Catacombs Of Palermo

Deep down in the catacombs of Palermo more than one thousand mummies are embedded below a Capuchin cloister: The greatest accumulation of preserved bodies worldwide. They lie in alcoves, rest in open or closed coffins or hang on the walls. Among them, what is believed to be the world's best preserved corpse: The little girl Rosalia Lombardo lies in her little casket made of glass as if she was sleeping – after almost ninety years.
However, Rosalia and the other mummified cadavers are endangered. The preserved bodies in their old clothes are decomposing. Rosalia, too, has started to show first signs of caducity.
In a large-scale research project conducted by the expert Albert Zink a group of scientists specialized on mummies is fighting to preserve the remains of the dead citizens of Palermo. In order to save Rosalia, they have to decipher the technique of her conservation. The man who mummified her, died without revealing his secret formula. The scientists succeed to achieve a sensation by taking one cautious investigative step after the other: They reveal the secret around the world's best preserved mummy – and take up the battle against death and caducity. (jakelijan virallinen teksti)