.org.