Tomb of Nero

On the outskirts of Rome, along the ancient Via Cassia, a large sepulchral monument cannot be missed. For centuries, it has been known as the Tomb of Nero. But this is actually the final resting place of proconsul Publius Vibius Marianus, not the famous Roman emperor.

The monument dates back to the late 3rd century, around 200 years after Nero’s death in 68. The belief that Nero could come back from the dead was popular after the death of the emperor and was common for centuries. In the 12th century, Pope Paschal II destroyed the mausoleum that held Nero’s ashes, fearing that the former emperor could come back from the dead as the Antichrist.