Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
too plentiful and too close together. Focus
instead on a part of the cemetery. You will see
that every portion of earth is covered with mon-
uments to the heroes who lie beneath them: the
tomb of José Paz with the imploring angels fac-
ing the heavens; the neoclassical Aramburu
mausoleum (the plaque tells how one
Aramburu seized power from Perón in 1955 and
was subsequently kidnapped and killed by the
communists); and the tombs of Yrigoyen,
Saavedra, and Dorrego Guillermo Brown. The
names begin to sound familiar if you've been in
Argentina any length of time.
The many Italian names in the cemetery,
including that of the Spineto family, are
interred in mausoleums copied from ones in the
famous cemetery in Genoa. Carrera marble and
special stones were shipped from Italy to con-
struct the incredible graves you see today. The
Spineto grave features a bronze filigreed door
with representations of St. George and the
Dragon.
Facundo Quiroga's request was certainly one of
the oddest. He asked to be buried in a standing
position. His wishes were followed, and his cof-
fin is supported by two pillars and walled in
place with a haunting statue called “Sorrowing
Mary” standing as a sentinel. The figure may,
in fact, represent his grieving widow. You will
see similar statues of weeping mothers and
wives incorporated in the design of other graves
as well.
