St.Agatha's catacombs

Five years of my life were spent at St Paul's Missionary College, a secondary school in Rabat. Among my classmates were bloggers Toni Sant and Immanuel Mifsud and cartoonist GattAldo. The school is built on top of St.Agatha's catacombs in which we occasionally found refuge from strict teacher-priests. Kenneth Curmi writes about these catacombs here:

The Early Christians created an extensive network of subterranean catacombs. St. Agatha's are a fine example. According to a strong local tradition, during the persecution of Christians decreed by the Roman Emperor Trajanus Decius (AD 249-251), Agatha, together with some of her friends, fled from Sicily, her native land, and took refuge in Malta.

It is said that she only stayed in Malta for a few years, spending her days praying in the crypt we find at Rabat. She had in fact decided to go back to Sicily. As soon as she landed she was arrested, and brought before Quintanus, praetor of Catania, who condemned her to torture and imprisonment. After a few days, on the 5th of February 251, she died in prison as a martyr..

The crypt of St. Agatha is hewn in live rock. It is an underground basilica, which from early ages was venerated by the Maltese. At the time of St. Agatha's stay, the crypt was a small natural cave which later on, during the 4th or 5th century, was enlarged and embellished. The main chamber here has frescoes dating from the Middle Ages, and several of the more remote passageways still contain biblical symbols dating from the Early Christian period. A seven-armed Jewish candelabra reveals that non-Christians were buried here too. Of course there are also frescoes dedicated to Saint Agatha.