From the main avenue, called “of the cypresses”, which goes from the monumental entrance to the church of Saints Niccolò and Cataldo, a road branches off that gives access to the “funeral garden” that extends over a rectangular area, crossed by an irregular network of avenues and winding paths between tombs, burials and chapels. The stone most used, both for buildings and for sculptures, is Lecce stone.
The oldest building in the cemetery is certainly the church of Saints Niccolò and Cataldo, built in the 12th century and later remodeled in Baroque style in the 17th century. The church was built by Tancredi d’Altavilla together with the still existing monastery, in which the Benedictines settled at first and the Olivetans from 1497, who operated in this place until the expulsion of the religious orders from southern Italy, which occurred in 1807. The church is annexed to the cemetery area, while the monastery is outside.
The cemetery of the city of Lecce, at least a part of the land, the main part of the cemetery was privately owned by Girolamo Luigi Berarducci, who was mayor of Lecce from 1842 to 1844.
Among the most important names buried in this cemetery are the tenor Tito Schipa, the poet Vittorio Bodini and the mathematician Ennio De Giorgi.
Amore DI Puglia Pillow
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