Among the many illustrious papal remains housed within the walls of St. Peters Basilica, the remains of Pope Formosus stand out due to their extraordinary and tumultuous history. Formosus, who served as Pope from 891 to 896, has become the subject of one of the most bizarre posthumous narratives in the annals of the Catholic Church. Only seven months following his death, his successor, Pope Stephen VI, ordered the disinterment of Formosuss body. This macabre act was not merely a display of disdain but culminated in a surreal trial against the deceased pontiff, accused of having usurped the papacy itself.

During this infamous trial, known as the Cadaver Synod, Formosus was dressed in papal vestments and presented before a court. Despite the appointment of a deacon to defend him in this peculiar judicial proceeding, the verdict was damning. Formosus was pronounced guilty, and in a shocking twist, his once-honored body was stripped of its papal robes and dressed instead in rags. Furthermore, the three fingers of his right hand, the very fingers that had once bestowed blessings upon the faithful, were severed from his corpse. Tragically, his remains were then disposed of in the Tiber River. However, the story of Formosus did not end there; remarkably, his waterlogged body mysteriously resurfaced downstream, and local reports claimed it continued to perform miracles even after death.

The tumultuous saga of Formosus did not fade into obscurity. A public backlash against Pope Stephen VI erupted, leading to his deposition and imprisonment. Stephen met a grim fate; he was strangled in his cell in 897, after which Formosus's remains were returned to their resting place at St. Peter's Basilica. This story of resurrection, judgment, and revenge plays a significant role in the lore surrounding the Vatican and speaks to the turbulent nature of papal politics during that era.

St. Peter's Basilica is also the final resting place for other notable figures, including exiled monarchs such as Queen Christina of Sweden and the Stuart pretenders to the English throne. Additionally, a small but solemn area known as the Teutonic Cemetery, situated adjacent to the basilica, holds the remains of various royalty. This cemetery has recently been thrust into the spotlight due to the ongoing investigation into the mysterious disappearance of Emanuela Orlandi, a Vatican resident who vanished under puzzling circumstances when she was just a teenager in 1983.

Years of searching yielded little evidence until a breakthrough came in the form of an anonymous tip that led investigators to the Teutonic Cemetery. In 2019, authorities opened two graves belonging to 19th-century German princesses, hoping to unveil clues about Orlandis fate. However, despite the excavation, the graves were found to be completely empty. This shocking discovery only deepens the enigma surrounding Orlandi's disappearance, leaving questions unanswered and the mystery unsolved. The investigation continues, with many speculating on the potential links between the storied past of the Vatican and the unresolved fate of Orlandi.