It rivals the cemetery of Bonaria in Cagliari with its atmosphere and dark charm of the funeral works, so much so that it too is defined an ‘open-air museum’. Both also boast masterpieces created by the sculptor nicknamed ‘The Michelangelo of the dead’. The monumental cemetery of Iglesias extends close to the Church of Nostra Signora di Valverde, outside the city walls. It was inaugurated in 1835 and was extended several times starting from the second half of the 19th century, due to the progressive increase in population. The large central body is characterised by avenues with rows of cypress trees and Mediterranean plant species along the sides, creating quadrangular ‘islands’ and dedicated areas. One of these is delimited by what may be the best-known and most enchanting path, the ‘Viale dei Bambini’ (Avenue of the Children).

You will see statues and decorations in Art Nouveau and eclectic styles, also visible in the fences, urns and floral decorations, among which you will notice unusual symbolisms. The most famous work is the sepulchral monument of the little Zaira Deplano Pinna, known above all by the name of ‘Little Girl with a Hoop’. Daughter of a very well-known notary of the town, the little girl was stricken with acute meningitis, which ended her life at the tender age of six. The life-size statue portrays her sitting on a segment of a column. She is smiling and holding a hoop, her favourite pastime, which is made of bronze. Over time, dark legends arose around the tomb: it is said that the statue comes to life at midnight to play along the avenues and that the ghost wanders over the rooftops of the houses, every year on 2 November, in search of children who want to play with her, taking those who accept the invitation with her to the afterlife.

The work helped increase the fame of its author, sculptor Giuseppe Sartorio, who opened workshops in Cagliari and Sassari and created numerous works, now kept in the capital city and in various towns across the Island, as well as in the Verano cemetery in Rome. The cemetery of Iglesias contains 65 of them and the monument dedicated to Quintino Sella in the square of the same name in the city is also his work. Other sculptures by Sartorio are the funeral monuments of the Boldetti sisters and that of Domenica Antonietta Grimaldi, who also suffered a tragic fate.