Dis Manibus

(to the gods the Manes). The letters D.M. are sometimes found inscribed in the catacombs. Boldetti, together with others of the earlier school of antiquaries, claimed that they stood for "Deo Maximo;" but De' Rossi has doubtless advanced the more correct theory, i.e., that they stand for "Diis Manibus" (dedicated to the deified shades of the departed), which was a heathen motto, but was inscribed upon the Christian tombstones, and shows how slowly people relax the customs of their ancestors.