Cemetery of Manarola

The cemetery of Manarola sits on a sharp, rocky promontory jutting into the Ligurian Sea. White marble crosses and small stone tombs stand against the crashing waves hundreds of feet below. When the village grew too crowded in the nineteenth century, the local authorities chose this isolated cliff edge for the dead to ensure they remained within sight of the Mediterranean. Fishermen and sailors who spent their lives on the water here continue to face the horizon from their final resting places.