Italy: Rome remembers Keats on bicentenary of his death

Rome: It was a perfect morning in Rome’s Non-Catholic Cemetery as flowers were laid on the grave of Romantic poet John Keats who died in the city 200 years ago.

There were readings too in the cemetery, currently closed to the public, as the almost-spring sunshine lit a sea of daisies to the backdrop of the Pyramid of Cestius.

The poignant graveside commemoration, complete with cats, was part of a series of events to celebrate the extraordinary legacy of the English poet who died in a little room overlooking the Spanish Steps on this day in 1821.

Giuseppe Albano, director of the Keats-Shelley House, and Amanda Thursfield, director of the Non-Catholic Cemetery, by the graves of John Keats and Joseph Severn on 23 February 2021.

Rome’s Keats-Shelley House commemorates the bicentenary with an immersive video experience narrated by Bob Geldof and a live guided tour of the museum, as well as an exhibition of paintings by Nancy Cadogan.

Poet and theatre maker Luke Wright was also specially commissioned by Wanted in Rome and ArtHouse Jersey to write a poem to mark the bicentenary of Keats’ death.