This is a list of the burial places of ancient Roman, and later Eastern Roman (or Byzantine), emperors and their family members.
Early imperial figures were cremated. Inhumations became more common in the second century, though occasional imperial cremations are still recorded until the 4th century. Hadrian (r. 117–138) may have been the first emperor to be inhumed and not cremated, though the sources are unclear. Septimius Severus (r. 193–211) was cremated; his son Geta (r. 211) appears to have been inhumed whereas his other son Caracalla (r. 211–217) was also cremated. In the later Christian empire, cremation became viewed as a pagan practice and the dead were normally inhumed. The resting places for many emperors, particularly those during the Crisis of the Third Century (235–285), remain unknown. Several emperors were not buried at all, having been killed in battle or subjected to damnatio memoriae.
The list includes all reigning emperors, whether their burials are known or not. Family members of the emperors are also included in the list, though only if their burial sites are known or if there has been discussion on the subject. Non-emperors are arranged temporaly (if possible), listed beneath the respective emperors. Emperors are marked with bold text and distinct background color in the list.
Extant remains The majority of imperial burial sites have been damaged over the centuries, either deliberately or by accident. The following figures either have known burial sites, where their remains can still be found, or have been discovered in modern times:
(Unknown name) Mother of Maximinus Daza and sister of Galerius (d. early 4th century): buried in the Mausoleum at Šarkamen. The mausoleum was excavated in 1996 and a small amount of ashes and human bones, identified as those of Maximinus Daza's mother, were discovered. Helena, mother of Constantine the Great (d. c. 330): buried in the Mausoleum of Helena in Rome. Her remains were stolen in the 9th century and taken to Germany, but eventually retrieved and transferred to Santa Maria in Ara Coeli in Rome, where they are still housed as relics. Constantina, daughter of Constantine the Great (d. 354): buried in the Mausoleum of Constantina in Rome. Constantina's sarcophagus was removed to the Vatican in the 18th century but her remains were turned into relics, which are still exhibited at the central altar in the mausoleum (now the Santa Costanza church). Emperor Alexios IV of Trebizond, emperor of Trebizond 1417–1429 (d. 1429): buried in the Panagia Chrysokephalos Church in Trebizond. The only surviving imperial tomb in the Chrysokephalos. The church structure was destroyed in 1919, but Alexios IV's remains were given to the Pontic community in Greece and later reburied in the New Soumela monastery in the village of Kastania, near Veria in northern Greece. Sophia Palaiologina, granddaughter of Manuel II Palaiologos (d. 1503): buried in the Cathedral of the Archangel in Moscow.
Unverified The following figures have reportedly had their remains discovered in modern times, but no studies have confirmed the identification: Empress Theodora, wife of Theophilos and regent for Michael III (d. c. 867): buried in the Monastery of Gastria in Constantinople. Local tradition in Corfu claims that Theodora's remains were taken to Corfu's Cathedral of Panagia Spilaiotissa after the fall of Constantinople. Her purported relics are processed through Corfu once a year. Emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos, emperor 1282–1328 (d. 1332): buried in the Lips Monastery in Constantinople. Several coffins were discovered during an examination of the Lips Monastery in the early 20th century. Theodore Makridi identified an intact tomb discovered at this time as the tomb of Andronikos II. Marinis (2009) considers this identification to be without evidence but Melvani (2018) considers it reasonable. Empress Helena Dragaš, wife of Manuel II Palaiologos (d. 1450): buried in the Monastery of the Pantokrator in Constantinople. The Saint Patapios Monastery in Loutraki, Greece claims that Helena's remains were moved there after the fall of Constantinople, and keeps her purported skull as a holy relic.
Remains lost in modern times In the 15th and 16th centuries, excavations of the Mausoleum of Honorius yielded the remains of five individuals, identified as empresses Maria and Thermantia (wives of Honorius), an adult and an infant (probably Galla Placidia and her young son Theodosius), and a "Christian prince" (possibly one of the last western Roman emperors). Golden objects found with these burials were melted down and no record was kept of the dispersal of the other precious objects, or what happened to the remains. Empress Anna of Hohenstaufen, wife of John III Doukas Vatatzes (d. 1307) was buried in Iglesia San Juan del Hospital in Valencia, Spain. The church was heavily damaged in the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939). Anna's remains were reportedly destroyed or scattered around the site and her skull was for a time used as an ornament on the front of a car. The rebuilt church has a restored sepulchre for Anna, which does not contain any remains.
Principate (27 BC – AD 285)
Julio-Claudian dynasty (27 BC – AD 68)
Person Death Tomb CommentsAugustus14Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (destroyed)Marcellus23 BCMausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (destroyed)Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa12 BCAgrippa had built a tomb for himself but Augustus had his remains placed in the Mausoleum of Augustus.Cassius Dio 54.28.5Octavia the Younger11 BCNero Claudius Drusus9 BCLivia (empress)29Lucius Caesar2Gaius Caesar4Tiberius37Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (destroyed)Germanicus19Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (destroyed)Drusus Julius Caesar23Mausoleum of Augustus (probably)(Rome) (destroyed)Livilla31A tomb near the Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (lost)Nero Julius Caesar31Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (destroyed)Drusus Caesar33Agrippina the Elder33Julia Drusilla38Tiberius Gemellus~38A tomb near the Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (lost)Buried in the same place as Livilla.Caligula41Unknown locationAfter Caligula's assassination, his body was hastily cremated in the Lamian Gardens and buried under shallow turf by his sisters. After their return from exile, Caligula's sisters reportedly exhumed the ashes and placed them in a tomb. It has been suggested that the ashes were placed in the Mausoleum of Augustus, though this cannot be confirmed.Claudius54Mausoleum of Augustus (probably)(Rome) (destroyed)Messalina (empress)48Unknown locationMessalina was subjected to damnatio memoriae. What happened to her body after her death is not recorded.Britannicus55Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (destroyed)Agrippina the Younger (empress)59Tomb of Agrippina the Younger(Misenum) (moved?)Mausoleum of Augustus (?)(Rome) (destroyed)Agrippina's household gave her a modest tomb in Misenum.Tacitus, Annals XIV.9. She may have later been moved to the Mausoleum of Augustus.Nero68Mausoleum of the Domitii Ahenobarbi(Rome) (unknown fate)Nero's ashes were placed in a porphyry urn beneath the marble altar in the Mausoleum of the Domitii Ahenobarbi, located on the Pincian Hill in Rome. In 1099, the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo was built on Nero's purported burial site by Pope Paschal II.Claudia Octavia (empress)62Mausoleum of Augustus (?)(Rome) (destroyed)Claudia Augusta63Mausoleum of Augustus (probably)(Rome) (destroyed)Poppaea Sabina (empress)65Tomb of the Julii(Rome) (unknown fate)Poppaea's ashes were interred in the "Tomb of the Julii" in the Campus Martius. This tomb may also have contained the ashes of Julius Caesar and Caesar's daughter Julia. She is sometimes alternatively stated to have been buried in the Mausoleum of Augustus.
Year of the Four Emperors (68–69)
Person Death Tomb CommentsGalba69Tomb of Galba(Rome) (lost)Galba was buried in a tomb in his private gardens in Rome, located somewhere along the Via Aurelia.Otho69Tomb of Otho(Brixellum) (lost)Otho was buried in a modest tomb in Brixellum (modern-day Brescello), near the Po river.Vitellius69No burialVitellius's body was mutilated and thrown in the Tiber river. First emperor whose corpse was publicly desecrated.
Flavian dynasty (69–96)
Person Death Tomb CommentsVespasian79Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (moved)Temple of the gens Flavia(Rome) (lost)Vespasian was originally buried in the Mausoleum of Augustus. His ashes were later brought to the Temple of the gens Flavia by Domitian.Domitilla the Elder??Mausoleum of Augustus (?)(Rome) (destroyed)The Domitillas, Vespasian's wife and daughter, died before he became emperor. A later inscription places their remains either near or in the Mausoleum of Augustus.Domitilla the Younger~66Titus81Mausoleum of Augustus (?)(Rome) (moved)Temple of the gens Flavia(Rome) (lost)Titus's original burial place is unclear, though might have been in the Mausoleum of Augustus. His ashes were later brought to the Temple of the gens Flavia by Domitian.Julia Flavia91Temple of the gens Flavia(Rome) (lost)Domitian96Temple of the gens Flavia(Rome) (lost)Domitian's ashes were secretly interred in the Temple of the gens Flavia by his nurse Phyllis, mixed by the ashes of his niece Julia Flavia.
Nerva–Antonine dynasty (96–192)
Person Death Tomb CommentsNerva98Mausoleum of Augustus(Rome) (destroyed)Last person to be buried in the Mausoleum of Augustus.Trajan117Trajan's Column(Rome) (unknown fate)Trajan's ashes were interred in a burial urn in a small chamber in the base of Trajan's Column. The burial urn and the platform on which it stood are now lost.Pompeia Plotina (empress)~122Trajan's Column (?)(Rome) (unknown fate)The platform where Trajan's burial urn was located was large enough to hold two burial urns. The urn of Plotina, Trajan's wife, was presumably placed next to her husband's.Hadrian138Mausoleum of Hadrian(Rome) (destroyed)Hadrian was initially buried at Puteoli on an estate that had once belonged to Cicero, since his planned mausoleum was unfinished. Hadrian's ashes were interred in his mausoleum by his successor, Antoninus Pius, in 140. According to later tradition, Hadrian's sarcophagus was reused for the burial of Pope Innocent II in 1143 and destroyed in a fire in the 14th century.Vibia Sabina (empress)~137Mausoleum of Hadrian(Rome) (destroyed)Lucius Aelius Caesar138Mausoleum of Hadrian (probably)(Rome) (destroyed)Antoninus Pius161Mausoleum of Hadrian(Rome) (destroyed)Aurelia Fadilla135Mausoleum of Hadrian(Rome) (destroyed)Faustina the Elder (empress)140Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus??Galerius Aurelius Antoninus??Lucius Verus169Mausoleum of Hadrian(Rome) (destroyed)Marcus Aurelius180Aelius Aurelius149Mausoleum of Hadrian(Rome) (destroyed)Aurelius Antoninus149Domitia Faustina151Faustina the Younger (empress)~176Mausoleum of Hadrian (probably)(Rome) (destroyed)Commodus192Mausoleum of Hadrian(Rome) (destroyed)
Year of the Five Emperors (193)
Person Death Tomb CommentsPertinax193Tomb of Pertinax(Rome) (moved)Mausoleum of Hadrian (probably)(Rome) (destroyed)Pertinax was quietly buried with "all honor" in the "tomb of his wife's grandfather" under Didius Julianus. Pertinax was later given an honorary state funeral by Septimius Severus, probably being reburied in the Mausoleum of Hadrian.Didius Julianus193Tomb of Salvius Julianus(Rome) (lost)Didius Julianus was buried in his great-grandfather's tomb by the fifth milestone on the Via Labicana.
Severan dynasty (193–235)