Palacio de los bichos: story of a love, a tragedy and a ghostly party.

I would like to point out that in the book "Historia de los barrios de Buenos Aires", by historian Vicente Cutolo, there is another version by journalist José César Rodríguez Nanni regarding this legend: the Italian tycoon never existed, nor the bride and groom, nor the ghost, all characters of an urban legend, but the house was built for a "non sancto" purpose. That is to say that a brothel for wealthy people would operate there; a project that aroused the anger of the neighbors of that time, who surely were giving shape to the legend to scare away the interested parties.

Now let's turn to the legend in question:

A five-story mansion with a dome on the top of the building emerges in the low-rise neighborhood of Villa de Parque. Palace of the Bugs and holds a rich history of love, tragedy and mystery. It is located at 3220 Campana Street.

The legend of this palace is known by the neighbors of the neighborhood, its imposing presence arouses curiosity in anyone who is not from the area and passes by. There is no neighbor who wants to dispel the doubts of passers-by who want to know details of the building.

The castle was baptized as "Palace of the Bugs"Originally, the building was ornamented with gargoyles in the shape of animals and bugs. To know the legendary history of the place we have to go back to the end of the 19th century.

Back in those years, a wealthy Italian living in Salerno named Rafael Giordano - descendant of the famous painter Giordano - and his wife Vittoria D'Olvilli decided to embark on the adventure of putting down roots in faraway America.

On this trip they took their little daughter Lucía with them and decided to go to Argentina. The Giordanos had a comfortable economic position and, after visiting several areas of the city of Buenos Aires, they decided to settle in an area of country houses west of downtown because it reminded them of their hometown; years later this area would be called Villa del Parque.

Giordano began to do business and to increase his fortune. He immediately belonged to the Buenos Aires high society of his time, he could be seen at the Progress Club or at the luxurious Plaza Hotel having coffee and beer with his friends.
Rafael, Vittoria and Lucia Giordano lived happily in that area of the country houses. Their daughter went to a school in Monserrat and always had excellent grades in primary and secondary school, she was her father's pride and joy.

Lucia grew up and her father urged her to go to college, she decided to pursue a career in medicine. At that time being a doctor was an assured future. A few years passed and she noticed that her vocation was far from medicine and she became interested in music, especially piano. Although her father was reluctant about that decision, since he had many illusions in having a daughter who was a doctor, it was his wife who convinced him that the career was not for his daughter and that with music she would develop to the fullest.
Lucia dropped out of college and went to the music conservatory to study piano. As was to be expected, she was an outstanding student and quickly learned to play the instrument. Those who knew her enjoyed the melodies she played with great passion.
At the conservatory Lucía met a young man who was studying violin and who would become the great love of her life and the protagonist of the tragedy of this story. His name is Ángel Lemos, barely 22 years old, after graduating as a pharmacist, he wanted to devote himself to his other passion, the violin.

Ángel Lemos comes from a family from downtown Buenos Aires, his father was the director of an important general store at that time. He was a native of San Telmo, but the distances were not an obstacle for the young people to converge in their love.
This relationship was quickly approved by Giordano, and in time, the Giordano and Lemos families formed a beautiful friendship through the courtship of their children. Lucia was an only child, but Angel had six more siblings, so the couple wanted -in the future- to form a prolific family, she because she had no siblings and he because he liked large families like his.

When the bride and groom tell Rafael of their decision to get married, he tells them that as a wedding gift he will build them a mansion near their house for them to live in.
So he commissioned the architect Muñoz González to build a distinguished palace that could be seen by all the neighbors in the area. The five-story mansion with balconies was finished before the wedding. For this reason Rafael decided to celebrate it in the same mansion.

The date chosen was April 1, 1911, that autumn night the temperature was pleasant and there was no threat of rain, so the party was pleasant and fun. Along the dirt road, luxurious automobiles of the time arrived and a chauffeur in characteristic elegant clothes opened the door so that the guests could enter the wedding reception.
Doña Vittoria took care of the details of the party, there were musicians who always animated the party, drinks and canapés, some said that it was one of the most important social events of the year.

The bride and groom were very happy, they had many projects together, she to form a new family and he to form a pharmaceutical business with the capital that was given to him by his family. Everyone enjoyed this romance that, at times, was envied by some.
Around five o'clock in the morning the party was about to end, the car that was going to take them to the center was waiting for them on the other side of the train tracks that were only thirty meters away from the mansion.

It is said that the chauffeur was waiting for them in that place because on the dirt road where the mansion is located the tracks were raised and the street that has the road at the level of the tracks -where cars normally pass- was flooded by a heavy rain in the previous days. The cars of that time had very narrow and fragile tires and passing the raised tracks could damage the wheels, so it was considered easier for the bride and groom to cross the tracks than for the car to drive for miles to find a level crossing.

That decision would be culminating for the history of the bug palace. That night, it was a waning quarter so there was no moon to brighten the place, the romantic street lights were candle lights because there was still no electric street lighting, which is why there was not much of a view.
Guests came out onto the balconies of the palace to greet the bride and groom who were on the street heading for the car on the other side of the tracks. Among those waving were the parents of the bride and groom.

As the bride and groom waved, the South to Pacific train headed for Retiro station. Although the station was nearby, the train was a freight train so it did not stop until the central station. The luminosity was dim because those cars did not have a strong light.
Just as the bride and groom were crossing the tracks to greet the guests, the train hit them, leaving their remains scattered a hundred meters away. The guests were stunned by the tragedy, the porters and waiters who were at the exit rushed to where the victims were, but nothing could be done, both bride and groom died on the spot.

The train never stopped and the driver found out about the accident at the Retiro station when the authorities went to look for him and informed him of what had happened. The train driver claimed that the engine was so noisy and there was so little light in the area that he never noticed the victims and the impact.
Rafael Giordano and his wife fell into a deep depression, as the happiest day of their lives became in a second the worst day of their lives. Their only daughter and son-in-law had died in their own marriage.

The newspapers of the time do not chronicle what happened because Giordano did not want any details of the accident to be told, his grief was so private that he did not want to share it with anyone. That is why he decided to return to his native Salerno never to return, taking with him the bodies of his daughter and son-in-law to bury them in the local cemetery.
He felt so much contempt for the mansion where he saw his daughter die that he resolved to wall it up and not sell it so that no one would ever live in it again. That marriage was the only event where the palace shone in all its splendor.

Time passed and the area where the palace was located was being subdivided and houses were being built around it. Around the mid 20's a peculiar event happened in that neighborhood. One autumn day a neighbor complained to another for having held a party with loud music until late at night, when he told him that it had not been him the recrimination was directed to another neighbor and he got the same answer. Once all the neighbors inquired, the conclusion was that nobody made the party or one of them was lying.

Exactly one year later, one of the neighbors abruptly gets out of bed because loud music coming from the street was keeping him awake at night. Warned that whoever was having the party could deny it, he decided to go out to find the place where the noise was coming from. Other neighbors take the same decision.

They look for the house where the party is coming from and find no partying neighbors. They focus their eyes on the only abandoned place: The Palace of the Bugs. To everyone's surprise, music was coming out of that place, and they could see some silhouettes of people dancing inside.
The train from the South to the Pacific continued with the same route plan it made that day of the fateful journey. At the moment when the train passes at the same time that the tragedy occurred years before, the music stops abruptly and the figures that were observed in movement disappear at the same instant.

This was the beginning of several ghostly events that would occur over time. There were reports of hearing screams of fright from a woman and noises in the palace, as well as specters coming through the walls. Another curse is added to this story, since Rafael Giordano's desire that the details of the death of his daughter and son-in-law not be known was so strong that those who investigated and wrote about the event suffered strange illnesses or mishaps that did not allow him to continue with the work.
In the nineties the building was recycled and the characteristic gargoyles that gave the palace its name were removed. Today it houses private homes and a large spa on the first floor.

The Palacio de los Bichos tells such a strong story of the neighborhood that its figure is stamped on the official coat of arms. Thus, years go by and the legend is kept alive in the neighborhood because despite being a story of tragedy and mystery, it is still the love story of Lucia and Angel, a love story of the neighborhood of Villa del Parque.

This is another of those stories that attract us so much because of their mystery and because they always leave us wanting to know more, since, according to the saying "se non è vero, è ben trovato" (meaning that if what is told is not true, it is well told).