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La Recoleta Cemetery
Topics: Cemeteries in Argentina
La Recoleta Cemetery is a famous cemetery located in the exclusive Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The layout of the cemetery was designed by the French engineer Prospero Catelin, and was remodeled in 1881, while Torcuato de Alvear was mayor of the city, by the Italian architect Juan Antonio Buschiazzo.
The Cemetery includes graves of some of the most influential and important persons of Argentina, including several presidents, scientists, and wealthy characters. Internationally, Eva Peron is the best known person buried in this cemetery.
The entrance to the cemetery is through neo-classical gates with tall Greek columns. The cemetery contains many elaborate marble mausoleums, decorated with statues, in a wide variety of architectural styles. The entire cemetery is laid out in sections like city blocks, with wide tree-lined main walkways branching into sidewalks filled with mausoleums.
While many of the mausoleums are in fine shape and well-maintained, others have fallen into disrepair. Several can be found with broken glass, littered with rubbish, and on occasion you might find a mausoleum being used as a janitorial supply closet, with cleaning and maintenance products stored on top of coffins.
Each mausoleum bears the family name etched into the facade; brass or bronze plaques are added to the front for particular family members. La Recoleta is one of those cemeteries where the tradition of engraving a death date but no birth date has been maintained.
One interesting and unique aspect of La Recoleta is a colony of feral cats that resides within the gates. Although they can be spotted anytime, they tend to gather in groups of dozens near closing-time, when some locals feed them.
The cemetery was featured in the educational film Destinos as the final resting spot of a wife of the main character.
Famous people buried at La Recoleta
Some of the famous interred in La Recoleta Cemetery are:
William Brown (admiral) (1777-1857), Admiral, Father of the Argentine Navy
Juan Bautista Alberdi (1810-1884), writer, politician, lawyer
Juan Pujol, the first Governor of the Province of Corrientes and designer of the First Argentine National Stamp.
Luis Cesar Amadori (1902-1977), poet, composer
Nicolas Avellaneda (1837-1885), President of Argentina
Susan Barrantes, (1937-1998), mother of Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York
Adolfo Bioy Casares (1914-1999), writer
Miguel Juarez Celman (1844-1909), President of Argentina
Juan Manuel de Rosas (1793-1877), politician, caudillo
Luis Firpo (1894-1960), heavyweight boxer, "The Wild Bull of the Pampas"
Oliverio Girondo (1891-1967), poet, journalist
Jose Hernandez (1834-1886), writer
Arturo Umberto Illia (1900-1983), President of Argentina
Enrique Larreta (1875-1961), writer
Luis F. Leloir (1906-1987), scientist, Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry
Leandro Alem (1844-1896) politician
Candido Lopez (1840-1902), painter and soldier
Vicente Lopez y Planes (1785-1856), lyrcist, politician
Leopoldo Lugones (1874-1938), writer
Eduardo Mallea (1903-1982), novelist, essayist
Carlos Menditeguy (1915-1973), race car driver and sportsman
Bartolome Mitre (1821-1906), writer, former president
Victoria Ocampo (1890-1979), writer, publisher
Carlos Pellegrini (1846-1906), former president
Luis Piedrabuena (1833-1883), explorer
Eva Peron (1919-1952), First Lady of Argentina
Honorio Pueyrredon (1876-1945), educator, statesman
Hipolito Yrigoyen (1852-1933), politician, former president
Dante Quinterno (1909-2003), cartoonist
Carlos Saavedra Lamas (1878-1959), statesman, Nobel Peace Prize winner
Domingo Sarmiento (1811-1888), writer, former president
Juan Facundo Quiroga (1790-1835), caudillo
Isabel Walewski Colonna (1847),grandson of Napoleon Bonaparte born in Buenos Aires and die 6 days before.
See also
List of other famous cemeteries
External links
Picture gallery from South-America including a slideshow from the Recoleta Cemetery
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article La Recoleta Cemetery
