Cemitério da Consolação

This guide to Cemitério da Consolação in São Paulo opens with a question about Domitila de Castro, the young widow who became Emperor Dom Pedro the First's official mistress in 1822 and mother to five of his children, before the empire turned on her. It follows the scandal that drove her out of Rio, the stoning of her house, and the death of her lover's affections when he chose a European bride two years later. From there it traces her quiet exile to São Paulo, where she rebuilt her life as a respectable widow. Her white marble tomb, tiered and topped by a small angel leaning on a staff, stands not far from the cemetery's main gate.