Museo delle anime del Purgatorio
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Museo delle Anime del Purgatorio | |
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| Established | after 1917 |
|---|---|
| Location | Rome, 12 Lungotevere Prati |
| Coordinates | 41°54′15.08″N 12°28′20.37″E / 41.9041889°N 12.4723250°E |
The Museo delle Anime del Purgatorio (Italian for Museum of the Souls of Purgatory) is a museum of Rome (Italy), in 12 Lungotevere Prati, within the vestry of the Chiesa del Sacro Cuore del Suffragio.
In 1897 a fire burned a chapel of the Chiesa del Sacro Cuore del Suffragio. The priest Victor Jouët saw on the wall behind the altar the image of a human face bearing a sad and melancholy expression, impressed by the flames. He believed that the soul of a deceased man, condemned to Purgatory, had tried to get in contact with living people.
This specific occurrence brought to the foundation of the museum. Victor Jouët decided to find other documents and statements about similar facts. The research proved to be more difficult than expected, nevertheless he searched out many materials, showing the following: the deceased people, compelled to pass a period in the afterlife reign of Purgatory in order to purify from their sins, tried to catch the attention of the people still alive, so as to ask them for prayers and suffrage masses and so facilitating their transition to Paradise.
