Unusual gravestones: creepy, touching, strange. Unusual cemeteries

Going to the city cemetery to look at unusual tombstones is probably the last thing that comes to mind. However, getting to know them can tell a lot about the culture of the people and individual residents of the country, as well as give an unforgettable experience, not only creepy, but also positive.

So in some cemeteries you can find real masterpieces worthy of becoming museum exhibits. Others are interesting for their historical value. If you throw away all superstitions and fears, you can discover something new and broaden your horizons.

The most unusual cemeteries in the world

Church of the Dead

In Urbania (Italy) the Church of the Dead is located, which is famous for its collection of 18 mummies dating back to the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The church once served as a cemetery, but then Napoleon ordered the bodies to be buried outside the city. During the move, it was discovered that the remains themselves had turned into mummies.

At first, what happened was taken as a miracle, but later experts found that the secret of such natural mummification lies in a special type of mold growing in those parts. She dried the bodies, absorbing moisture from the tissues.

The “exhibits” displayed behind the altar of the church each have their own history, for example, there is a woman who died in childbirth, and also the abbot of the brotherhood. Tourists come with pleasure to see the chilling spectacle. What’s interesting is that for the residents of Urbania, putting human remains on public display is not considered something immoral. On the contrary, it is an honor. Only outstanding personalities are given this honor.

Discovered in the 1920s, the Peruvian cemetery of Chauchilla dates back to approximately the 1st-2nd century AD, which means some of the remains are about 2,000 years old. They probably belong to the Nazca civilization (those who created mysterious geoglyphs in the sand).

Chowchilla includes thousands of burials, but the remains are not buried, but placed in sitting position in open tombs whose walls were lined with bricks. What’s also surprising is the “facial expression” of the skeletons – they smile. A smile sometimes looks welcoming, and sometimes it looks creepy. There is a feeling that they are waiting for someone, inviting them to join.

Chowchilla bodies can be called a “scientist’s dream.” They were well preserved due to the dry desert climate, as well as due to a special burial technique: the dead were dressed in cotton clothes, then doused with resin.

The find made it possible to learn more about the Nazca people, but the preservation of this cultural heritage is under threat. The burial structures were partially looted and continue to be robbed by “black diggers.” They are interested in jewelry and ancient artifacts that were buried with the dead.

This portal tomb is located in the Burren (Ireland). The estimated time of its creation is 4000-3000. BC.

The Pulnabron dolmen is a kind of tombstone made of 2 huge stone slabs of 2 m each, on top of which lies a third. It turns out to be a huge stone table. During the restoration, skeletons of more than 20 people were found under the dolmen, including a newborn child. Various things were also buried in the ground: weapons, dishes, household items.

Hanging coffins are a custom rather than a specific burial site. It is distributed in several regions: China, Indonesia and the Philippines. Instead of burying coffins in the ground, they are suspended on rocks, high above the ground.

This was originally done to protect bodies from animals, but over time, hanging coffins became a tradition.

La Recoleta

You can walk around this necropolis in Buenos Aires for hours, looking at the structures there. At La Recoleta Cemetery there are not ordinary monuments, but large mausoleums that look like houses. It feels like you're walking around small town. Each of the 6,000 mausoleums has individual style, sometimes they resemble Gothic chapels or Greek temples.

People from high society were buried on La Ricoleta - presidents, politicians, writers, artists, famous doctors. That's why the buildings look so pompous.

Neptune Memorial

The Neptune Memorial was dedicated in 2007 in Biscayne Bay, Florida. This is the first underwater mausoleum, which became the resting place of thousands of dead. The idea is very original: on the ocean floor, cremated people were sculpted from a mixture of cement and ashes the whole city with roads, sculptures, benches. Reminds me of Atlantis.

But this is not just a structure, but an artificial reef. Thus someone's death will give new life. In addition, land area is saved.

On the roads of the underwater streets there are memorial tables with the names of the dead buried there. The reef area is 65,000 m2, but it continues to be expanded.

You can get a place in the Neptune cemetery for no less than $7,000. However, relatives will have to scuba dive to visit the grave of loved ones.

Unusual cemeteries and tombstones in Russia

City of dead

Often called City of the dead, Dargavs village ( North Ossetia– Alanya) is considered one of the most mysterious places Russia. This ancient necropolis, hidden in the Caucasus Mountains, at first glance looks like the ruins of a medieval village. The crypts with the remains of the dead look like white houses with roofs. Only when you get closer do you realize what it really is.

By official version Valley residents buried loved ones there. Each family had a separate crypt. How more people buried there, the higher he is. Some sources claim that the oldest crypts belong to XVI century, allegedly at that time the plague was rampant in the neighboring territories, and the village became a burial place for dead patients.

Interesting fact: recently a new horror film was planned to be filmed in Dargavs, but residents of the Republic took this news negatively, since the necropolis is sacred to them. As a result, the shooting was postponed.

This is the old necropolis of Moscow, containing a large number of tombstones that can be called works of art. Most of the time they are creations outstanding artists, architects and other craftsmen. The Vagankovskoe cemetery was founded in 1771. At first it served to bury patients who died from the plague, then the poor were buried there.

Celebrities appeared here only in the 19th century. Now on the territory of the Vagankovo ​​necropolis you can find the burial places of famous Russian figures: Vladimir Vysotsky, Alexander Abdulov, Vladimir Voroshilov, Bulat Okudzhava, Oleg Dahl, Sergei Yesenin. To see the most interesting places, you can book a tour with local guides.

Especially stands out on Vagankovskoe cemetery the grave of the famous criminal Sonya “Golden Hand”. It is believed to bring good luck and material gain. Therefore, “pilgrims” come to her (mostly representatives of the criminal world, although there are also ordinary people). They write down their requests on paper and leave them near Sonya. The statue, by the way, is missing arms and head. They say that it was broken off by some drunk man who was trying to climb in and kiss his idol.

But people come to Vysotsky’s grave for inspiration. Some even claim that the poet is somehow mystically helps them compose lyrics and poems. His monument also deserves attention: the sculptor sculpted Vysotsky from bronze, wrapped in a peculiar straitjacket, and flames bursting out. Next to him is his eternal companion- guitar.

Yesenin's grave is notorious for its sadness. Near her, many people took their own lives, following the example of the sad famous poet. It all started with his girlfriend Galina Benislavskaya. She came to Yesenin’s burial place and shot herself in the head with a revolver. She was subsequently buried next to her lover.

The Vagankovskoe cemetery still keeps many secrets. It is worth visiting and getting acquainted with the history and legends of the local “residents”.

Novodevichy Cemetery

Another popular cemetery among Russians, which is an object of the country’s cultural heritage, is Novodevichye. This is because many celebrities are buried here - N.S. Khrushchev, A.N. Tolstoy, M.A. Bulgakov, N.V. Gogol, V.I. Vernadsky and others. The monuments erected in their honor are true masterpieces.

One of the most unusual graves Novodevichy Cemetery belongs to Yuri Nikulin - a well-known Soviet actor. The sculpture depicts Nikulin sitting with a cigarette in his hand. It reflects the simplicity and sincerity of this person.

A marble chapel was erected in memory of Chekhov. And a memorial to the recognized surgeon A.N. Bakulev, the founder of cardiovascular surgery, looks like two hands holding a large red stone - a symbol of the heart.

Original tombstones

Père Lachaise is a large Parisian necropolis, which is visited by more than 3 million tourists annually. Why is he attractive? A huge number of famous figures found their final resting place on Père Lachaise: from composer Frederic Chopin to writer Gertrude Stein and musician Jim Morrison.

In addition, each grave has its own design. On top of some there are busts of the deceased, and near others there are amazing statues. For example, above the burial site of Oscar Wilde there is a sphinx carved from a 20-ton piece of wood. The memorial at the grave of musician and actor Fernand Arbelo depicts him holding his wife's face so that he can look at her face forever.

Merry tombstones

In the Romanian village of Sapinta there is a cemetery called Merry. The point is in unusual colored tombstones with images of scenes from the life of the deceased and a bizarre epitaph.

Such monuments turned a dull place into something cheerful and bright. Although, if you look closely at them, you will notice that the drawings and phrases engraved on the tombstones are not so joyful. For example, one of them depicts a man who was hit by a truck. Another contains the inscription “don’t disturb my mother-in-law, otherwise she will bite your head off.”

The monuments were carved from wood and hand-painted by a local artist. He continued to do this business until his death in 1977, having completed more than 800 objects. Now the cemetery has been turned into a museum, which is popular among tourists.

It is quite natural that Jules Verne is the father science fiction, will unusual monument. 2 years after his death, a sculpture entitled “Vers l’Immortalité et l’Eternelle Jeunesse” (“Towards immortality and eternal youth”) was installed. The statue depicts the writer breaking a tombstone and emerging from a crypt.

A strange procession that never moves

Surprisingly, this monument belongs to the grave of only one person - Colonel Henry G. Wooldridge. It is located in Maplewood Cemetery, Kentucky. The statues were built under the direction of the military man during his lifetime. It took 7 years to create from stone all the people dear to him whom he had lost, including his mother, sisters, and wife. There is also a sculpture of Henry Wooldridge's favorite horse on the grave.

Crying angel

This statue commemorates Seattle entrepreneur Francis Haseroth. A seated bronze angel of human height holds an inverted torch - a symbol of extinct life. The mysticism of the angel is added by the black “tears” that seem to flow from his eyes.

Unusual tombstones can be found in probably every cemetery. People install in honor of loved ones or in memory of themselves not only beautiful monuments, depicting a person resting underneath, but also statues in the form of cars, pieces of furniture, theater stage, favorite animals. There is even a tombstone with a computer carved into it, as well as a cell phone!

Rosalia Lombardo (1918 - 1920, Capuchin catacombs in Italy)

At the age of 2 years, this girl died of pneumonia. The inconsolable father could not part with his daughter’s body and turned to Alfredo Salafia to embalm the child’s body. Salafia did a tremendous job (drying the skin with a mixture of alcohol and glycerin, replacing the blood with formaldehyde and using salicylic acid to prevent the fungus from spreading throughout the body). As a result, the girl's body, located in a sealed coffin with nitrogen, looks as if she had fallen asleep.

Cages for the Dead (Victorian era)

During the Victorian era, metal cages were built over graves. Their purpose is not exactly known. Some believe that this was how the graves were protected from destroyers, others think that this was done to ensure that the dead did not leave their graves.

Taira no Masakado (940, Japan)

This man was a samurai and during the Heian era he became the leader of one of the largest uprisings against the rule of Kyoto. The uprising was suppressed and in 940 Masakado was beheaded. According to historical chronicles, the samurai's head did not rot for three months and all this time he quickly rolled his eyes. Then the head was buried, and later the city of Tokyo was built on the burial site. Tair's grave is still preserved, as the Japanese believe that if it is disturbed, it can bring disaster to Tokyo and the whole country. Now this grave is the oldest burial place in the world, which is kept perfectly clean.

Lilly Gray (1881-1958, Salt Lake City Cemetery, USA)

The inscription on the tombstone reads "Sacrifice of the Beast 666." Lilly's husband Elmer Gray called the US government that way, which he blamed for the death of his wife.

Chase Family Crypt (Barbados)

The family crypt of this couple is one of the most mysterious places in the Caribbean. At the beginning of the 19th century, it was discovered on several occasions that coffins had been moved after being placed in the crypt, but it was established that no one had entered the crypt. Some coffins stood upright, others were on the steps near the entrance. In 1820, by order of the governor, the coffins were transported to another place, and the entrance to the crypt was closed forever.

Mary Shelley (1797 - 1851, St Peter's Chapel, Dorset, England)

In 1822, Mary Shelley cremated the body of her husband, Percy Bysshe Shelley, who had died in an accident in Italy. After cremation, the man’s intact heart was discovered among the ashes; his woman took it home to England and kept it until her death. In 1851, Mary died and was buried with her husband’s heart, which she kept in the manuscript “Adonai: Elegy of Death.”

Russian mafia (Ekaterinburg, Russia)

Monuments in full height, installed on the graves of representatives of the criminal world, many of us have seen. At some monuments you can even find video cameras protecting them from vandals.

Inez Clark (1873 - 1880, Chicago, USA)

In 1880, 7-year-old Inez died from a lightning strike. By order of her parents, a sculpture-monument in a plexiglass cube was installed on her grave. The sculpture is made in the height of a girl, depicting her sitting on a bench with a flower and an umbrella in her hands.

Kitty Jay (Devon, England)

A nondescript hill overgrown with grass, local residents called Jay's grave. IN late XVIII century, Kitty Jay committed suicide, and her grave became a cult site for ghost hunters. Since suicides could not be buried outside the cemetery, Kitty was buried at a crossroads so that her soul could not find its way to afterlife. To this day, fresh flowers constantly appear on her grave.

Elizaveta Demidova (1779 - 1818, Père Lachaise cemetery, Paris, France)

At the age of 14, Elizaveta Demidova was married to the first prince of San Donato, whom she did not love. The unfortunate woman was one of the richest women of her time, and she bequeathed her entire fortune to the person who could spend a week in her crypt without food. Until now, no one has done this, and therefore her fortune remains unclaimed.

January 27, 2015 It no longer surprises anyone that visits to cemeteries are included in excursion programs in many cities around the world. At the same time, the cemeteries themselves are sometimes capable of surprising - tourists who appreciate architecture and unusual works artists, as well as quiet, contemplative relaxation, find a lot of interesting things to do in local cemeteries. We publish here a list of the most amazing and beautiful, in our opinion, cemeteries in different parts of the planet.

1. Cemetery Père Lachaise, France, Paris

Today this cemetery in the eastern part of Paris is perhaps the most famous in the world. Hundreds of thousands of tourists visit it throughout the year. However, this was not always the case: in 1804, when the authorities allocated a place for it, Parisians did not want to bury their relatives there precisely because of its lack of fame. The Paris City Hall took an unprecedented step: the ashes of the writer Moliere and two legendary lovers: Abelard and Heloise were transported to Père Lachaise. After which many world-famous people found their final refuge here - Honore de Balzac, Frederic Chopin, Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Marcel Marceau and many other literary and artistic figures, as well as famous politicians.

2. Arlington National Cemetery, USA

The largest in the world military cemetery is located in Arlington, a suburb of the US capital Washington. In addition to participants in wars and various military conflicts that the United States has waged around the world since 1865, presidents, chief justices of the Supreme Court, and American astronauts are buried at Arlington Cemetery. The cemetery covers an area of ​​almost three square kilometers and currently contains about 300 thousand graves.

Chinese Christian cemetery on the western side of Hong Kong Island in the form of an amphitheater. The overpopulated territory of Hong Kong, a rocky island, did not allow the Pok Fu Lam cemetery, created in 1882, to expand, so Hong Kong Christians were forced to build burial terraces on the mountainside, connecting them with streets and alleys. Over time, the cemetery began to resemble a giant open amphitheater. Some burials are made with great artistic sophistication.

The world's only underwater cemetery-crematorium is an artificial reef off the east coast of the United States. Here, those who during their lifetime were somehow connected with the sea - divers, sailors - find their final refuge. The underwater reef area covers an area of ​​65,000 m2. The most famous burial is that of 86-year-old Edith Hinck, a resident of Naples. Her relatives decided that Edith loved the sea so much that she deserved to be buried in it.

An ancient necropolis near the high-mountainous Ossetian village of Dargavs. There are 97 stone crypts preserved here, most often in the form of pointed towers. According to legend, during the plague epidemic in the 14th century, people themselves came here, built crypts and waited for death. The necropolis is located on Mount Rabinirang, from where a picturesque panorama of the Caucasus Mountains opens.

One of the most visited places by tourists in the capital of Argentina, and rightfully one of the most beautiful cemeteries peace. Here are the graves of many Argentine presidents and other celebrities, the most famous of them is the grave of Eva Peron, a legendary woman especially revered in the countries Latin America. Eva Peron was an actress, the wife of Argentine President Juan Domingo Peron, and she herself was involved in politics a lot. The cemetery is part of the National historical museum. Among the sculptures in the cemetery there are many original works of art that have been declared national cultural and historical treasures.

This strange "joyful" cemetery was created in the 1930s by original local artist Stan John Patra. Crosses and wooden tombstones are decorated with humorous inscriptions and drawings in the primitivism genre, depicting episodes from the life (and sometimes death) of those buried, telling about their strengths and small weaknesses. According to the artist, a joyful attitude towards death is the legacy of the Dacians, the ancestors of modern Romanians, who believed that death is only a transition to a better life.

The cemetery was created in 1786, in accordance with the decree of Emperor Joseph II of Austria-Hungary, who prohibited the burial of people within the city limits. Further fate The city cemetery is unusual - in the 19th century it became a favorite place for walks and romantic dates for Lviv residents, and in the 20th century it became a place of pilgrimage for tourists. People are attracted by the huge (about 400,000) number of sculptures, crypts and tombstones, with inscriptions in Polish, German, Ukrainian, Russian, Hebrew, Latin, Armenian and some other languages ​​of the inhabitants of international Lviv. Many of the monuments are monuments of art; the Lychakiv cemetery is included in the UNESCO World List of Cultural Heritage Sites.

The world's largest Islamic cemetery and one of the largest cemeteries in the world. There are about five million graves in an area of ​​6 km2. Many Muslim prophets are buried here, and nearby is the tomb of Hazrat Imam Ali ibn Abu Talib, the “Fourth Imam,” a shrine revered by Muslims around the world.

10. The Hanging Coffins of Sagada, Philippines

Scientists estimate that the hanging coffin mountain cemetery has existed on the Philippine island of Luzon for more than two thousand years. Representatives of the Sogadi people bury their dead here. Now the Sogadians are Christians, converted to the Catholic faith by the Spanish colonialists, but they refuse to bury their dead. Coffins hollowed out from solid logs are prepared while a person is still alive, most often he does this himself, and if for some reason he cannot complete this work, the coffin is hollowed out by his relatives and friends. The burial ritual includes a complex procedure for delivering the coffin with the body of the deceased to a cemetery located high in the mountains, on steep cliffs, and securing it on the rock. Perhaps this is the most unusual cemetery on our entire list.

11. Sucre's General Cemetery, Bolivia

The main cemetery in the city of Sucre is the most prestigious in Bolivia; the family of the deceased has to pay $10,000 for burial. True, with this money the deceased stays for seven years in a special storage facility, a kind of pantheon, and only after that is moved into the ground, into an ordinary grave. True, not forever, but for the next twenty years, after which the grave is completely removed, there are many who want to be buried in the cemetery in Sucre. Many Bolivian presidents are buried here, including Hilarion Daza, the infamous initiator of the war with Chile, after which Bolivia lost access to the Pacific coast.

The cemetery is not the most pleasant place that most of us have ever visited in our lives. IN literally the deathly silence that envelops this place instills fear, and the crows sitting on rickety crosses, whose cawing breaks the silence with a piercing sound, instill real horror. Although the tombstones that can be seen in a cemetery can be much creepier than the cemetery itself. Here are 25 of the strangest, most heartbreaking and sometimes funny tombstones from around the world.

Woman at the piano. I wonder if she played during her lifetime?

This Woman Really Loved Mickey Mouse

We hope that this man's death and smoking are not related.

Tomb of the creator of the labyrinth

Now they will sleep forever

The tree mercilessly swallowed up the old grave

This tomb is located in Paris, France and contains the inventor of the gas lamp, Charles Pigeon.

In this grave lies a 10-year-old girl who died in 1871, who during her lifetime was very afraid of thunderstorms. After the death of her daughter, her grief-stricken mother ordered the construction of a basement next to the girl’s grave, where she could go down during a thunderstorm and calm her daughter.

This life-size monument in a glass box was commissioned by the mother of the deceased

This is the grave of a 16-year-old girl whose sister commissioned this life-size headstone.

Lovers from Thailand

One of the most heartbreaking monuments we have ever seen and reminds us that we are all in God's hands

A tombstone in the shape of a mobile phone in one of the Israeli cemeteries

Happy forever

A terrifying tomb located in Genoa, Italy

In this grave with an eerie tombstone lies the writer Georges Rodenbach, who emerged from it.

Mortsafe: this appearance of the grave was common in 18th century Scotland and was done to protect graves from looting, which was a common occurrence among medical students who were so lacking in practical material

Nature is unforgiving

The frightening tombstone of Fernand Arbelot, who was a musician and actor

Tomb of an 18th century French journalist

Whoever's lying here really enjoyed playing Scrabble.

These are the interconnected graves of a husband and wife. The wife was a Protestant and the husband was a Catholic. They died at a time when Catholics and Protestants were buried in different cemeteries

This is the last remaining grave in an old cemetery in rural Indiana. Much of the cemetery was moved to make way for the state highway. The grandson of the woman buried there refused to allow his grandmother to move. The county eventually gave in and built a road around the grave

Grieving relatives do everything to perpetuate the memory of their deceased loved ones, turning ordinary gravestones into either something very allegorical or into sculptures that are real works of art

Grieving relatives do everything to perpetuate the memory of their deceased loved ones, turning ordinary gravestones into either something very allegorical or into sculptures that are real works of art:

1. Woman at the piano. She may have been a musician during her lifetime.

2. This woman really loved Mickey Mouse

3. Maybe this guy died because he smoked too much?

4. The tomb of the creator of the labyrinth

5. "Eternal Dream"

6. The tree swallowed the old grave

7. Tombstone over the grave of the inventor of the gas lamp, Charles Pigeon, Montparnasse cemetery, Paris, France

8. This grave was made at the behest of a grief-stricken mother for her late 10-year-old daughter in 1871.

When the girl was alive, she was terrified of thunderstorms. Next to her grave there is a special basement that was dug to the level of the coffin. During a thunderstorm, the girl’s mother went down to the basement to “calm down” her child.

9. A life-size monument to a girl under a glass cover was custom-made at the request of her mother.

10. This is the grave of a 16-year-old girl. The tombstone was made by order of her sister

11. “Love to the grave”, Thailand

12. This monument depicts the Savior holding in his hands two ropes from a simple children’s swing with a crossbar

A little girl is sitting on a swing below. Sculptural composition reminds us that the life of everyone on earth is in the hands of God.

13. A tombstone in the shape of a mobile phone was discovered in one of the Israeli cemeteries

The tombstone is engraved with various inscriptions, for example: “Please leave a message - I will reply as soon as I can.”

14. "Together Forever"

15. This terrifying grave is located in a cemetery in Genoa, Italy.

16. The grave of the Belgian writer Georges Rodenbach.The tombstone represents the writer himself, rising from the grave with a rose in his hand

17. The design of this Victorian grave is to ensure that the dead do not leave their final resting place.

Many in those days firmly believed in the existence of vampires and thus prevented the release of the reincarnated deceased. In fact, medical students needed corpses to study anatomy, and in order to gain knowledge, they did not disdain excavating fresh graves. To protect the assassination attempt, relatives ordered forged gratings for the graves of their loved ones.

18. Nature is inexorable...

19. Fernand Arbelot was a musician and actor who died in 1990

He was buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris. During his lifetime, Fernand wished to look at his wife's face forever.

20. 18th century gravestone under which a French journalist rests

21. Gravestone in the form of a scrabble board

22. The graves of a Catholic woman and her Protestant husband, who were not allowed to be buried together

In the 1800s, it was illegal for Catholics and Protestants to be buried in the same cemetery.

23. This grave is all that remains of an old rural cemetery in India

An interstate highway was built on the site of the cemetery. The grandson, whose grandmother was buried there, refused to move the grave. In the end, the authorities met him halfway and built a road around the grave.