Overview

At the place known as Colle del Pino, on the top of the Gianicolo hill, stands the Garibaldino Ossuary Mausoleum, the construction of which was begun in 1939. The building was to be a fitting home for the dead in the battles fought for Rome as capital city between 1849 and 1870. Among them is Goffredo Mameli, writer of the Italian anthem, who was mortally wounded on the Gianicolo in 1849 at the age of only 22.
Designed by architect Giovanni Jacobucci (1895-1970), the structure was unveiled on 3 November 1941, after two years of work. The need for a dignified commemoration of the dead was emphatically raised in the aftermath of the taking of Porta Pia. Giuseppe Garibaldi and his son Menotti were among the main promoters of the law that decreed the Gianicolo as the place to collect the bodies.
The building consists of a four-sided travertine portico at the centre of which is an altar carved from a block of red granite from Baveno. The central core of the monument is embellished with allegorical figures of ancient themes, including the wolf, the imperial eagle, shields and swords. Four travertine pedestals support bronze braziers that are still lit on official occasions. The pedestals commemorate the most significant battles for the liberation of Rome.
Below the four-sided portico is the Sacrarium, closed by a bronze portal. The impressive room is divided into two areas: a vestibule with small side apses and a square room. In the centre of the latter, is a large circular pillar adorned with palms and alabaster votive crosses. The low vaulted ceiling is covered with gold tiles, while polychrome marble covers the floor and walls. On these, there are 36 burial niches containing the remains of some 200 heroes, most of them anonymous. On the back wall is the porphyry sarcophagus with the remains of Goffredo Mameli.