Burnet Mausoleum
The facade of this imported Italian marble vault is typical of the exuberant decoration and form found in the Baroque style of architecture. Erected in 1865, it was designed by Cincinnati architect Charles Rule for the Burnet family. Rule’s design includes twin cherubs leaning against an urn while they hover over the entry. Two other urns are topped with the flame of life.
Judge Jacob Burnet originally had a vault in Cincinnati’s Presbyterian Churchyard, but fearing urban development, he gave up his churchyard plot and purchased a plot at Spring Grove. He died in 1853 and was buried in the plot he purchased at Spring Grove. However, his wife had her own ideas about where she wanted to spend eternity and had this mausoleum built to Charles Rule’s design. In 1865, the Judge’s remains were disintered and placed in the newly completed Burnet mausoleum. He shares the mausoleum with his wife and son.
Text and photo © Douglas Keister Visit Doug’s Author Page
[address cemetery=”Spring Grove Cemetery” street=”Spring Grove Ave” city=”Cincinnati” state=”Ohio” zip=”45232″]
Italian Benevolent Society Tomb
Of all the tombs in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, the New Orleans Italian Mutual Benevolent Society’s marble masterpiece is the shining star. Architect Pietro Gualdi (his name is inscribed underneath the “Italia” name) designed this tomb in 1857, that for all the world looks like a fancy chest of drawers. Its 24 vaults were for the temporary use of the society’s members, and one’s stay would generally last for a year or so before the bones would be scooped up and placed in a receptacle in the tomb’s basement. The $40,000 cost of the tomb had to be shared among the society’s members, so it was understandable that one’s stay would be brief before joining the bones of their fellow Italians.
The tomb is a fine example of the fanciful nature of the Baroque style of architecture, which fittingly had its roots in Italy. Baroque architecture is characterized by exuberant decoration, sweeping curvaceous forms and an almost playful delight in composition, all of which are evident in this society tomb. The tomb includes three elegantly carved marble statues of female figures; one holding a cross surmounting the top, one in a niche above “Italia” and another out of view in a niche on the left representing “Charity”.
Photo and text © Douglas Keister Visit Doug’s Author Page
[address cemetery=”St. Louis Cemetery No. 1″ street=”425 Basin Street” city=”New Orleans” state=”Louisiana” zip=”70112″]
de la Montanya Mausoleum
Dark and brooding, the de la Montanya mausoleum is in a state of arrested decay. The mausoleum, designed in 1909 by noted funerary architect Bernard J.S. Cahill, is constructed of red sandstone and originally contained three Tiffany stained glass windows. Cahill modeled his three stage Spanish Gothic Tower on a cathedral in Burgos, Spain. Pinnacles, crockets, sprockets and gargoyles protrude from every surface making the mausoleum look more like an elaborate confection than a home for the dead.
Like many sandstone structures, it seems to attract ivy like a magnet. The ivy grows into the cracks and crevices of the stone and slowly forces the joints apart. The problem is compounded in structures like this, which have a variety of surfaces for the ivy to attach itself.
As if the damage from the ivy wasn’t enough, an earthquake in the late 1950’s destroyed the Tiffany windows and seriously damaged the structure itself.
James de la Montanya (1819-1909) was one of many men who struck it rich during the California Gold Rush. Like most of the men who made their fortune during that time he made his money not by digging for gold, but by selling supplies to the men who did the digging. In addition to supplying the 49er’s with hardware and other materials de la Montanya had a prosperous horse breeding business.
Photo and text © Douglas Keister Visit Doug’s Author Page
[address cemetery=”Cypress Lawn Memorial Park” street=”1370 El Camino Real” city=”Colma” state=”California” zip=”94014″]
Neptune Society Columbarium
Noted architect, Bernard J.S. Cahill (1866-1944), designed this magnificent columbarium in 1898. Cahill was especially well known for his designs of funerary architecture. This example is certainly one of his highest achievements, even though he was only 32 years old when he received the design commission. Cahill’s masterpiece is a classic Beaux Arts design, using elements of Baroque, Classical Revival and English neoclassicism.
The columbarium has, in recent years, been given a splash of color by famed San Francisco colorist, Bob Buckter, known for his colorful paint schemes used on many of San Francisco’s elegant Victorian homes.
The three floors of the columbarium contain 4500 niches for cremains (cremated remains). There are only a couple hundred niches left. The Neptune Society Columbarium is the only site within the city limits of San Francisco where a civilian’s remains may be interred. Today, the he military has a limited amount of space available for military personnel at the Presidio, which is in the city limits, but is not subject to San Francisco’s law banning cemeteries.
The Neptune Society of Northern California, a division of Sentinel Cremation Society Inc. operates the columbarium.
Text and photo © Douglas Keister Visit Doug’s Author Page
[address cemetery=”” street=”1 Loraine Court” city=”San Francisco” state=”California” zip=”94118″]
Pizzati Mausoleum
The mausoleum of Captain Salvatore Pizzati was manufactured by Charles Orleans from a design of Orleans’ architect Charles Brune. There is a strong tradition of above ground burial in New Orleans and understandably, there are a number of mausoleum builders who offered their services to New Orleanians. During the Golden Age of the mausoleum (post Civil War to the Great Depression) there was lively competition among mausoleum builders to build the best and try to out do one another. It would appear that the Pizzati mausoleum is a result of that competition and consequently, is one of the most ornate and eclectic mausoleums in the cemetery.
Among its ornaments the Pizzati monument is embellished with Medieval turrets, Byzantine Columns, curved dentils, a statue of “Memory”, elegantly carved garlands in the frieze area, a blind window, a draped urn and a alpha and omega symbol.
Captain Salvatore Pizzati was an Italian immigrant who made his fortune as an importer of tropical fruit. Perhaps Salvatore’s mausoleum was just the reflection of a whimsical and somewhat eccentric man: the story goes that before he died, Pizzati requested that he be buried with his favorite rocking chair and apparently the chair was placed in a chamber below his crypt.
Photos and text © Douglas Keister Visit Doug’s Author Page
[address cemetery=”Metairie Cemetery” street=”5101 Pontchartrain Boulevard” city=”New Orleans” state=”Louisiana” zip=”70124″]
