The Nicene Age · AD 313–400
Petronilla
venerated as a martyr at Rome by AD 356 · Martyr venerated at Rome · the catacomb of Domitilla, Rome
The Nicene Age
Who Petronilla was
Labelled PETRONELLA MART in the Veneranda fresco at Domitilla — which is the earliest firm evidence that she was venerated as a martyr at Rome, and the earliest securely dated appearance of her name. Everything else attached to her is later: the tradition that she was Peter’s daughter comes from the apocryphal Acts of Nereus and Achilleus and has no ancient support, and the archive flags it as post-antique legend rather than repeating it.
Named once, on a contemporary inscription, fresco or object. No text of any period mentions her.
Also listed in martyrs and women.
Common questions
When did Petronilla live?
Petronilla is dated venerated as a martyr at Rome by AD 356 in the archive, which places Petronilla in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400).
Which early sources mention Petronilla?
Petronilla is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from Epigraphic. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Petronilla from?
The archive associates Petronilla with the catacomb of Domitilla, Rome. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Petronilla’s contemporaries?
The archive links Petronilla to 2 other figures, including Veneranda and Nereus of Domitilla. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (1)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
The Veneranda fresco, catacomb of Domitilla — the painted label
c. AD 356PETRONELLA MART — the painted label identifying the figure leading Veneranda into paradise.Epigraphic · ICVR, catacomb of Domitilla
An inscription from the catacomb of Domitilla on the Via Ardeatina, published in Inscriptiones Christianae Urbis Romae septimo saeculo antiquiores (ICVR).
Names proposed by later tradition
A daughter of the apostle Peter
The tradition of the apocryphal Acts of Nereus and Achilleus, and of the whole later Roman legend. It has no support in any source of the first three centuries and the archive records it as post-antique.
A member of the gens Flavia buried at Domitilla
Inferred from the cemetery's ownership; the fresco itself gives no family.
Connected in the archive
People
Named alongside Petronilla in the sources
This figure is placed with Petronilla by the record — in a council roll, a martyr-act, a letter or a history — without Petronilla naming them in return.
Events in this lifetime
- AD 301 · Hripsime and her company, AD 301
- AD 303 · The Great Persecution begins, AD 303
- AD 303 · The search of the church at Cirta, AD 303
- AD 306 · The Council of Elvira, AD 306
- AD 311 · Galerius’ edict of Serdica, AD 311
- AD 313 · The Edict of Milan, AD 313
- AD 314 · The Council of Arles, AD 314
- AD 320 · Silvanus tried before Zenophilus, AD 320
- AD 325 · The Council of Nicaea, AD 325
- AD 339 · The persecution of Shapur II, AD 339
- AD 343 · The Council of Serdica, AD 343
Place
Places served
The one place the sources put Petronilla.
- 1Rome