Rosalía Lombardo was born in Sicily on December 13, 1918. When she was about to turn 2 years old, she contracted pneumonia and, sadly, he passed away. It was December 6, 1920.
His parents were devastated. Mario Lombardo and María Di Cara had married a few months after the girl’s birth and those who knew them say that Rosalía’s arrival was the only thing missing for them. happiness was complete.
Mario Lombardo, Rosalía’s father, could not bear the death of his daughter just a week before the girl turned two years old. I couldn’t live without seeing his beloved face. And he decided to embalm her to see her every day.
But where to take it? In the 16th century, the Order of the Minor Capuchin Brothers of Palermo, in Sicily, faced a big problem: their cemetery was complete. The solution was to build a crypt under the monastery.
In 1599 the crypt already housed the first embalmed bodies. The catacombs were reserved for monks, but over the years many aristocrats They ended up resting there.
In December 1920, Rosalía Lombardo’s body entered the tunnels of the catacombs of the Capuchins of Palermo. And he became a legend.
Unexplained phenomena
The embalming job was so surprising that Rosalía appears to be simply asleep. And there is something that surprises even more. Rosalía’s eyes open and close every day, as if waking up from a dream.
Who was the man who preserved Rosalía’s body? Mario Lombardo contacted Alfredo Salafia, a prestigious embalmer with world fame. Rosalía’s father’s order was clear: preserve Rosalía in her natural state, with all her beauty.
The girl’s coffin, due to the constant visits of her relatives, some of them residing abroad, was permanently visible in the Capuchin catacombs for years.
Currently it is no longer possible, although whoever writes this note He was able to see it in 1996.
How did Salafia achieve this embalming? Used an innovative chemical technique to eliminate bacteria and other components inside the corpses, causing decomposition.
While today bodies begin to show signs of decomposition after a few years, the surprising technique used to preserve Rosalía’s body stands the test of a century.
With the death of Salafia, in 1933, everyone believed that the mystery of how he had achieved it would never be known. But decades later a book of memories was found written by himself in secret, where there were original notes about the formula used in the preservation of Rosalía Lombardo’s body.
There he explains that first drained the blood from the body of Rosalía and then used ancient techniques such as arterial injection of fluids used by the Egyptians, along with the mixture of oils and spices that protected the body from natural decomposition.
Salafia described the ingredients he used. Many of them new. He injected a salicylic acid compound to kill the mushroomszinc salts so that the exterior remained rigid, alcohol to dry and formalin against bacteria. In addition, he gave a final treatment with glycerin to avoid excessive dryness.
According to tests that were done on the body a few years ago with X-rays, The organs are surprisingly intact.
The mystery of his eyes
What Salafia did not create is the mystery of Rosalía’s eyes, which seem open and close giving it an eerily realistic look. Experts explain that the strange phenomenon is a simple effect caused by ambient light.
People believe that It is a kind of miracle, an evidence of the supernatural abilities of Rosalía, who is considered the reincarnation of the patron saint of Palermo, who is called Santa Rosalía…
To demonstrate this inexplicable process in Rosalía’s eyes, a camera was installed with the technique of time-lapse, clearly showing that during a twelve hour period, his eyes opened and closed. Science has not yet been able to give a rational explanation for the fact.
Mario and María had a son two years after Rosalía’s death. And a year later a daughter, who was named after her dead sister: Rosalía.
None of them are alive. And somewhere perhaps they have found the answer to why the beauty of Rosalía, who died in 1920, still intact.
GML
