Top 10 Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires’ Top 10
10
Cementerio de la Recoleta
One of the world’s great necropolises, the Recoleta Cemetery, located in the
upscale, northern barrio of the same name, has been the burial place of
choice for Argentina’s elite since the mid-19th century. Presidents, military
generals, artists, aristocracy, and, most famously, Eva Perón lie interred here
in fabulous mausoleums of granite and bronze. Built tightly against each
other, the tombs are visited via a labyrinth of streets and narrow passageways.
The architectural styles are numerous and fascinating: grandiose Greek
temples stand adjacent to diminutive Egyptian pyramids and Art Nouveau
vaults are next to monumental cenotaphs. Added in 1881, an imposing Doriccolumned
entrance protects this extraordinary city of the dead.
Benediction Chapel
A number of tour
operators arrange
walking tours of the
cemetery. Eternautas
(5031-9916; www.
eternautas.com), run
by a team of local
historians, is among
the best. You can also
buy a map at the
cemetery entrance.
Grab a coffee at La
Biela (see p70), a
Parisian-style café
and one-time haunt
of the city’s
intelligentsia and
the automobile
racing fraternity.
• Map N4
• Junín 1760, btwn
Guido and Vicente López
• 4803-1594
• Open 7am–6pm daily
• Free English-language
guided tours: 11am Tue
& Thu
Top 10 Features
1 Eva Duarte de Perón
2 The Leloir Family
3 Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
4 Benediction Chapel
5 José C. Paz
6 Pantheon of Outstanding
Citizens
7 Dorrego-Ortíz Basualdo
8 Carlos Pellegrini
9 William Brown
0 Pantheon of the Fallen in the
1890 Revolution
! Eva Duarte de Perón
Evita lies embalmed
within this rather modest
family vault (below). Tribute
plaques inscribed with fiery
quotes such as, “I will
return and be millions!”
crowd its walls and flowers
always adorn its entrance.
The Leloir Family
@ Built in the style of a
Greek temple, this grandiose
family mausoleum
embodies the ambition and
confidence of Argentina’s
19th-century elite. Like
many other tombs here, its
sculptures were fashioned
in the studios of Europe.
# Domingo Faustino
Sarmiento
Sarmiento, president of
Argentina from 1868 to
1874, was a Freemason.
His tomb, which he
designed himself, bears
Masonic symbols such as
pyramids, compasses, and
the “all-seeing eye.”
$ Benediction Chapel
This 1882 chapel is
unusual for the remarkable
crucifix that stands over its
small altar. Sculpted from
marble by Italian artist
Giulio Monteverde, the
Cristo Morto shows Christ
in death, on the cross.