A fascinating place. I've never been in a cemetery where everyone is buried in an above ground mausoleum. That's Recoletta. Just a network of narrow alleys flanked on either side by family crypts as you can see from the picture above. These are purchased outright, so like any other neighborhood some are kept immaculately and some . . . well some look like the body might just spill out of the casket at any moment. Most have either open grates or glass doors so you can see into the crypt. The caskets are not encased in anything. They are just sitting there. So many small ones, very sad. Where the glass is broken or some other deterioration exposes the crypt to the elements the rain comes in and the caskets have begun to deteriorate. This happens when the last person in the family dies or there simply isn't anyone willing or financially able to maintain the plot. You can see ceilings caving in, bushes growing out of caskets, and even trash that people have thrown in. Many of course are spectacular. The cost of a very small plot is about $55,000 US, which will get you an apartment in BA. Most people want to see Eva Peron's burial place. We have a picture in the next post. It's pretty out of the way and fairly unassuming under the circumstances. It is a most interesting place to visit and we regretted a little that we did not join one of the tours. Most interesting story. Rufina Cambaceres, a young girl who appeared to have died in the early 1900s but may actually have been in a coma. She was buried alive. Sometime after she was interred workers heard screams coming from her casket. When they opened it they found scratches on the lid and on on her face from trying to escape. Unfortunately she had died - this time for real. Uh, no thanks.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Recoletta Cemetery
A fascinating place. I've never been in a cemetery where everyone is buried in an above ground mausoleum. That's Recoletta. Just a network of narrow alleys flanked on either side by family crypts as you can see from the picture above. These are purchased outright, so like any other neighborhood some are kept immaculately and some . . . well some look like the body might just spill out of the casket at any moment. Most have either open grates or glass doors so you can see into the crypt. The caskets are not encased in anything. They are just sitting there. So many small ones, very sad. Where the glass is broken or some other deterioration exposes the crypt to the elements the rain comes in and the caskets have begun to deteriorate. This happens when the last person in the family dies or there simply isn't anyone willing or financially able to maintain the plot. You can see ceilings caving in, bushes growing out of caskets, and even trash that people have thrown in. Many of course are spectacular. The cost of a very small plot is about $55,000 US, which will get you an apartment in BA. Most people want to see Eva Peron's burial place. We have a picture in the next post. It's pretty out of the way and fairly unassuming under the circumstances. It is a most interesting place to visit and we regretted a little that we did not join one of the tours. Most interesting story. Rufina Cambaceres, a young girl who appeared to have died in the early 1900s but may actually have been in a coma. She was buried alive. Sometime after she was interred workers heard screams coming from her casket. When they opened it they found scratches on the lid and on on her face from trying to escape. Unfortunately she had died - this time for real. Uh, no thanks.
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