Visiting unusual cemeteries on your travels can be a great insight into different cultures. These are some of the most intriguing – and unsettling – from around the globe.
The Burial Caves of Toraja, Indonesia
In this particular cemetery, the dead are not buried, but are interred in the walls of a steep cliff face. Nearby, lifelike wooden sculptures of the dead stand in neat rows in little crevices, very much like the windows and balconies of a house. Nothing spooky about that at all. Picture: Getty
The ‘Merry Cemetery’, Sapanta, Romania
Who said burial grounds had to be dreary and grey? Not the people of Sapanta, Romania, that’s for sure. This particular cemetery is known for its cheery disposition. Each gravesite has a brightly coloured wooden marker, which features a portrait, and a memorial epitaph of the diseased, giving a charming back story of their life. For example, that guy there seemed to really like his tractor. Picture: Getty
The Museum of the Mummies, Ferentillo, Italy
This is not a photo of yours truly with a particularly bad hangover … though it is a startlingly accurate representation. Under the Church of Santo Stefano is a 24-metre long crypt dating from the thirteenth century. Upon discovering the crypt and the amazingly preserved bodies, scientists explained their preservation came down to a combination of particular elements – the type of microorganisms characterising the soil of the area and the airy space of the crypt. The museum now exhibits about twenty of the mummified bodies. Picture: Getty
Hanging coffins, Sagada, Philippines.
Too bad if live in Sagada and you’re afraid of heights. Years ago the people of this province decided not to bury their coffins, and instead suspend them off a cliff one above another. Originally, this was done to keep animals from getting to the bodies, but over time it has become a tradition. Picture: Getty
Neptune memorial reef, Florida, USA
If you really, really like the ocean, this one is for you. Not content with just having your ashes flung into the brine-y depths, those who are memorialised at the man-made Neptune memorial reef (about 40 feet under the sea, 5.2km off the coast of Florida) have their remains cremated, mixed with concrete, and turned into a statue. Neptune’s “underwater city” design also involves underwater roads leading to a central feature with benches (?!) and statuary. Picture: Wikipedia
Chiesa dei Morti, Urbania, Italy
Chiesa deiI k Morti translates to “Church of the Dead” and it’s a description you can’t argue with. Here you’ll find 18 incredibly well preserved mummies, dating from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period. They have been on display behind the altar since 1833. What is truly remarkable is that they have all been naturally mummified – scientists believe that there is a particular mould in this region that absorbed all of the moisture from the bodies meaning they didn’t decay in the usual manner. Tours run regularly and your guide can tell you how each person died: one died of heart failure, another died while in labour, one was murdered. Picture: Getty
New Lucky Restaurant, India
The owner of the New Lucky restaurant faced a conundrum when he purchased the property. The floor was covered in exposed sarcophagi – reportedly dating back to the 16th century. But that didn’t stop him from following his dream of becoming a restaurant proprietor. He just built the dining room around it, and now people eat their meals attempting to ignore the fact that there are bodies on the ground. Picture: Tripadvisor
Catacombs, Paris
No idea what to do with your remains when you pass on? Ever considered having your bones stacked into a macabre structure? The French were way ahead of you. The Catacombs of Paris are underground ossuaries that hold the remains of more than six million people in a small part of a tunnel network built to consolidate Paris’ ancient stone quarries. It was created in 1786 to eliminate the city’s overflowing cemeteries. It’s now a hugely successful tourist attraction. Picture: Getty
Burial Houses, Alaska
Here’s another cemetery that refuses to be drab and solemn. The graveyard at Nicholas Orthodox Church in Eklutna, Alaska, is filled with more than 100 colourful burial sites. These “spirit houses” are about the size of a large dollhouse. After Russian Orthodox missionaries started arriving in the native village of Eklutna in around 1830, burial traditions of the two groups started co-mingling. Before the missionaries’ arrival, the Athabaskans cremated their deceased—a process that would allow their spirits to make their journey onward. Because Orthodoxy forbid cremation, it became common practice for their family members to instead construct a house above the grave so that the spirits would have a place to go until they were ready to make the next step in their final journey. Picture: Martha de Jong-Lantink/Flickr
The Capuchin Catacombs of Palermo, Italy
In the tunnels below this Italian church you’ll find 8,000 mummified bodies, dating back to the seventeenth century and continuing until the end of the nineteenth century. The moderate climate conditions of this burial site and the methods used by the friars to embalm the corpses allow the bodies to be well-preserved. They are propped up around the walls, almost intact and recognisable. It’s … super creepy. Picture: Getty
Tree graves, Toraja, Indonesia
In this particular village in Indonesia, when a baby dies they are buried inside the trunks of living plants so they can be absorbed by nature. Villagers hollow out holes in huge tree trunks before wrapping the deceased child in cloth and then placing the infant inside. Picture: Getty
