A few days before All Souls' Day outside the Cimitero Monumentale in Milan.

A few days before All Souls' Day, the stalls outside the Cimitero Monumentale, the Monumental Cemetery, in Milan, were full of flowers. On display, there were pots with cyclamen and erica, vases with cut flowers arranged in ordered rows, and, a little apart, buckets with green leaf branches. Stems of roses, lilies, and, above all, chrysanthemums were ready to be put together in elegant bouquets that visitors left on the tombs of their loved ones.
In Italy, chrysanthemums are closely associated to this Catholic commemoration of the departed, mainly because of their late blooming.

The meaning of their name, however, suggests a different inspiration. The word Chrysanthemum, in fact, derives from the Greek chrysos meaning 'gold' and anthemon meaning 'flower' to recall the natural hue of this flower (yellow). It is a little sun, easy to cultivate and with long-lasting flowers, that in other countries, such as Japan, is associated to longevity, happiness and joy.
Chrysanthemums are available in endless combinations of colours, sizes and forms, a benefit wisely exploited to obtain new stunning varieties each year. Colours include white, yellow, bronze, lime green, pink, red, crimson, purple, traditional pastels and new unusual bicoloured, flowers have single or double blossoms, tiny or giant heads, daisy-like, anemone, pompons, buttons, spider, sprays or more shapes, petals can be flat or curved....
This year, I saw elegant bicoloured daisy-like flowers, huge multi-coloured plants and a great return of the traditional yellow flowers.

And, yellow chrysantemums were selected to decorate the entrance of the Cimitero Monumentale.

The cemetery opened in 1866 with the aim to group in this area, at that time in the outskirts of the town, several more central small insalubrious cemeteries. Today, green trees soften the impact of marbles and stones, of sculptures created by famous artists to decorate the graves of illustrious citizens and eminent persons.


For All Souls' Day, gravel paths were crowded, and prayers, candles and fresh flowers covered all tombs.

Photos:
TravelinaGarden, Milan and other cemeteries in the area, October - November 2013.