Ossuaries

Fontanelle Cemetery Caves in Naples, Italy
Naples, Italy

Fontanelle Cemetery Caves

The plague of 1656 and the bombings of WWII united by a cult dedicated to caring for the ancient dead

Like many ossuaries in Europe, the Cimitero Fontanelle began as an secondary burial ground when the church yards and crypts began to overflow... »

Subterranean Sites | Submitted by Annetta

Trench of Bayonets in Verdun, France
Verdun, France

Trench of Bayonets

Site of one of World War I's most horrific scenes

In 1916, this nine-month battle of Verdun claimed over 300,000 lives, and left about 300,000 more wounded... »

Ossuaries | Submitted by stanestane

Douaumont Ossuary in France, Europe
France, Europe

Douaumont Ossuary

This modern French ossuary contains the jumbled bones of 130,000 WWI soldiers

In an area of less the 20 square kilometers, roughly an area the size of half of Manhattan over there were 700,000 casualties and some 230,000 men died, during the nearly year long battle of Verdun in WWI... »

Memento Mori | Submitted by Anonymous

Brno Ossuary in Brno, Czechia
Brno, Czechia

Brno Ossuary

Europe's second largest ossuary discovered in 2001, nearly ready to be opened

Before doing renovation or new construction in the 1600 year old town of Brno (officially settled in 1243 but occupied since the 400s), it is standard practice to do a preliminary archeological dig, but what they found under Jakubske namesti or "St... »

Subterranean Sites | Submitted by Dylan

The Skeletons of Waldsassen Basillica in Germany, Europe
Germany, Europe

The Skeletons of Waldsassen Basillica

Skeletons dressed in extravagant 1700s royal costumes cavort in the aisles of this German Basilica

In the Waldsassen Basillica in Waldsassen, Germany, the halls of the church are lined with an unusual sort of decoration... »

Ossuaries | Submitted by Anonymous

Mělník Chapel of Bones in Czechia, Europe
Czechia, Europe

Mělník Chapel of Bones

Underneath this small church lie 15,000 bones, arranged not by the Church but by an academic

For the Bohemian queens and princess, it was a raw deal, for the other 15,000 skeletons in this crypt, it was an upgrade to nicer digs. The crypt under the St Peter and Paul’s church in Mělník was intended to be a holy burial ground for Bohemia's... »

Ossuaries | Submitted by CPilgrim

Walls built of femurs - Capela de Ossos Bone Chapel in Portugal, Europe
Portugal, Europe

Capela de Ossos Bone Chapel

This small chapel is built of human bones and decorated with a golden skeleton

With its big windows and light-filled sanctuary, the ossuary in Faro may be one of the cheeriest buildings made of human bones you'll encounter... »

Ossuaries | Submitted by Annetta

Church of St. Ursula in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Church of St. Ursula

Church filled the bones of hundreds of virgins martyrs, or so they say

The short version of the story goes a little something like this: Saint Ursula was a Roman-British Princess who, in the 300s, decided she would go on a pan-European pilgrimage... »

Relics and Reliquaries | Submitted by michelle

Kaplica Czaszek: The Chapel of Skulls in Poland, Europe
Poland, Europe

Kaplica Czaszek: The Chapel of Skulls

The walls and ceiling of this Polish church are decorated with thousands of skulls, with another 21,000 skeletons just below

In 1776, while America was declaring its independence from England, and bodies were piling up in the American revolutionary war, a priest and grave digger in the small Polish town of Czermna, (a kilometer to the north of Kudowa Zdroj) were also busy... »

Ossuaries | Submitted by Dylan

Skull and bones in the crypt - St Leonards Church in United Kingdom, Europe
United Kingdom, Europe

St Leonards Church

House of Bones, but nobody is quite sure who they belong to.

Church basements are usually pretty benign places containing casseroles, bake sales, and perhaps a few extra hymnal books. Not so in the basement of St... »

Ossuaries | Submitted by Elielux