Address
Contacts
Opening times
Timetable > www.cemeteryrome.it/about/about.html
Directions
Via Caio Cestio is a side street of Via Marmorata on the north side of the pyramid. The entrance to the cemetery is on the left halfway down the street.
Bookings for guided tours
Please include the following information in your email: the origin of your group, the name of the person in charge/group leader and their contact details, date and time of the visit, number of people taking part.
Due to limited space in the Cemetery, each group cannot exceed 20 people. In the case of larger groups, these must be divided into two or more groups, each with its own guide/guide.
It is not possible to book visits for school groups under the age of 16.
Description
The Un-Catholic Cemetery, also known as the English Cemetery, was established to bury non-Catholic foreigners living in Rome who, according to the rules of the Catholic Church, could not be buried in Catholic cemeteries. Its origin dates back to 1738, according to the date of the oldest grave, belonging to an Oxford student. The Testaccio cemetery then became the burial place for many Protestant, Orthodox or Jewish foreigners residing in Rome; but also for women and men who had been expelled from the Catholic Church, such as suicides. The authorities decided that burial should take place at night, to avoid provoking protests from the most fervent Catholics. There are numerous tombs inspired by motifs from classical antiquity. The beauty of the place, right next to the Cestia Pyramid, the presence of ruins, pines and cypresses made it a favourite spot for romantic artists and poets. Among the many who rest here are John Keats and Percy Shelley. The politician Antonio Gramsci is also buried in the Non-Catholic Cemetery: his tomb inspired some of the most famous verses by Pier Paolo Pasolini.
