Snapshot

by Stephany Cafano

A photography assignment... in a cemetery?

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I was a little, let’s say, unsure what to expect when my photography teacher announced this slightly macabre school field trip, but from the very moment I arrived at Cimitero Monumentale di Milano (Monumental Cemetery) I was pleasantly surprised. Entrance to the cemetery is through the elaborately designed Memorial Chapel, which was built in the late 19th century by architect Carlo Machiachini. It is also known as Famedio (Temple of Fame), as it is filled with inscriptions and sculpted busts of prominent Italian persons who have contributed greatly to Italy’s cultural history. My appetite whet, I was eager to see what lay beyond the entrance. What I found was a carefully designed graveyard, unlike anything I have seen at home in the United States. Many of the graves were adorned by angelic and enchanting statues of marble or stone and as I wandered through the cemetery, I was amazed at how some of the older graves, even those dating as far back as 1912, were maintained with fresh flowers. In fact, almost all of the graves were well kept and their wilting flowers replaced with fresh ones almost weekly.

It seemed to me that many of the cemetery’s residents had chosen to be buried alongside their beloved family members and spouses and many were laid to rest in an elaborate family tomb. I later found out that the tradition of the family tomb emerged in the time of the Etruscans. The practice was later adopted by the Romans and eventually the Catholic Church. To the Italians, the importance of family unity is not diminished, even after death.