![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.justsicily.it\/JS\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Pa2025-Falcone-Portiere10-1140x732-1-1024x658.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\nThe building where he works, at Via Notarbartolo 23, is not just any building. It\u2019s where the national hero, Judge Giovanni Falcone lived. Falcone fought against the Mafia until he was brutally murdered on May 23, 1992\u2013 in an attack that also claimed the lives of his wife Francesca Morvillo and three of his bodyguards\u2014on a stretch of highway A29 near Capaci, just outside Palermo. <\/p>\n\n
Marcello\u2019s work is anything but ordinary, primarily because of the enormous tree in front of the building: a Ficus Magnolia planted around the 1950s, even before the building was constructed. It was planted there by the owner of the land\u2013unaware of the fate that lay in store for it\u2013who built a reinforced concrete cage around it to limit its expansion. <\/p>\n\n
Despite the cage, the tree continues to thrive, and not only in terms of its roots, leaves, and branches. A few days after the famous judge\u2019s death, a woman left a note to commemorate his life, hanging it on the tree. From there, a tradition was born that continues to this day. The Falcone Tree, as it was renamed, has become a destination for those who want to leave a memento, a poem, a photo, or a phrase dedicated to the fight against the mafia attached to its trunk or branches. Every year, a large event is held in front of the tree in memory of the massacre of May 23. It\u2019s \u201ctriple duty\u201d for Marcello: famous guests crowd the concierge\u2019s office and at the end of the event he has a heavy clean up. <\/p>\n\n This isn\u2019t, however, the only reason why the building is famous, and it\u2019s no coincidence that Marcello has been interviewed by the most important Italian newspapers. Thanks to him, the concierge\u2019s office has become a library, even though there are no formalities of any kind. He created it in 2018 by bringing in some of the books he had at home, then the residents added many more, with the result that there are now about a thousand volumes available to everyone, residents and passers-by alike, in the entrance hall. The library has an area dedicated entirely to the mafia. <\/p>\n\n Towards the end of our meeting, Marcello tells me how, a couple of years ago, the tree underwent an \u201cMRI scan\u201d, an experiment that took place at 1 a.m., involving numerous experts and blocking the road. The tree was hooked up to a truck which, by pulling on its branches, verified its perfect state of health. Another assessment was made on the roots, which turned out to be about 60 centimeters deep, the minimum size for such a large tree, while the others \u201cno one knows where they go,\u201d Marcello tells us. It\u2019s a curious metaphor for a city that has too often been plagued by mafia abuse: the Falcone Tree is there, and no one knows how far it reaches. <\/p>\n\n A few years ago, Marcello was awarded a prize for culture. \u201cMe! I\u2019m nobody!\u201d he exclaims humorously. He recalls that when he was in the milittary his supriors told him: \u201cDell\u2019Oglio, what do you need a shop for? You\u2019re cut out for military life.\u201d We beg to differ with the general, and we\u2019re happy that at Via Notarbartolo 23 there\u2019s a well-dressed man directing visitors to the offices and residences, greeting passers-by and lending books knowing that they will often not be returned. All in all, preserving the memory of Giovanni Falcone. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Marcello Dell\u2019Oglio works at the Palermo building turned symbol of anti-Mafia resistance<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4735,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[109],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-la-voce-di-new-york-es"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.justsicily.it\/JS\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Pa2025-Falcone-Portiere11-1140x775-1-1024x696.jpg\")
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