Of the photos I took of tombs in Cementerio de la Recoleta, Buenos Aires, there remain but three . The first is a popular subject for photographers and provides an interesting story for visitors . Liliana Crociati de Szaszak (1944-1970) was in Innsbruck, Austria on her honeymoon when she was killed by an avalanche that struck the hotel in which she was staying . The grief of her father was enormous and he had a glass tomb constructed in front of which he placed a sculpture of Liliana in her wedding dress . Later, when Liliana’s dog Sabíº died, a sculpture of the dog was placed on the tomb as well . The second tomb belongs to Juan Facundo Quiroga (1788-1835) . Facundo’s tomb is crowned by a sculpture of La Dolorosa by Tantardini which, incidentally, is actually a likeness of Facundo’s wife Dolores . Facundo was an Argentine caudillo, a term that connotes the fact that he was more warlord than military leader . Facundo died at the hands of assassins and, interestingly enough, is buried standing upright . The third tomb is that of Bernardo de Irigoyen (1822-1906) and his father Fermen Yrigoyen (1795-1853) . Bernardo de Irigoyen served many influential roles in Argentina’s political system including senator, governor of Buenos Aires, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of Internal Affairs . He was instrumental in negotiating the borders of Argentina with its neighbors . Of all the tombs in Recoleta, Irigoyen’s is the only one I actually peered into, snapping a photo of the interior as I did so.
Tomb of Liliana Crociati de Szaszak (1944-1970)
SOURCE: Â Tomb of Liliana Crociati de Szaszak (1944-1970) (Buenos Aires, Argentina), photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 31 Dec 2010.
Sculpture of Liliana Crociati de Szaszak
SOURCE: Â Sculpture of Liliana Crociati de Szaszak (1944-1970) (Buenos Aires, Argentina), photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 31 Dec 2010.
Tomb of Juan Facundo Quiroga (1788-1835)
SOURCE: Tomb of Juan Facundo Quiroga (1788-1835) (Buenos Aires, Argentina), photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 31 Dec 2010.
Tomb of Bernardo de Irigoyen (1822-1906)
SOURCE: Tomb of Bernardo de Irigoyen (1822-1906) (Buenos Aires, Argentina), photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 31 Dec 2010.
Interior of the Tomb of Bernardo de Irigoyen (1822-1906)
SOURCE: Interior of the Tomb of Bernardo de Irigoyen (1822-1906) (Buenos Aires, Argentina), photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 31 Dec 2010.
Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko
