Martyrs

Starting with the reign of Commodus, most literary references regarding the harbours are Christian. The oldest reference is found in an attack of the future pope Callistus I, written by the Christian author Hippolytus in the late-Severan period. The story takes place during the reign of Commodus. Later on in the story we also hear of "Marcia, a concubine of Commodus, who was a God-loving female".

Callistus happened to be a domestic of one Carpophorus, a man of the faith belonging to the household of Caesar. To this Callistus, as being of the faith, Carpophorus committed no inconsiderable amount of money, and directed him to bring in profitable returns from the banking business. And he, receiving the money, tried (the experiment of) a bank in what is called the Piscina Publica. And in process of time were entrusted to him not a few deposits by widows and brethren, under the ostensive cause of lodging their money with Carpophorus. Callistus, however, made away with all (the moneys committed to him), and became involved in pecuniary difficulties. And after having practised such conduct as this, there was not wanting one to tell Carpophorus, and the latter stated that he would require an account from him. Callistus, perceiving these things, and suspecting danger from his master, escaped away by stealth, directing his flight towards the sea. And finding a vessel in Portus ready for a voyage, he went on board, intending to sail wherever she happened to be bound for. But not even in this way could he avoid detection, for there was not wanting one who conveyed to Carpophorus intelligence of what had taken place. But Carpophorus, in accordance with the information he had received, at once repaired to the harbour (Portus), and made an effort to hurry into the vessel after Callistus. The boat, however, was anchored in the middle of the harbour; and as the ferryman was slow in his movements, Callistus, who was in the ship, had time to descry his master at a distance. And knowing that himself would be inevitably captured, he became reckless of life; and, considering his affairs to be in a desperate condition, he proceeded to cast himself into the sea. But the sailors leaped into boats and drew him out, unwilling to come, while those on shore were raising a loud cry. And thus Callistus was handed over to his master, and brought to Rome, and his master lodged him in a bakery [for forced labour].

In 1551 a reused, seated statue of Hippolytus was discovered near his tomb in Rome (perhaps it is a related personification). On the chair is a list of his writings, added during the reign of Alexander Severus. A modern head was added to the statue.
A statue of Callistus in the cathedral of Reims. Photo: Wikimedia, Fab5669.	The statue of Hippolytus found in 1551, in the Vatican Museums. Photo: digitalcommons.acu.edu, Everett Ferguson.

In the fifth century Prudentius confuses this Hippolytus with another man, who was martyred at an unknown date in Portus. His church can be found on the Isola Sacra. Two quotes from the long story by Prudentius:

Then he was brought before a maddened ruler who at that time was afflicting Christian heroes by Tiber's mouth. So the inquisitor, grown frantic, said: "Drop the claw now, torturer. If the torture has no effect, proceed by death. Behead this one; let the cross lift that one into the air and present his living eyes to the birds; bundle those off, bind them and cast them into the fire; let there be a pyre that will consume many prisoners at one time. Here are some whom you will put at once on board a leaky boat and drive out to the deep water in the midst of the sea; and when the crazy boat has carried her passengers over the raging waves and gives way under the blows of the swelling waters, her deck-timbers shall part and open out the rotten bottom, so that she will let in water at all points and founder. Some scaly monster, gorged with the bodies it has devoured, will furnish them a grave in its foul belly".

The same Hippolytus is also mentioned in other stories in the Acta Sanctorum, the "Acts of the Saints":

Romulus [vicarius Urbis Romae], angered, instructed him to be bound in his hands and feet and while still live, to be buried in a pit. Then, blessed Hypolytus the bishop, raising his eyes to heaven, said, "Lord Jesus, king of kings and lord of all rulers, I, a sinner, thank you, since you have deemed it worthy to crown me as your servant in this worldly place surrounded by the waters. I pray to you, son of the highest God, receive my spirit". And after he had been sunk into the pit in front of the walls of the city, next to the bank of the Tiber, his voice, like that of children praising God, was heard for the course of an hour. Then the Christians, under the cover of night, with hymns and praises to God dug up his body from that pit and with every care they buried him in that same place, not far from the pit itself but approximately sixty feet (more or less) from there on the tenth day before the Kalends of September [23 August] in the place where the lord brought about many marvelous things through Hypolytus' sermons, directed at the praise and glory of God's name. [Another manuscript specifies] on the island, that has the sea on one side, and is surrounded on both sides by a fork of the bed of the Tiber [the Isola Sacra].

In 1970 excavations were begun of the basilica of Hippolytus on the Isola Sacra. The campanile had always been visible. The church was built in the fourth century.
	Left: the campanile of the basilica of Hippolytus. Photo: Jan Theo Bakker. Top: an inscription from the basilica of Hippolytus. "Here the blessed martyr Hippolytus rests in peace". Photo: Parco Archeologico di Ostia Antica.

The martyrdom of Bonosa is set during the reign of Septimius Severus, in 211 AD (the story mentions his demise in York). A few quotes:

The governor ordered a tribunal to be erected at the Roman port in front of the Forum, and he ordered the holy virgin to be brought forward for his message. And he said to her: "Take heed of your beauty and sacrifice to the god Hercules, and join with me, and you will have an abundance of gold and silver and sons for your heirs". The holy virgin Bonosa responded: "May you know for certain, governor, that I will never sacrifice to empty gods. Nor will I be polluted by foreign, unclean things. Possess gold and silver yourself, you son of the devil, who ought to possess eternal torment. I, however, have an endless inheritance in heavenly realms above". The governor, sitting at the tribunal, passed a sentence of capital punishment for those who had recently been baptized; they were led outside the gate of the city and decapitated on the eighth day before the Ides of July [July 8th], taking their palm of victory for the Lord, and their bodies were buried not far off, at one mile from the Roman port.

A basilica of Eutropius, Bonosa and Zosima was to the east of Portus, near the junction of the Fossa Traiana and the Tiber. It was built at the end of the fourth century by a bishop named Donatus.
	SANCTIS MARTYRIBVS ET BEATI[ssimis] EVTROPIO BONOSAE ET ZOSIM[ae] DONATVS EPISC(opus) TVM[ul]VM ADO[rnavit] SED ET BASILICAM CONI[un]CTAM [tumulo] A FVNDAMENTIS SANCTAE [ple]BI D[ei construxit]
	For the holy and blessed martyrs Eutropius, Bonosa and Zosima bishop Donatus embellished the tomb, but also built a basilica adjoining the tomb from the foundations for the holy people of God.
	Part of an inscription belonging to the basilica. EDR149619. Photo: EDCS.

The early Christian writer Caecilius Cyprianus (c. 200-258 AD) was bishop of Carthage. In the persecution under Valerian he was beheaded. In one of his letters we hear about confessors of the Christian faith who came from Africa Proconsularis and were received at Portus.

I entreat, therefore, beloved lord Lucian, be mindful of me, and acquiesce in my petition; so may Christ grant you that sacred crown which he has given you not only in confession but also in holiness, in which you have always walked and have always been an example to the saints as well as a witness, that you will relate to all my lords, your brethren the confessors, all about this matter, that they may receive help from you. For this, my lord and brother, you ought to know, that it is not I alone who ask this on their behalf, but also Statius and Severianus, and all the confessors who have come thence hither from you; to whom these very sisters went down to the harbour and took them up into the city, and they have ministered to sixty-five, and even to this day have tended them in all things, For all are with them.

The martyrdom of Asterius is placed under the reign of Claudius Gothicus (268-270 AD). An amphitheatre-like structure is mentioned, inside the city walls, next to a "golden shrine". It could be that there was a small arena in the so-called Horrea V,I,2, in the south part of Ostia, to the east of the Campus of the Magna Mater.

Claudius Gothicus ordered that they be separated from the congregation of the just, stipulating that Asterius be taken to the city of Ostia in chains, with his entire household, and that he should undergo a criminal investigation by the judges there. The judge Gelasius, driven by anger, gave orders to hand them over to the wild animals. And immediately they were seized by servants, who led them to the place of bears, as it is commonly known, next to a golden sanctuary, because wild animals are fed there. And while all the saints entered the den of the animals, the wild animals were released immediately to kill them. Gelasius, seeing that he had been beaten in all respects, gave orders to drive them outside the walls of the city of Ostia, and to receive the death penalty there, and to strike down others with stones. Then Christians buried their bodies with great care on January 18. In that place a church was built, and there the benefactions of the martyrs flourish until the present day.

We hear of a basilica of Asterius in 383 AD. A priest called Macarius had rebelled against the pope, and had been arrested with violence:

When he [Macarius] was at Ostia, he died because of the atrocity of that wound. However, his sanctity was such that also the bishop of that place, called Florentius, admired him with a certain veneration, sharing it with Damasus. Because when the brothers had buried him in some old tomb, that same Florentius could not bear that he was lying there, where burial would seem unworthy: but transferring him from there, he buried him in the basilica of the martyr Asterius.

The most famous martyrdom is that of a girl named Aurea, the patron saint of modern Ostia Antica. The story is somewhat mixed up what that of others martyrs. It probably took place during the reign of Claudius Gothicus, even though Alexander Severus and Trebonianus Gallus are also mentioned. Again some quotes:

Many Christians were found who were unwilling to sacrifice, who endured various tortures and went to Christ as martyrs with glory - amongst whom was found a most holy young woman, born of a noble line, the daughter of emperors and a Christian from the cradle, named Aurea. [She was tortured and] Claudius ordered her to be raised from the ground and bound in chains, to be carried off in exile to Ostia with other religious men and holy young women and her entire family. And she began to live outside the walls of the city of Ostia in that place which is called Euparisti - on her own farm and there, day and night, she had her fill of fasts and feasted on prayers. There was, moreover, a bishop in the city of Ostia whose name was Cyriacus, who feared God along with his priests; Maximus, Eusebius, and Concordius, his presbyters, and Archelaus his deacon - by whose sermons God had performed many remarkable things. In that very place, the sick were healed from their infirmities by their prayers, demons were driven out, the blind were given sight. There was, moreover, a man, a prefect of magisterial power and secretly a Christian, who feared God and believed in the strength of the lord Jesus Christ, who daily feasted on his own secret sermons and fasts and his own charities. [His name was Censurinus]. Claudius ordered him to be remanded to an Ostian prison, not far from the city of Rome at the 15th milestone, near a military outpost. When the blessed Maximus had entered to see the blessed Censurinus, immediately the chains were released from his hands and feet. And at the same time blessed Maximus, opening his mouth began to tell the guards: "Brothers, give up your worldly demons and recognize God the creator, lord and Jesus Christ. His son, who existed ages before and always is and will come to judge the living and the dead and the age with fire. For our age will pass, the sky and the earth will pass, however, the lord Jesus Christ always will stay the same". The guards responded and said to Maximus the presbyter, "What should we do so that we may know him, this one whom you are heralding, through whom we have watched the chains be dissolved by your spoken prayers?" Maximus the presbyter said, "Make penance and let each one of you be baptized and believe in Jesus Christ, the crucified son of God, and let him leave behind vain idols since you unknowingly profane the name of the one whose saints you were torturing". Then Felix, Maximus, Taurinus, Herculanus, Benerius, Storacinus, Mennas, Commodus, Hermes, Maurus, Eusebius, Rusticus, Monaxius, Amandinus, Olimpius, Cyprius and Theodorus the tribune threw themselves to the feet of the blessed Maximus the presbyter and with tears, said; "We believe with our whole heart that there is no other God except the lord Jesus Christ, who is our redeemer, who shattered the iron bonds as we were watching". There was, moreover, a shoemaker in that same place, whose son had died at that very hour. While the blessed Cyriacus and Maximus and Aurea, soldiers of Christ, were passing through, the shoemaker was lamenting the death of his son. Then blessed Maximus the presbyter said to the shoemaker: "Believe in the lord Jesus Christ as we all do and you will live and you will receive your son back". [They prayed] And after everyone had said Amen, immediately the boy who had died was revived, and began talking, saying, "I saw the lord Jesus Christ leading me from the shadows to light". Then he taught him, and the boy, whom blessed Aurea supported as her own, was baptized and he received the sign of Christ. He was about 10 years old, Faustinus by name. At that same time it was announced to Claudius that at Ostia a dead man had been brought back to life through an oration of the holy men and he said, "This is nothing but magic". Then he called the vicar of the city of Rome to him, Ulpinus Romulus, to whom he gave the following instructions: "Go to the city of Ostia and whatever Christians you can find there, sentence them to various punishments in such a way that whoever sacrifices to the gods will be enriched with riches and resources and honors; and anyone who doesn't, seize them so that they may be punished and torment them with various punishments". Therefore, Ulpinus Romulus, coming into the city of Ostia, ordered all the holy people to be remanded to custody. However, rising at dawn, he ordered blessed Aurea be brought before him. [She was tortured] And he ordered the soldiers of Christ brought forth, those who trusted in the blessed Cyriacus, Maximus, Archelaus and Aurea. Romulus ordered that they be brought to the arch in front of the theatre and there he made them undergo their death sentence. Then everyone spoke as if with one voice: "All powerful lord God, receiver of our innocent spirits, accept our souls". And they were beheaded in that very spot, giving thanks to God. But Romulus ordered the blessed Cyriacus to be beheaded in jail. Then, blessed Eusebius at night gathered up all the bodies of the saints - bishop Cyriacus, presbyter Maximus and deacon Archelaus. And he buried them with every care. But Romulus ordered the bodies of the holy soldiers to be tossed into the sea - the bodies of whom the blessed presbyter, out of concern, gathered up at the seashore and hid in a field in Ostia and he buried them next to the city in an Ostian crypt, six days before the Ides of August [8 August]. But he hid Taurinus and Herculanus at the Roman harbor, placed the blessed Theodorus in his own mausoleum, and gathered up all the others and placed them next to the bodies of the holy Cyriacus and Maximus, doing this latter ten days before the Kalends of September [23 August]. [Aurea was tortured] Then he sentenced her, saying, "Let a great stone be tied to her neck and let her be thrown into the sea," but her holy body floated to shore, which the blessed Nonnus (also called Hypolytus) gathered up and buried with every care in that town of hers where she had lived, four days before the Kalends of September [29 August].

The Acta Sanctorum say that the remains of Flora and Lucilla, martyrs around 260 AD, were buried at Ostia. They also contain a short notice of four Ostian martyrdoms during the reign of Diocletian and Maximian (286-305 AD):

The emperor ordered to throw Claudius, Praepedigna, Alexander, and Maximus into the river [or sea; the Latin is not clear] at Ostia.

The last known martyrs are documented during the reign of Julianus: Gallicanus, described as consul and general, and Hilarinus, owner of a shelter for foreigners. The story contains historical inaccuracies, but at the core must be real events.

Then Gallicanus made himself the companion of a certain holy man named Hilarinus who was dwelling in Ostia; he had his dwelling-place extended in order to receive pilgrims, as he had himself been. And many of his slaves whom he had freed remained with him. And his renown was broadcast through the entire city, such that people coming from east and west could see a man, who had been a senator and a consul, and a companion of the emperors, washing feet (of pilgrims), setting table, pouring out water for hand-washing, attentively attending to the ill, and performing all the duties of holy service. He first built a church in Ostia and endowed ministries of clerics. The holy deacon Laurence appeared to him in a dream, urging him to arrange to have a church built in his name at the gate which up to the present time is called Laurentia. Asked if he was willing to be elevated to the bishopric, he did not give his consent, but at his own wish chose who (else) was to be ordained. God bestowed such grace on him that those who were possessed by demons, as soon as they had been seen by him, were straightway cleansed; and there were many other signs of holiness in him. But when Julian had been made Caesar by Constantius, he promulgated a law that Christians were to own nothing in this world. Then Gallicanus, who owned four houses in the vicinity of Ostia, whose rents he used for those good works which I mentioned, had God as his protector to such a degree that whosoever entered them either to lay claim to their revenues or to collect rents, was immediately filled with the devil; and whosoever was the tax-gatherer (for these properties) became afflicted with leprosy. When these demons had been interrogated about the matter, they gave the reply that unless Gallicanus was compelled to sacrifice, those persons collecting his taxes could not avoid such dangers. And because no one dared to summon Gallicanus in respect of this crime, Julian the Caesar sent an order, saying: "Either sacrifice to the gods, or leave Italy". Straightway abandoning all his properties, he sought Alexandria, and he joined a Christian community for a whole year. Afterwards he even went to the desert; and there, when he was compelled to sacrifice and refused to do so, he was killed by a sword to the heart by Raucianus, the custodian of the temples, and thus became a Christian martyr. And so he proceeded to the Lord rejoicing in triumph. They immediately built a basilica in his name in which the martyrss blessings abound. [since that time and now, until eternity. Amen.] But Hilarinus, the man of God who had received Gallicanus at Ostia, when he was compelled by the persecutors of the Christian faith to sacrifice, and refused, was beaten to death with staves and received the palm of martyrdom. The Christians buried his body reverently in Ostia.

A Gallicanus is also mentioned in the early fourth century in the Liber Pontificalis:

Also what Gallicanus presented to the above basilica of the holy apostles Peter and Paul and of John the Baptist; he presented the following: [list of gifts].

Christian references have been identified in the House of the Fishes, built in region IV in the late third century. Photo: Jan Theo Bakker.

More Christian martyrs than mentioned above were remembered in the harbours. The Martyrology of Jerome, a list of Christian martyrs in calendar order, that may date from the fifth century, enumerates:

24 February, in Portus: Primitivus (or Primitiva), Paulus. 16 April: in portu Romae, Victor [disputed]. 15 May: Romae in portu, Martialis [disputed]. 24 May, in Portus: Vincentius. 18 October, in Portus or Ostia: Agnes. 15 July: Eutropius, Zosima, Bonosa in porto Romano, hoc est in hiscla. 16 July: in civitate Ostia, Hilarini. 19 October: in Hostia, Asteri. 22 November and 22 December: in Ostia Demetri et Honori (or Honorati). 13 December, in Portus: Ariston.

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