In the Organ Mountains of south-west New Mexico is a trail that leads to “la cueva,” home for some time to this famous hermit named Agostini-Justiniani.
“El Ermitano ” as the monk was called locally, had been born of an aristocratic family in Italy around 1800. He became an ascetic wanderer by his 30s, foregoing his wealth but travelling all around Europe before taking a ship to the Americas. Moving through Mexico, Cuba, and into the United States, he gained a reputation for healing. Personally, I think he rocks a sort of Rasputin vibe.
Ending up in a lonely outcropping in New Mexico, he promised some friendly followers that he would light a fire up in his cave-dwelling each evening to let them know he was safe. One evening in 1869, the hermit’s fire did not appear, and his friends travelled to find his murdered corpse, a knife in the old man’s back.
