BBC News with Marion Marshall.
The most titled aristocrat in the world, the Duchess of Alba has died in Seville at the age of 88. She wasone of Spain’s richest women owning huge estate and a priceless collection of art.
Vastly wealthy but exuberantly unconventional, the Duchess of Alba was one of Europe’s most colorful aristocrats. Born in 1926, she graced the cover of Time Magazine. Her list of titles was the longest in the world.
The 11th Duchess of Liria and Jérica, Grandee of Spain, the 16th Marquise of Mirallo, the 20th Marquise ofla Mota, the 17th Marquise of the Carpio, Grandee of Spain, the 11th Duchess of Berwick.
Decently related to Winston Churchill and Diana Princess of Wales, she could trace her lineage to King James II and owned so many palaces and castles. She turned down an offer from Pablo Picasso to model for him but built up one of Europe’s richest art collections. However, it was her third marriage that caused the biggest scandal. A crowd cheered as already in her mid-80s, she Flamenco danced in the street. Her children had feared her new husband, a civil servant, 25 years her junior, was only after her wealth. But he renounced any claim to it and was at her side when she died in Seville.
The Italian city of Verona is planning to build the country’s first high-rise cemetery. Council officialshave given approval to the plans for 33-story building with space for 24,000 graves. As Julie Peacock reports.
Verona’s graveyards have run out of room. But one private company called Infinite Sky has offered a solution. Its plans for the high-rise cemetery have been approved by the city’s council. If it goes ahead, thecemetery will become the highest building in Verona and will host 24,000 graves. It won’t be the world’sfirst multi-story graveyard, though. Brazil boosts a 32-level. And one of the most ambitious projects is the Yarkon Cemetery in Tel Aviv in Israel which will eventually provide a quarter of a million graves. The Yarkon Cemetery’s architect Tuvia Sagiv says high-rise burial structures are the future.
We can live one above the other. So there is no reason if you agree to live one above the other, why not to be buried one above the other?
By building high, the company hopes to offer a unique expedience. Customers can opt to have their ashes stored or buy one of the 2,000 rooms where family members can be buried together.