Milan: The Cimitero Monumentale, 1

When we lived in Paris in 2014, we would sometimes take visitors to the Pere Lachaise cemetery, sometimes for the memorial monuments, sometimes for the very famous persons buried there; sometimes to help the visitors through jet-lag. In any case, from Pere Lachaise, from the Cimitero in the Field of Miracles in Pisa, from the Cementario de la Recoleta in Buenos Aires, we know that cemeteries can sometime be culturally significant repositories, museums of history, architecture, sculpture, and such. Vicki had read that there was art nouveau at Milan's Cimitero Monumentale, and so we resolved to spend an hour or two there. We were unprepared for what we saw. Yes, among all the weeping and wailing there is some art nouveau. It was, however, the monumentality of it all that struck us. Pere Lachaise could not hold a spark to it, much less a candle, in that respect. Every architectural style is present. Much of it super-sized. The sculptors of Milan evidently have been fully employed for more than a century now. So here, in two installments, without much commentary, is the exciting conclusion to our days in Milan.

A bit of the entrance pavilion, itself monumental

Weeping, etc.

At first I thought she'd had too much Campari

Of course you knew the Pasta family would have a nice one

My big fat Greek funeral

Guide to the most popular sites

Resurrection

Street scene