The Fisherman's Tomb: The True Story of the Vatican's Secret Search

Think of a true The Da Vinci Code! The Fisherman's Tomb is the real­ life, but largely secret story, of the successful 75-year search for the tomb and remains of the Apostle Peter below the Vatican. Although Pope Francis recently placed the approval of the Catholic Church behind the discovery, most of the story has never been told.

Enter author John O'Neill. The Fisherman's Tomb is first and foremost an exciting mystery. But it is true.

The story begins with the secret financing by a wealthy Texas oilman, George Strake, in 1940 and continues through the dangerous excavations in the perilous war years. You will gain a clear understanding of the roles that Fathers Walter Carroll and Antonio Ferrua,S.J., played with the excavations. Popes Pius XII and Paul VI both had brave and instrumental parts in the discovery of the Peter's grave too. After serious errors by Vatican officials, a pioneer woman archeologist, Margherita Guarducci, locates the so called "Graffiti Wall" which had Peter's name inscribed on it over 21 times. She decodes inscriptions, including the phrase, "Peter is here" and locates the actual relics of Peter, touching off a fierce 50-year battle in and outside the Vatican over the authenticity.

This extensively researched and footnoted book, complete with comprehensive supporting sources, maps, appendixes, and interviews, represents the culmination of over five years of work by John O'Neill.

Peter's relics are under the Vatican; and it took a miraculous combination of faith, genius, and courage to find him!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: 

John O'Neill is a lawyer and former United States Supreme Court law clerk. He has made a lifetime study of Roman archeology traveling throughout the Roman world to visit sites and digs. He is the best-selling author of Unfit for Command, which became the New York Times No. 1 best seller in 2004. He has appeared extensively on national television and radio shows.