WDEC 2026 at Florence's English Cemetery

A new interactive visitor experience, available year-round and continuing into next year—including the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2026.

Broadsheet maps

Visitors can now explore the English Cemetery in Florence, Italy, with specially designed broadsheet maps that guide them through its historic tombs. Each map features numbered images paired with corresponding stories on the reverse side. An approach visitors prefer over QR codes or online guides. The maps highlight some of the most notable figures buried in the Cemetery, such as Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Arthur Hugh Clough, Walter Savage Landor, Theodore Parker, and many others poets, reformers, and international intellectuals of the 19th century. Visitors can wander through sectors A to F, discovering stories of individuals with remarkable historical, artistic, and multicultural significance.

Treasure hunt maps and publications

In addition, the Cemetery team has created treasure hunt maps that connect the site to Dante’s Florence, Florence’s Saints, The Seven Acts of Mercy, George Eliot’s Romola and Florence, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s Florence. For those seeking deeper insight, the Cemetery’s publications—Florence’s English Cemetery, 1827–1877: Thunders of White Silence; Dante and His Circle: Education, Script and Image; and O Bella Libertà by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, among others—offer in-depth explorations of its people, art, and history.

Virtual guide

You can learn more through the Italian or English virtual guide, available for download on the cemetery’s website.

WDEC 2025 in Florence

The Cemetery agli Allori in Florence invites visitors to explore its historical and cultural significance through two guided tours during the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2025.

About the event

During the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries 2025, two special events will take place at the Cemetery agli Allori in Florence, Italy, offering a unique opportunity to explore the historical and cultural significance of this site, which serves as the final resting place for many notable international figures and is a place of memory, art, and reflection.

The first event will take place on Sunday, May 25, in collaboration with ADSI – Associazione Dimore Storiche Italiane, with opening hours from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM. A guided tour will be held at 10:30 AM.

The second event is scheduled for Saturday, June 7, as part of the initiative Appointment in the Garden 2025 (Appuntamento in Giardino 2025). The cemetery will be open from 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM, and a themed guided tour titled "Among the Stones of Memory" will begin at 10:00 AM.

Reservations and additional information

Reservations for each day are required at cimiteroevangelicoallori@gmail.com.

For more information, visit https://www.cimiteroevangelicoallori.it or https://openagenda.com/it/appuntamento-in-giardino-2025/events/tra-le-pietre-della-memoria.

*Photo source: https://www.cimiteroevangelicoallori.it/

Book: “Florence's English Cemetery, 1827-1877: Thunders of White Silence”

An overview of all the tombs at the English Cemetery in Florence and insight into its restoration.

About the book

We are pleased to announce the publication of a comprehensive new work, Florence's English Cemetery, 1827-1877: Thunders of White Silence, by Julia Bolton Holloway, the custodian of the English Cemetery in Florence for over two decades.

This 927-page volume, with a 53-page index, meticulously catalogs all existing and lost tombs of the English Cemetery in Florence (which is part of the Association of Significant Cemeteries in Europe), drawing from extensive archival records. The final chapter details the restoration of the cemetery and its beautiful iris garden—Florence's lily—a project carried out by Romanian Roma in Florence, who were taught literacy skills and the art of incising inscriptions on marble.

Book purchase

The book is available through Cambridge University Press, with a 25% discount for registered users. All royalties from the book will support the ongoing preservation of the cemetery.

"The whisper of the (paper) models" event and a literary contest

Attend a special event at the Cemetery agli Allori in Florence, Italy, on June 10, 2024, and participate in an engaging literary contest.

About the event

On June 10, 2024, at 9 PM, a special event titled "The Whisper of the (Paper) Models" will take place at the Cemetery agli Allori in Florence, Italy, as a tribute to Giovanni Battista Giorgini and to celebrate the essence of “Made in Italy”. The event will feature a contemporary dance performance, a flute performance, a recital, an exhibition, a poetry reading, and more.

You can find the entire program HERE.

Literary contest

Additionally, don't miss the literary contest “Incipitojo {ad uso di starvi a fantasiar}”. Based on the outdoor exhibition of imaginary book covers, taking place at the Cemetery agli Allori and the English Cemetery in Florence, we invite you to craft literary works inspired by these covers.

Submissions should be no more than 5.400 characters, including spaces, and must be sent by July 14, 2024, to www.incipitojo.it/concorso. Participation is free, and the awards ceremony will take place on October 24, 2024, at the Gabinetto Scientifico Letterario G.P. Vieusseux.

Guided tours at Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte

Don’t miss the chance to discover this monumental cemetery in Florence, Italy. Guided tours will take place every Saturday, starting on May 7, 2022.

Guided tours every Saturday

The Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte in Florence (Italy), also known as the "Cemetery of Porte Sante", organizes guided tours that will take place every Saturday morning and afternoon, starting on May 7, 2022.

The complete itinerary lasts about 45 minutes. 

Morning tours:

• First visit: 9.00 - 9.45
• Second visit: 10.00 - 10.45
• Third visit: 11.00 - 11.45
• Fourth visit: 12.00 -12.45

Afternoon tours:

• First visit: 14.00 - 14.45
• Second visit: 15.00 - 15.45

You can find the original invitation (in Italian) HERE.

Reservations recommended

The maximum number of participants for each visit is for 15 people so reservations are recommended.

You can make your reservation via email cimiteri.comunali@comune.fi.it or by phone 055 2342422. Please, leave a contact number when making the reservation (preferably cell phone) and indicate the number of participants, and the desired day and time of the visit. It is also possible to request a visit in English when making the reservation.

Celebrating the Golden Ring

On Monday, 4 April 2022, the English Cemetery and the House of Guidi will celebrate the Golden Ring that Elizabeth Barrett Browning's poetry created between Italy and England with a special event.

Event Program

1. The English Cemetery (located at the Piazzale Donatello) will be open in the morning from 9:00 to 12:00. 
2. The House of Guidi (located at Piazza San Felice, 8) will be open in the afternoon from 15:00 to 18:00.
3. In the evening at 20:00, at the English Cemetery, the film "A Tea with Mussolini" by Franco Zeffirelli will be screened (in case of rain the evening event will not take place).

You can find the original invitation HERE.

For all questions and additional information please contact the event organizer.

Upcoming events at the English Cemetery in Florence

Check out the dates of some interesting events that will take place at the English Cemetery in Florence, Italy.

September 24, 2020 at 17.30

Celebrating the bicentenary of the Vieusseux cabinet foundation  at the Tomb of Giovan Pietro Vieusseux

September 25, 2020 at 19.30

Projection of the film “Babette’s Feast” from Isak Dinesen at the cemetery.

 

October 1, 2020 at 18.00

“Lectura Dantis” - Paradise, Song XXXII-XXXIII, with dinner at the Trattoria 'Il Pennello', at the true “House of Dante” (via Dante Alighieri, Florence). Reservations at: juliananchoress@gmail.com

Cemetery agli Allori (Florence, Italy)

The Cemetery agli Allori is located just outside Florence and is an extraordinary place where you have the opportunity to experience unique art and history.

About the cemetery

Opened in February 1860, the Cemetery agli Allori was established for non-Catholic communities, which until then had as their reference the English Cemetery in Piazzale Donatello, also in Florence, but since 1970, it was open to all religions and beliefs.

There are numerous important characters that rest in this monumental cemetery (which can be considered a real open-air museum) - from Frederick Stibbert, a well-known British art collector, to the Italian writer Oriana Fallaci.

To enhance and protect this heritage, the Cemetery agli Allori became a member of ASCE, the European association that unites all the most important cemeteries in Europe.

Address

Cemetery agli Allori
Via Senese, 184,
50124 Firenze FI
Italy

Contacts

Phone: +39 055 232 0064
Email: contatti@fondazionepas.it

Website: www.cimiteroevangelicoallori.it

Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte, known as "Porte Sante", Florence, Italy - Sepolcro Achille Fagnoni restoration

Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte, known as "Porte Sante", Florence, Italy - Sepolcro Camille Lachenbacher restoration

Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte, known as "Porte Sante", Florence, Italy - Sepolcro Giulia Landucci restoration

WDEC in Florence (English Cemetery), Italy

#EuropeForCulture On June 18 at 6:00 p.m. we shall hold a guided tour of the tombs in Florence's English Cemetery associated with the Battles of Waterloo, Trafalgar and the Peninsula against Napoleon, for which see. You can read more about it on this link. 

Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte (Florence, Italy)

Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte, also known as the Cemetery of Porte Sante, is a monumental cemetery located within the fortified bastion of the Basilica of San Miniato al Monte.

The creation of the cemetery

The initial preliminary project that used the entire area of the Fortress of San Miniato as a cemetery (Michelangelo's work commissioned by Cosimo I de' Medici), was drawn up as early as in 1844 by the architect Matas.

Originally the cemetery, adjacent to the Romanesque Basilica, was destined to the burial of the members of the "Opera Pia dei Padri Spirituali".

In 1854 the cemetery was officially established to guarantee burials during the cholera epidemic. The place was ideal because it was far (but not too far) from the city and located in a quite airy place.

The final project was designed in 1864 by the architect Mariano Falcini.

Cemetery features

The land inside the fort was divided into squares used for individual burials and noble chapels were also built and placed in the enclosure to the southeast of the cemetery. The area was affected by the overall expansion and redevelopment projects of the city of Florence around 1865, which led the ancient basilica and the cemetery to have access from Viale dei Colli a few hundred meters from Piazzale Michelangelo.

Gradually the cemetery was transformed into an elite and monumental cemetery with the construction of numerous chapels and funeral monuments by illustrious Florentine architects including Tito Bellini and Enrico Dante Fantappiè. From the earliest years the most important and rich people in the city were buried there.

Ground burials were permanent and covered with white marble slabs. In this way the squares for the burials became similar to the floors of the medieval churches.

In 1911 "Opera Pia dei Padri Spirituali" transferred the property of the cemetery to the Municipality of Florence and further expansion works were conducted since 1916,  giving the cemetery today’s monumental appearance.

*Photo source: www.commons.wikimedia.org

Address

Cemetery of San Miniato al Monte
Via delle Porte Sante 34
50100 Firenze
Italy

Cemetery Service Address
Via Luna 16
50100 Firenze
Italy

Contacts

Phone: 39 055 3283986
E-mail: cimiteri.comunali@comune.fi.it

Opening hours

Summer: 8 am – 6 pm
Winter: 8 am – 5 pm

Poetry event at the English Cemetery in Florence

This is the first time the poem Casa Guidi Windows, written by Elizabeth Barrett Browning in support of the Risorgimento, has been completely translated into Italian.

About the event

On Tuesday, 12 September 2017, at 7:30 p.m., the Comune of Florence will honor Elizabeth Barrett Browning at her tomb with a laurel crown in recognition of her work, which has created a golden bond between Italy and England.

Julia Bolton Holloway and Rosalynd Pio will read passages from the poem Casa Guidi Windows in English and Italian, accompanied by slides that illustrate it. Light refreshments will be served.

Virtual guide to Florence's English cemetery

The English cemetery in Florence, Italy is introducing its virtual guide of the cemetery.    

Pinti Cemetery (Florence, Italy)

A 19th century cemetery belonging to the Venerable Brotherhood of Misericordia of Florence.

Cemetery history

The Pinti Cemetery is one of the oldest monumental cemeteries in Florence. It belongs to the Venerable Brotherhood of Misericordia of Florence, which, since its medieval foundation, has been devoted to acts of solidarity – above all, ensuring proper burial for all the deceased.

For centuries, following the customs of the time, members of the Brotherhood buried the dead in and around churches or alongside the city walls. In the eighteenth century, however, Pietro Leopoldo of Lorraine introduced new regulations requiring cemeteries to be located outside inhabited areas. In compliance with these laws, the Misericordia acquired a suitable plot outside the city walls, where the cemetery was established. Today, this area is fully integrated into the city.

Construction and architecture

The cemetery was officially inaugurated in 1839 with the burial of its first deceased. It features an oratory and a semicircular portico composed of a colonnade designed to symbolically embrace visitors.

The original design was created by engineer Paolo Veraci, later continued by Gaetano Baccani. In 1878, engineer Angelo Maiorfi was commissioned to complete the complex. His additions included two lateral wings and a new Neoclassical entrance, adorned with angel statues sculpted by Odoardo Fantacchiotti.

Important Personalities

During its 60 years of active use (1839–1898), a period that included Florence’s time as the capital of Italy, Pinti Cemetery became the final resting place of many prominent figures.

Among those buried here are:

• Emilio De Fabris, designer of the façade of Florence Cathedral
• Michele Rapisardi, painter
• Pietro Dazzi, painter and founder of the Scuole del Popolo
• Carlo Strozzi, marquis, historian, and archaeologist
• Massimiliano Giarrè, humanist and patriot
• Teodulo Mabellini, musician
• Cesare Guasti, archivist at the Opera del Duomo
• Silvestro Leopardi, senator of the Kingdom of Italy
• Vincenzo Batelli, editor and typographer
• Giuseppe Barellai, pediatrician and founder of children’s summer camps
• Giovanni Baldasseroni, politician

Closure and present-day use

In 1898, the Brotherhood decided to close the Pinti Cemetery and open a larger burial ground better suited to the needs of a growing city. Since then, the cemetery has remained accessible primarily to those wishing to visit and honor their loved ones.

In recent years, guided tours have been introduced, allowing visitors to explore this historic site and discover its cultural and architectural heritage.

Cemetery address

Via degli Artisti 2
50132 Firenze
Italy

Contacts

Website: www.misericordia.firenze.it/
Email: pinti@misericordia.firenze.it

Cento anni di Spoon River (One Hundred Years of Spoon River) at Cimitero delle Porte Sante

On September 11, 2016 at 6.15 pm a musical and theatrical play will take place at Cimitero delle Porte Sante (Basilica di San Miniato al Monte) in Florence.
The event is dedicated to Edgar Lee Masters,  American poet and dramatist, mainly known as the author of Spoon River Anthology.

Music by Fabrizio De André.

Readings by Marco Baliani, Iaia Forte, Gabriele Lavia, Maurizio Lombardi, Giulia Weber.

Songs performed by Mauro Ermanno Giovanardi, Petra Magoni & Ferruccio Spinetti, Morgan, Peppe Servillo.


Musical intermezzo by Trio Amadei, Markus Stockhausen, and Orchestra della Toscana directed by Saverio Lanza.

Full fee € 20 / Reduced fee € 18


Ticket office
TEATRO DELLA PERGOLA
Via della Pergola 30
tel. +39 0550763333
biglietteria@teatrodellapergola.com
Monday to Saturday: 9.30 am - 6.30 pm
closed on Sunday
www.teatrodellatoscana.it

English Cemetery (Florence, Italy)

This Protestant cemetery located at Piazzale Donatello was founded in 1827 by the Swiss Evangelical Reformed Church.

The Victorian (1827-1877), so-called ‘English’ Cemetery for non Catholics (Protestant, Anglican, Orthodox and other confessions), owned by the Swiss Reformed Church, is now surrounded by traffic. It is located on a hill with cypress trees, that may be an Etruscan tomb, famously presented in Arnold Boecklin’s ‘Island of the Dead.

Its tombs are sculpted by some of the greatest sculptors of the nineteenth century. It is the burial place of the poets and writers, sculptors and artists, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Walter Savage Landor, Arthur Hugh Clough, Frances Trollope, Hiram Powers, Joel Hart, many friends of Florence Nightingale, and many participants in the Battle of Waterloo. Burials now can be of cinerary urns and bones, no longer entire bodies.

Address

English Cemetery
Piazzale Donatello 38
50132 Firenze, Italy

Contacts

Tel.: 39 055582608
Tel/Fax: 39 055582608
E-mail: holloway.julia@tiscali.it
http://www.florin.ms/cemetery.html

Tourist information

http://www.firenzeturismo.it/
http://www.firenzeturismo.it/en_EN/