Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview: #1 The Scavi Tour, which takes visitors to the newly opened necropolis beneath St. Peter's Basilica, is one of Rome's hottest tickets. But the tour only tells part of the story. The Vatican's top-secret search for answers lasted for decades, and involved some of the brightest minds. #2 The priest who came to Houston to meet with George Strake was Walter Carroll, one of the most trusted confidants of Pope Pius XII. The Catholic Church wanted Strake's commitment to finance a special project. Carroll explained that this project would involve immense, uncertain cost. #3 The secret project that sent Carroll to Strake had begun in Rome a few months earlier. In the middle of February 1939, an excavation team began to dig beneath the basilica for a grave for the deceased pope and a small chapel to surround it. They found the remains of a Christian woman from the mid-second century. #4 The Roman Empire was built on the blood of its enemies, and the Christians were a particularly secretive cult that was viewed as a threat to the dignitas of Roman Rome. They were unpopular and could not leave any traceable public display of their beliefs

Mode of access: World Wide Web