This Doric temple, with its tall ribbed dome surmounted by an elaborately worked metal cross, is one of the grandest monuments in the burial ground. The plan is not quite a Greek cross since the building has projections to the front and sides but not to the rear. The pediment over the portico contains figures of two putti bearing a shield, and the rest of the mausoleum is lavishly enriched with much decorative carving.
Edward Middleton Barry
Greek Revival
Grade II (England and Wales)
1875
The Ralli family came from the Greek island of Chios. They were among the first wealthy merchants to settle in England after the Greek uprising of 1821 was put down by the Turks. Eustratios Ralli (1800-1884) was a prominent member of the Greek community in London. In 1842 he was on the committee that acquired the land at West Norwood for the Greek Orthodox cemetery. He was also the man who, as the Patriarch of the Greeks in London, laid the first stone of the new Cathedral of Saint Sophia in Moscow Place in 1877.
The mausoleum built for Eustratios Ralli was designed by E M Barry. Its construction was overseen by T H Vernon and the sculptural decoration carried out by C H and J Mabey of Lambeth.
Fair/good, beginning to be overgrown with ivy and other plants (2002)
Geoffrey Manning, The Listed Structures in West Norwood Cemetery (1989);
Chris Brooks, Mortal Remains, (1989) 156
Friends of West Norwood Cemetery website
None
If you're visiting this mausoleum and would like to take this information with you, why not download and print the PDF using the button below:
Please note: The location information below is approximate - we are in the process of improving the accuracy.
West Norwood Cemetery
Norwood Road
London
SE27 9JU