Thousands Pay Tribute to Fiat Patriarch Agnelli

Thousands of mourners, from athletes to top politicians, streamed past the simple wooden casket of Fiat patriarch Giovanni Agnelli, whose vast financial empire touched millions of Italians.

Agnelli, 81, had been ill with cancer and died last week, ending decades as Italy’s most prominent businessman and a stylish symbol of its postwar recovery.

Agnelli’s coffin was placed at Fiat’s founding Lingotto factory in Turin, now an art gallery. “He gave so much to Italy,” said a tearful Giuseppe L’Episcopo, 77. “When I heard he was gone, I was so moved. I worked here 23 years. I must offer my thanks.”