​“As funeral monument production industrialized over the twentieth century, the tradition of creating grandiose works of art waned. Today, even the wealthiest families rarely commission ostentatious memorials. Vanity has been shelved; restraint is now the fashion. We could interpret this postmortem humility as a welcome sign of democratization that has levelled the playing field between the dead: no matter who we were or what we did, we’ll end up in more or less similar graves.
But as the curator of a cemetery known for its exceptional architecture, I consider this funerary timidity to be rather regrettable, Père-Lachaise wouldn’t be such a remarkable place if megalomania hadn’t once driven the most fortunate to have tombs erected in the image of their bloated pride. Standardization is affecting more than just Père-Lachaise; cemeteries across France are having tombs mass-produced and shipped to them from factories in China or India. As a result, they’re beginning to look like planned subdivisions – homogenous, soulless tracts of land where cookie-cutter homes stretch out in long, drab rows. Nobody visits these bedroom communities; they are of little interest to nonresidents. Cemeteries are gradually losing their charm in the same way, serving no purpose than to house the graves of those buried there. The tombs themselves lack symbolism, with merely a name engraved to mark a life lived. Increasingly, cemeteries are becoming sad places that nobody – living or dead – wants to visit. I’s understandable that some would prefer their ashes to be scattered at sea, perhaps near a favourite vacation spot, instead  of having their bodies laid to rest in a characterless plot of earth.”
Benoît Gallot - The Secret Life of a Cemetery: The Wild Nature and Enchanting Lore of Père-Lachaise

‘When the people gathered around the crib that Christmas night I was terrified that someone might notice the damage.

The bishop, an old man with tremendous white eyebrows, gave the crib a skite of holy water. Drops landed on Mary’s face and I feared the congregation would see the scratches on her fingers due to our wanton sexual desires for Mary Brady.’


Michael Harding, Chest Pain

 “Later, however, as the Anglo-Saxon influence began to make itself felt, the Normans themselves came under pressure and laws were enacted to inhibit their assimilation into the Gaelic way of life. The city was closed to the Irish and they were compelled to live outside the walls, on the site of the present Shandon and Blarney Streets in the north and French’s Quay and Barrack Street in the south. Even to this day some of the older residents refer to Blarney Street as ‘Irishtown’ “

​The Story of Cork – Sean Beecher  (1971)