Stroll through Enna’s Hilltop Monumental Cemetery “Camposanto de’ Cappuccini”

A stroll through a cemetery may not sound like the usual way to get to know a new place, but Enna’s hilltop town cemetery, “Camposanto Dè Cappuccini” in via San Francesco D ‘Assisi, gives visitors a unique insight into the city’s interesting culture.

During my trip to Sicily, toward the end of last summer, I visited the cemetery in Enna. Let’s say that having stayed in Enna a few days, it was inevitable that I would notice it.

We all visit the graves of our loved ones; doing so is not only our need but also a biblical lesson we learnt while growing up, right? Jesus visited the tomb of Lazarus to raise him from the dead; on the morning of the Resurrection, Mary Magdalene was going to pay respects to Jesus’ tomb when she then discovered it was empty.

Teachings that make us want to visit a tomb are various, but what is actually strange is visiting a cemetery as a tourist during a vacation.

The cemetery of Enna is really a masterpiece with its origin tracked back to the year 1840 and it certainly remains among the things to do in Enna.

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Visitor’s motivation for visiting Enna’s Hilltop Cemetery in Sicily.

As we parked the car at the entrance, we were captured by the interlocking series of chapels all built uphill. The peculiarity of Enna’s town cemetery in fact, consists of permanent chapels, each different from the other, belonging to private families who from generation to generation use them to preserve the remains of their loved ones. I mean the burial plots of the family members are stored here inside. The older graves are moved over time into smaller spaces inside the family chapel to make room for the new souls of the same family.

Moreover from its hilltop, there is an amazing view of the inner land of Sicily which is really well worth it.

Brief history of Enna’s Hilltop Cemetery in Sicily.

The cemetery of Enna in Sicily was planned in the year 1840. Nonetheless, the first burial took place in the year 1877. This memorial gravestone, which belongs to Giovanni Battista Scarlata, by the way, still exists; you can see it at the main boulevard of the cemetery called today Maria SS della visitazione.

The cemetery was further extended in the 1950s, and it is today a very large and well-mapped (has even streets with names) burial ground.

It is also well looked after, kept clean and tidy.

Which is the best view point of the Cemetery of Enna?

Once you have finished walking along the streets of the Cemetery of Enna, and if you would like to take a good photo of it where all the chapels built uphill are clearly visible, I suggest that you head to Via Donizetti near the house number 12-14. Here you will have a good view point of the cemetery of Enna.

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What to expect from the visit to Enna’s Hilltop Cemetery in Sicily?

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If you are able to visit Enna during your road trip in Sicily, you shouldn’t forget to include Enna’s Hilltop Monumental Cemetery “Camposanto de’ Cappuccini” not only because of its significant role in history but also because it is absolutely fascinating to experience this “attraction” since it gives you a feel of a small village where the souls seem to be living happily in their otherworldly life.

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