I recalled my visit to the Paris catacombs, seeing walls made of bones, and it reminded me of the Cracked article on creepy places and the Bone Church featured. So I decided to make part 3 about:
Part 3: Bone Churches
Bone churches, more accurately called "ossuaries," exist in several countries in Europe, and can consist of everything from piles of decorated skulls to pieces of wall art made up of various human bones and bodies. The walls of this series of small chapels in Rome’s Capuchin Cryptare are entirely decorated with the bones of Capuchin monks.
The crypt features the bones of more than 4,000 monks who died between 1528 and 1870. There are six small chapels in the Capuchin Crypt, and all but one is creatively adorned with bones. Furthermore, some of the bone-covered chapels feature predominantly one particular bone. For instance, there’s a "Crypt of the Leg Bones and Thigh Bones" and a "Crypt of the Pelvises."
The above picture is from the Capela dos Ossos in Evora, Portugal. The very walls of the chapel have bones in them, with cement holding everything together. Even the pillars supporting the ceiling have skulls running up and down them. Estimates are that there are roughly 5,000 bodies whose skeletons are represented in the chapel, and if that’s not macabre enough for you there are also two bodies hanging from chains – one is of a monk, one of them is that of a child. Once again, the Palermo catacombs got their start in the late 16th century when the monks ran out of space in the cemetery. The climate in the underground space turned out to be ideal for preserving bodies, such that even some of the oldest skeletons in the catacombs still have some skin and hair left on them. The last body to be placed in the catacombs was that of a two-year-old girl called Rosalia Lombardo, who remains so lifelike today that she looks like she could wake up from her nap any second and run outside to play – except she died in 1920. Rosalia’s body was perfectly preserved thanks to an embalming method which was, at the time, revolutionary. The specific formula was lost for decades, but was recently rediscovered – and what’s more, it still works. The disturbing image of Roaslia is spoilered.
Ossuary display in the Kaplica Czaszek, Kudowa-Zdrój, Poland Above: Some visitors find the Capucin crypt terrifying, while others are absolutely fascinated. And everyone asks about the purpose of this macabre display, which is to remind the living of the delicacy and tenuous nature of life. Thus, the crypt functions as a momento mori on the grandest scale and its purpose is reinforced by an inscription placed near the mummified remains of one monk, which reads:
“Quello che voi siete noi eravamo,
Quello che noi siamo voi sarete.”
[What you are now we were, What we are you will be]Above: Death's head chapel in Sedlec, Czech Republic. Over 40,000 bodies are represented by the bones in this bone church. Most of the dead fell to a plague in the 14th century. Sources:
http://www.bootsnall.com/articles/09-05 ... urope.htmlhttp://www.outsideprague.com/kutna_hora ... hurch.htmlGoogle Image results
Coming next, and probably last: Something a lot less morbid I hope.