The brigand Tiburzi (Domenico Tiburzi), known as Domenichino, is undoubtedly the most famous exponent of the brigandage phenomenon that arose in the Maremma between the 19th and 20th centuries.
The bandit Tiburzi was loved by the population because he sought to defend justice from the abuses of large landowners. He died during a shootout with the Carabinieri on the night between October 23 and 24, 1896. His tomb is located in the cemetery of Capalbio, but the bandit’s burial is shrouded in legend. It seems that the parish priest of Capalbio at the time refused to allow the brigand to be buried in the cemetery because he considered him a godless criminal.
However, the people of Capalbio had a different opinion, seeing the brigand Tiburzi as a champion of the poor, a brigand who stole from the rich to give to the poor. The dispute was resolved with a compromise: Tiburzi’s body was buried where the entrance gate was, on the edge of the cemetery, half inside and half outside, without a cross or gravestone.
Today, there is no trace of the original gate, but over the years the Capalbio cemetery has expanded and Tiburzi’s body now lies entirely in consecrated ground. Thus, after receiving absolution from the people, time itself decreed his complete absolution. The wooden plaque commemorating his date of birth and death is placed on the ancient Roman column where, after his death, the brigand was tied up and photographed. Many restaurants in the Maremma display this photo.
