• Submitted by: admin
• Arts and Culture
• Cienfuegos
• 09 / 27 / 2007

Through the road that leads to the beach of Rancho Luna, at four kilometers from the center of Cienfuegos City, theres a building surrounded by beautiful gardens that vaguely remembers the Greek Parthenon. This is the cemetery Tomas Acea, National Monument.

It was inaugurated on December 14, 1926 and for its construction were chosen wavy lands belonging to the Acea family which also donated 200 000 pesos for the construction work. The cemetery of Arlington, in the United States was chosen as a model.

The necropolis has a modern style. The columns diameter, height, and number of grooves that each has, are the only thing similar feature to the original. In the mausoleums and chapels appear valuable works of funeral art.

Its inner streets have the names of Cuban trees: Cedars, Pines, Tamarinds...

Its large gardens, excellently trimmed and the diversity of plants that surround the building, makes it different to the other cemeteries of the country.

An obelisk marks the place where rest the remains of the fallen revolutionaries in the armed rising of civil and marines against Fulgencio Batistas tyranny, on September 5, 1957.

Illustrious sons of Cienfuegos, and famous and beautiful women, rest in this monument to the passed away loved ones.

Previously in 1839, was inaugurated the other cemetery of Cienfuegos, the Reina in the neighbourhood of equal name, at three kilometers from the city. A National Monument.

It has certain characteristic singular at national scale: The distribution of its buildings (inner patio flanked by walls with three arrays of niches each); the way in which people were buried during the colonial time in the Cuba of the XIX century (in niches); the elevated artistic level reached in the carving of marble, the outstanding collection of grills, wrought and the excellent bas-reliefs that allow us to follow the features of the primitive school of sculptors from Cienfuegos.

The monuments have a finish that places them among the most outstanding worldwide, next to those of Italian cemeteries of their type.

Among those artistic works outstands The Beauty Sleepy, a piece from an Italian sculptor, which has spun an entire legend about it, due to the mystery that engulfs those who rests under its feet. It has become an entire symbol of the cemetery.

Source: By Anne Liz and Red Tony, CubaSi