A creepy, eerie feeling surrounds you as you walk along the halls. Suddenly the ghostly voice of a monk echoes through the chamber stating “no photo.” It makes you wonder why anyone would want to take pictures in the first place. If ghosts could be caught on film, it would certainly be here.

Even though it seems like a hodgepodge of bodies, some hanging and some in open coffins, the crypt is organized by social status and gender. The first section contains the monks of the order, the original residents of crypt. This section includes the body of Brother Silvestro da Gubbio, the oldest member of the crypt whose grotesque remains have been welcoming visitors since 1599.

The secret to the embalming process is visible toward the end of the tour as one of the “strainer rooms” used to desiccate the bodies is open to view. The process is mainly due to the conditions in the crypt itself that naturally wicks away bodily fluids. However the bodies are then embalmed using vinegar before being dressed according to family requests.

This process was halted in 1871 with Brother Riccardo being the last buried under these conditions. However in the small chapel at the end of the tour houses the very last member of the crypt, a child that has come to be known as “sleeping beauty”. Rosalia Lombardo died in 1920 and thanks to a secret chemical embalming process she looks as if she is only sleeping. Encased in a glass-covered coffin, it is hard to believe that this little girl died 85 years ago. She looks like she could open her eyes at any moment, a truly haunting vision that stays with you for days.