I haven’t been able to put my banner up on WordPress.com, and I am not a patient woman so I’ll try again another day.
Exceptionally, I am opening my Wednesday Window on Thursday. A little longer and it was Friday!
And exceptionally, it’ll open on several photos.
Last week, I visited Père Lachaise cemetery with Elly and Leo.
Leo was keen on seeing the monument erected to the memory of Oscar Wilde there. I had never seen it. You could believe that the cemetery of Père Lachaise is down under, instead of just being on the other side of Paris. It doesn’t take all that long to go, but there it is! I’m lazy.
With friends, it’s always easier.
Anyway, it took us quite a while to get to Oscar Wilde’s monument, but we finally made it. Here it is.
The monument is covered with graffiti of all kinds, some in lipstick, and the graffitti grow faster than the cemetery people can clean them.
As Elly put it:
If Oscar Wilde could see this, he’d just be delighted!
Here’s some of the stuff that can be seen on the monument.
From Wikipedia
Wilde was buried in the Cimetière de Bagneux outside Paris but was later moved to Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris. His tomb in Père Lachaise was designed by sculptor Sir Jacob Epstein, at the request of Robert Ross, who also asked for a small compartment to be made for his own ashes. Ross’s ashes were transferred to the tomb in 1950. The numerous spots on it are lipstick traces from admirers.
The modernist angel depicted as a relief on the tomb was originally complete with male genitals. They were broken off as obscene and kept as a paperweight by a succession of Père Lachaise Cemetery keepers. Their current whereabouts are unknown. In the summer of 2000, intermedia artist Leon Johnson performed a 40 minute ceremony entitled Re-membering Wilde in which a commissioned silver prosthesis was installed to replace the vandalised genitals.
and finally a more classical homage with those two roses.
Technorati Tags: Père-Lachaise, Cemetery, Paris, Oscar Wilde, grave, lipstick, traces
Ah, those broken-off pieces would be worth a fortune someday! That angel sculpture looks sort of Etruscan or Egyptian to me.
Comment by kenju — June 29, 2007 @ 12:44 am |
Welcome back – we missed being able to access your site ! Hope you get everything squared away soon. Or should I say squircled away ?
Comment by wcs — June 29, 2007 @ 5:39 am |
Ah yes, if you come in from somewhere like the Pere Lachaise metro stop entrance, it really is a trek to get over to Oscar Wilde’s tomb. I went myself in January, as I’ve been to Pere Lachaise several times, but never stopped by to visit Oscar. Thanks for an interesting website. I am moving to Paris in one month’s time, so it’s interesting to see and read other ex-pat’s thoughts.
Comment by Gavin — March 1, 2008 @ 8:54 pm |
I will be in Paris this summer to photograph Père Lachaise. I’m so looking forward to my visit…guess I’ll need some great walking shoes.
Comment by Sheilah — January 5, 2009 @ 6:45 am |