Czech cemeteries and funeral architecture – the problem of integration with urban landscape – research and design studies

2022

1(69)

DOI: 10.37190/arc220106

Klára Palánová*, Ondřej Juračka**

Czech cemeteries and funeral architecture

– the problem of integration with urban landscape

– research and design studies

Introduction

Background

While in the neighbouring Poland, Belgium, the Neth-

erlands, or Sweden the crematorium-related design and

architecture, along with the establishment of new urn gar-

dens or forest cemeteries, has been in the centre of inter-

est, such attempts are rare in the Czech Republic. In the

Czech Republic, the most widespread typological struc-

ture has been ceremony and mourning halls that were fre-

quently constructed in the 1970s. However, at present new

ceremony and mourning halls are built only occasionally

and new cemeteries are rare to be established. If they are

developed, the modications are minor.

As for crematoria, their construction ceased in the 1990s

and no new crematoria are planned to be built [1] despite

the high number of cremations in the Czech Republic [2].

Although the Czech Republic has a sucient number of

crematoria (one or two in every region), the problem is that

one half of them dates back to the 1920s–1930s, and the

rest were built between 1960s and 1990s. In this way, these

facilities do not mirror the needs and expectations of the

current society.

When cremation became permitted by a law called Lex

Kvapil in 1919 [3], twelve crematoria were built very

quickly [4]. This copied the enthusiasm of the then indepen-

dent Czechoslovakia and the support of a new se cu larized

society [5]. During the 1960s, cremation, as a progressive

form of funeral and civic funerals, was established by

Government Decree 396 of 16 May 1963. Since then fare-

well halls without cremation have been built [6].

With newly built crematoria, urn gardens have always

been added. Although the Czech Republic has only 27 cre -

matoria with an urn garden, there are 6,500 cemeteries.

However, not all of the cemeteries include an urn gar-

den or columbarium. Many cemeteries are not prepared

for ash disposal, despite the fact that 80% of all burials

are cremations. This poses a problem especially in cities,

where higher numbers of cremations have been reported

(Prague 95%, Liberec 98%) [7]. The high degree of cre-

mation as a way of burial according to research [8], [9]

is mainly inuenced by the secular, socio-economic and

psychological aspects which in large cities outweigh reli-

gious beliefs and the willingness to uphold traditions [8].

In 2019, the Czech Republic celebrated 100 years of

cremation in the Czech lands. Since then, many architec-

turally signicant objects have been erected, but they fail

to serve the needs of the contemporary society. There are

many cemeteries based on a regular grid (heritage of the

Austro-Hungarian Empire) which represent the Gardens

of Silence in towns with high quality sculptural art, but

they are not always ready for ash disposal and new ways

of burial [9]. Till today ceremony and mourning halls

have been constructed, which in many cases do not meet

the needs of the cemetery operators or the legal require-

ments. Despite a high interest in cremation, the enthusi-

astic start of constructing crematoria at the beginning of

the last century contrasts the current stagnation. This leads

to a lower interest of clients in renting a ceremony and

mourning hall in a crematorium or a farewell hall without

cremation for burial ceremony. Clients also show a low

interest in using cemeteries with low or zero possibility of

ash disposal. It brings economic problems for operators of

these services, and subsequently it brings diculties with

* ORCID: 0000-0001-9215-6229. VŠB-Technical University of

Ostrava, Czech Republic, e-mail: klara.palanova@vsb.cz

** ORCID: 0000-0002-6619-1183. VŠB-Technical University of

Ostrava, Czech Republic.

Published in open access. CC BY NC ND license

68 Klára Palánová, Ondřej Juračka

According to our research, burial facilities with limited

possibilities for ash disposal, or those ignoring new trends,

tend to be less used and visited, which brings problems

with a lack of maintenance and care for graves by fami-

lies, possibly opening ways to vandalism, mostly in larger

towns [7]. In successful cases, cemeteries may function as

green areas in city organisms, when their multi-purpose-

fulness can lead to higher attendance rates and society’s

wider acceptance of the localities [10] (Fig. 1).

Architectonic-urbanistic concept of the inter-war

and post-war crematoria as parts of urn gardens

or forest cemeteries

There is a clear dierence in the architectonic concept

and layout plan of the cultural and technical parts of the in-

ter-war and post-war structures in the Czech Republic. The

ceremony and mourning halls built in the 1920s and 1930s

have the layout of sacral space represented by a wide en-

trance platform, monumental entrance door, foyer with

a low ceiling in contrast with an elevated space of the cer-

emony and mourning hall. The structures are strictly ax-

isymmetric. An axis runs through the entrance and foyer,

the aisle between the benches and culminates in the cata-

falque (Fig. 2). In several early structures the catafalque is

separated from the rest of the room by a triumphal arc (e.g.,

rondo-cubist crematorium in Pardubice by Pavel Janák

from 1923) [11] (Fig. 3). As a matter of course, a matrone-

um with an organ is also included. A spokesperson comes

from a room behind the catafalque, which is equivalent

to a sacristy in sacral structures. In later functionalistic

and constructivist implementations, the inner space of

the hall and the catafalque become one space getting rid

of the triumphal arc, and in some cases getting rid of the

elevated “presbytery” in the site of the catafalque (e.g.,

crematorium in Brno by Ernst Wiesner, 1930 [12], cre-

matorium in Praha-Strašnice by Alois Mezera, 1932 [4]).

The main space of the ceremony and mourning hall

is usually lit by vertical windows, or through the ceiling

maintenance and care for the buildings and the adjacent

premises. As a result, the state of the buildings deterio-

rates, the sites are unattended, and thus prone to the onset

of vandalism. This means that if the cemeteries do not fol-

low new burial trends, they are less used by clients.

The aim of article is to discuss how to design or re-

design cemeteries and accompanying architecture, thus to

re-incorporate them into the urban systems or landscape,

to bring them closer to wide public, and cause interest of

the government. The question that remains is the degree

of possibility of application of research from the environ-

ment of the Czech Republic in other European countries,

where it may not apply universally. The available publi-

cations indicate the existence of similar problems in the

countries of Eastern and Southern Europe [2]. The dif-

ferences may lie in the number of crematoria according

to the population in other countries, but still the current

cemeteries / cemeteries and buildings will age and new

projects will be rare. This opens up a lot of space for revi-

talization projects and new architectural solutions.

The article deals with the possible contribution of the

architectural solutions of the transformation of cemeteries

and funeral architecture to their necessary transformation,

which is conditioned by the above reasons.

Czech Cemeteries as the heritage of

the Austrian-Hunga rian Empire

As mentioned above, many cemeteries in the Czech

Republic have been the heritage of the Austro-Hungarian

Empire and are not always ready for ash disposal and new

trends in burials. The old cemeteries sometimes lack scat-

ter garden with quality grass, columbaria or other options

for urn disposal. In addition, families may opt for burials/

ash disposal without a ceremony. For such purposes, some

cemeteries built open roofed spaces, but this is rather rare.

People are interested in new trends, for example in Great

Britain they may opt for a natural funeral in the forests or

meadows of remembrance.

Fig. 1. Olšany Cemeteries

in Prague – original plague

cemetery from the 18

century

with a minimum space for urn

or ash disposal but with a huge

potential of greenery in the urban

organism (photo by K. Frolíková

Palánová, 2015)

Il. 1. Cmentarze Olszańskie

w Pradze – oryginalny cmentarz

morowy z XVIII w., z minimalną

ilością miejsca na urnę lub

popiół, ale z ogromnym

potencjałem zieleni

w organizmie miejskim

(fot. K. Frolíková Palánová, 2015)

Integration of cemeteries and funeral architecture into urban organisms 69

using diused light with no views. In this way, the struc-

tures appear to be enclosed, paying attention to the de-

ceased and the community of the mourners. An important

part of the cultural premises of the crematoria is a chapel

to display a con with the deceased near the main hall.

The post-war crematoria complexes were no longer de-

signed as axisymmetric, save for few halls only. They do

not follow the sacral tradition either. The Christian cross

ceases to be a symbol, being substituted by nature, with

which the crematoria are interlinked optically (e.g., cre-

matorium in Praha-Motol by Josef Karel Říha, 1954; cre-

matorium in Zlín by Jiří Čančík, 1970–1978 [4]).

While smaller ceremony and mourning halls in the cre-

matoria have the capacity of about 100 people, the large

ones take in as many as 300–400 people. Additional small

mourning halls (as auxiliary to the larger ones) were de-

signed to host from 10 to 20 mourners. The problem is

that the crematoria lack rooms for receiving condolences

or holding funeral receptions, as it is common in current

Belgian crematoria [13]. As a result, in some facilities,

roofed columbaria are used as substitutes for shelter for

mourners waiting or for condolences.

As for the location, the inter-war crematoria were built

within the premises of the existing historic cemeteries, in

the centre of an urn garden. The layout of the urn gardens

is regular having a clear skeleton of predened paths. As

opposed to these, the post-war crematoria were built in

new cemeteries often established in connection with the

construction of a new crematorium, outside the traditional

historical necropolis. Because they are often located on

the outskirts of cities, they take the form of forest cemeter-

ies. The crematoria buildings are either hidden in the tree

cover, or completely exposed and accentuated in the cen-

tre of the entrance platform (crematorium in Pardubice)

[4] (Fig. 3). In the Slovak Republic (formerly Czechoslo-

vakia), the crematorium in Bratislava is located at the end

of the meadow [4], [14]. Thanks for their architectonic de-

sign and locations the crematoria full an important cultur-

ally-social function. In addition, they may symbolize new

ideas or political ideologies of the society, e.g., the crema-

torium in Pardubice designed in the national rondo-cub-

ist style, or the former cubist crematorium in Ostrava.

Ceremony and mourning halls without crematoria

added to cemeteries

Only several inter-war ceremony and mourning halls

were built in the former Czechoslovakia (e.g., in Brno by

Bohuslav Fuchs, 1925–1927) [15]. The situation changed

in the 1960s as a result of a new law, when the government

aimed to substitute the sacral structures by a secularized

model. Ceremony and mourning halls were built in every

bigger town and their number was in the order of thousands

[16]. A special government directive was issued to elim-

inate earlier traditions connected to Christianity arguing

that those traditions are outlived and new culture of rituals

needs to be adopted. To motivate citizens to avoid opting

for a church funeral, a high number of new crematoria

was built that were easily available especially in towns.

Despite the ideological drawbacks, many signicant re-

alizations were implemented at that time, for example in

Vsetín (authors J. Zbořil, M. Kadeřábek, J. Jakeš, 1977

[17]) (Fig. 4), in Luhačovice (authors F. Pala, V. Ru diš,

1978 [17]), and in Humpolec (authors J. Zbořil, M Ka-

deřábek, J. Jakeš, 1977 [18]).

From an urbanistic perspective, it is important to pro-

vide a good access for the mourners and for contractors

(services, waste management). Therefore, the above men-

tioned structures were often built at the edges of the burial

sites, considering also the practicality of their proximi-

ty. At present, the deceased are often transported to the

nearest crematorium for cremation, and next the ashes are

buried elsewhere.

Fig. 2. Crematorium in Liberec (1917)

was the first crematorium in Czechoslovakia with an urn garden

(photo by K. Frolíková Palánová, 2018)

Il. 2. Krematorium w Libercu (1917)

było pierwszym w Czechosłowacji krematorium z ogrodem urnowym

(fot. K. Frolíková Palánová, 2015)

Fig. 3. Entrance platform in front of the crematorium in Pardubice (1923)

with a roofed staircase; in the national rondo-cubist style

(photo by K. Frolíková Palánová, 2015)

Il. 3. Podest wejściowy przed krematorium w Pardubicach (1923)

z zadaszoną klatką schodową; w stylu narodowego rondokubizmu

(fot. K. Frolíková Palánová, 2015)

70 Klára Palánová, Ondřej Juračka

Current research

In our earlier research, we dealt with the conditions at

Czech cemeteries in terms of their incorporation into the

urban organisms, their function in the public space, and

analysis of the user/ mourners’ amenities. We examined

the necropolises in the three largest cities (Praha, Brno,

and Ostrava) [19], in all the 14 cities seating the regional

administrative bodies [20], and village cemeteries [7].

The ndings show that although cities may be per-

ceived as live organisms, Czech historical graveyards in

cities are enclosed, dened by fences or walls, thus rep-

resenting grounds of isolated gardens of silence. In this

way, they fail to respond to the surrounding public space.

The access is limited by visitor hours, and cemeteries

have become premises with low or, in the evening, zero

number of visitors, and corresponding weak interaction

with the surroundings [20]. Another problem is that the

cemeteries do not provide sucient amenities for visitors

or mourners [20], which is related to the history behind

their construction described above. Moreover, we found

that cemeteries do not provide a sucient number of, or

completely lack, sites for ash disposal. The requirements

for ash disposal depend on the inhabitants’ religiousness,

size of the municipality/ region, historical development,

and the age of the cemetery [20], [7] as cemeteries estab-

lished in the course of the 20

century already include urn

gardens or other ash disposal options.

Due to a higher level of religiousness in villages and the

country, the interest in cremation is lower there, and hu-

man remains are frequently buried. Many village cemeter-

ies were built in the 20

century, the ash disposal options

are thus sucient. These cemeteries also usually receive

sucient care. On the contrary, town and cities are known

for lower religiousness, worse accessibility of the necrop-

olises, lower interest in grave plots, and other causes that

directly lead to a higher interest in cremation and thus re-

quirements for ash disposal. It shows that cemeteries that

have not adapted to new trends are being deserted [7].

Methods

We carried out research at 25 cemeteries, 9 cremato-

ria with urn gardens or forest cemetery in the Czech Re-

public (out of 27 crematoria in total), 1 crematorium in

Slovakia (out of 4 crematoria in total), and 10 ceremony

and mourning halls without a crematorium. The sample

of cemeteries included areas in large cities (over 300,000

inhabitants), regional cities (around 100,000 inhabitants),

smaller cities (10–25,000 inhabitants) and village ceme-

teries so that all these categories were evenly represented.

Each of these categories presents its own current issues.

At the same time, the samples represent plague cemeter-

ies founded in the 17

century, most examined cemeteries

were established in the 18

and 19

centuries, but also

there is a representative newer cemetery from the early

century. However, all of them were founded after the

Josephine reforms and with regard to their conditions. The

selected crematorium buildings represent examples of the

First Republic buildings as well as post-war buildings.

Both categories represent two dierent-minded compa-

nies, which are reected in their organization, layout and

architectural design. The representatives of the mourning

halls substitute a sample of the rst realizations from the

1970s to the present. We examined a total of 45 facilities

to determine the availability of ash disposal / ballot box

and other conditions.

As a method, we rst chose input analyses, speci-

cally, the studies focused on the following categories of

research: interviews with facility operators, a precise de-

scription and examination of the selected sites and objects

visited. Subsequently, the weaknesses of each building

Fig. 4. High-quality architecture

ceremony and mourning hall

in Vsetín from 1977

with an added roofing staircase,

additional heating and cooling

of the central glazed space,

located at the border of

the existing cemetery (photo by

K. Frolíková Palánová, 2017)

Il. 4. Wysokiej jakości

architektura sali ceremonii

i pożegnań w Vsetínie z 1977 r.

z dobudowanym zadaszeniem

schodów, dodatkowym

ogrzewaniem i chłodzeniem

centralnej przeszklonej

przestrzeni, położonej na granicy

istniejącego cmentarza

(fot. K. Frolíková Palánová, 2017)

Integration of cemeteries and funeral architecture into urban organisms 71

or cemetery were specied and quantied. The research

focused on the existence and type of space for mourning

gatherings, a place for a ballot box, and a room or a covered

open space for post-ceremony condolences. Furthermore,

we analysed the background for visitors to the cemeteries

monitored in terms of space for rest in bad weather, a place

for quiet, meditation, prayer, the existence of a ower

shop, candles and places with refreshments and, of course,

toilets. We were also interested in transport accessibility,

whether individual or public, the distance from residential

centres and the quality of internal communication roads.

The information obtained was supplemented by data from

available literature, both local and foreign, particularly to

highlight strengths, and to identify the current trends in

the development of crematoria.

Next, the identied weaknesses were reframed as chal-

lenges and fundamental opportunities for transformation

of crematoria, ceremony and mourning halls, and adjacent

cemeteries. The research described here has been applied

to the topics of university students’ Master and Bachelor

Theses at the Department of Architecture, VŠB-Technical

University of Ostrava.

Thus, analyses obtained from knowledge of the authors

of the paper, their students, representatives of the towns

and cities, and the cemetery operators were used for ideo-

logical student design and proposals. They focused on

how to transform the existing skeleton graveyards into urn

gardens, or parks, which would complement the graves

with scattered gardens or columbaria. Next, the solutions

suggest improvements in mourners’ amenities. As a result,

2 student proposals supervised by the article authors are

featured in the following section.

Results and discussion

Through observations and interviews, we identied

weak nesses and room for improvement in Czech crema-

toria, ceremonial and mourning halls, which we compared

with solutions in foreign realizations.

Having compared the crematoria and mourning halls

premises, the research results show signicant drawbacks

in the layouts. What is typically missing is a private space

for the mourning relatives / family before the ceremony.

If there is such a space, it is only a temporary solution,

and it is the space originally meant to be used by the sta.

No facility has a specic space dedicated to condolences

and often lack dignied space for the display of the cof-

n for the mourners to pay their respects. Some buildings

have inconvenient interiors, they lack dignied entrance

platforms or staircases that may help mourner / visitors to

enter into the mood of a ceremonial moment.

Moreover, in 89% of the buildings, the mourners of

two successive ceremonies get mixed up, which makes

the operation of the premises more dicult. The clients

may perceive this in a negative way due to reduced dig-

nity of the ceremony and a certain uniqueness of each fu-

neral, also ensuring privacy. The operators conrmed the

negative feelings and navigate the problem via display of

clearly visible signposts to inform the mourners about the

direction to go. It would be more practical to have a dier-

ent exit, for example as in the crematorium in Bratislava,

Slovak Republic [4], [14] and solve this problem during

architectural design.

Next, we looked whether the crematoria have a storm

porch, and found that 33% of the buildings do not. Such

a porch protects mourners from severe weather before the

ceremony, but could be used as a space for condolences,

or an extra space for mourners during highly visited funer-

als. We also inquired about the thermal comfort. In 22% of

the premises, the thermal comfort inside the buildings was

low during the year.

In crematoria, we observed to what extent the path of

the deceased interlink with the mourners’ path. Unfortu-

nately, the two paths cross usually only during the cere-

mony and mourning hall. Some buildings oer the option

to accompany the deceased all the way to the cremation as

it was, for example, designed in the 1960s during build-

ing the crematorium in Bratislava designed by Ferdinand

Milučký [4]. For this purpose, the layout oered a room

separated by a glass wall. Such an option was oered in

some crematoria ex-post, but only in 30% of the build-

ings under investigation. In addition, in 60% of the ob-

served crematoria, the path for the deceased through the

utility rooms is very long all the way to the ceremony and

mourning hall, which makes the dignied handling of the

body more dicult.

Although we can follow trends in contemporary funer-

al architecture and urbanism, we cannot use successful

examples from abroad without knowing the traditions and

needs of each society. For example, when analysing the

implementation of the crematorium at Woodland Cem-

etery in Stockholm, Sweden [21], a very small farewell

room is typical for invited guests only. In the Czech Re-

public, funeral ceremonies are often attended by the gen-

eral public without being explicitly invited. This is the rea-

son for the design of spacious ceremonial and mourning

halls. Another example is the possibility of integrating the

cemetery complex into the organism of cities. The Nor-

dic realizations, which are under the diction of the church

denominations other than the Roman Catholic Church,

which is most widespread in Central Europe, understand

the cemetery as a public space, only symbolically dened

and enabling activities that are unacceptable in the Ro-

man Catholic tradition. Although the Czech Republic is

characterized by a high degree of secularization, the cem-

etery is still perceived as a sacred space, a strictly dened

garden of silence, without the possibility of cycling or

entering with a dog. In addition, Central European cem-

eteries are only accessible for a limited time during the

day. Although 19% of the surveyed cemetery visitors can

imagine or wish to have some form of refreshments on the

cemetery premises (this service is completely missing in

Czech cemeteries and crematoria), it is equally dicult

to accept the idea of having a café overlooking graves,

such as at Brompton Cemetery in London, even at the

edge of the grounds. From this point of view, the trans-

formation of Czech cemeteries seems more appropriate in

terms of the availability of sites for ash storage, which is

now a very popular form of burial. The transformation of

defunct cemeteries into parks is already traditional, as we

72 Klára Palánová, Ondřej Juračka

can see in Ostrava in the locality of Husův sad, Milady

Horáková Park, etc. or e.g. the defunct original cemeter-

ies with some important tombs around the churches (e.g.,

around St. Nicholas in Ostrava-Poruba). This route seems

to be suitable for solving the future of declining ceme-

teries, mainly in large cities, i.e. by gradually removing

the tombstones of extinct graves and transforming the

place into a city park. Taking care of such an area would

reduce the vandalism that is seen in the little-visited ceme-

teries of large cities. The context of the place can be high-

lighted by landscaping, which will state the uniqueness of

the place.

Since the 18

century, cemeteries have been situated

outside towns. Some of them fused with the city organ-

isms in time due to development, but they may still be

very far from the city centres and highly frequent sites in

the city. Therefore, better accessibility and shorter public

transport routes are desirable, as well as considerations of

reconnecting these often isolated places to the urban organ-

ism by a suitable urban solution. Ceremonial or sym bolic

connection of villages with allocated cemeteries in the

landscape also seems to be suitable for solutions in the fu-

ture, as shown by the following ideological student work.

The procession pathway

This proposal aims to solve a low interaction of a cem-

etery with the adjacent municipality, better incorporation

into the landscape, lack of sites for ash disposal, and thus

overall leading to an adequate funeral architectonic de-

sign. The student’s work also proposes a new cemetery

near a spa town of Velichovky [22].

The existing cemetery in Velichovky, which is used to

its limits, is located around a church in the centre of the

town. As the town is short in plots for development, we

found a plot near the town, a locality called Bůhdal (God’s

gift), which is well suited for the construction of a new

cemetery. Formerly, a farm used to be situated there, but

only an overgrown grove is to be found there now.

The proposed new cemetery would be situated outside

the town, but would be connected with the existing cem-

etery via a procession pathway as a symbol of continu-

ation and next generations. Walk-through premises thus

become parts of the landscape and an imaginary centre

between ve municipalities, the citizens of which may

also use the cemetery for burials or ash disposal. In the

proposal another dominant path enriched by an alley was

selected so that the necropolis could be accessed from two

dierent directions. The elevated locality, where a former

farmstead as a centre of prospering and locally important

agricultural residence was located, only emphasizes the

uniqueness and signicance of the locality. The two el-

lipses of the roads form a symbolic number “eight”, the

sign of innity, which expresses the innite course of life,

with its births and deaths, where one conditions the other

[23]. A constituent of the procession path is the existing

crucix, which is located on the axis against the entrance

gate and at the same time close to the ellipsis (Fig. 5).

Although the premises are fenced, as the tradition or-

dains, the complex well communicates with the landscape

and makes its natural part. The lines of the procession

paths connect the cemetery with the surrounding towns/

villages, where the path enables the access, transit, and

space for meditation at the dierent stages of the proces-

sion pathway.

The landscape itself and the heritage of the former farm -

stead helped to create and identify new symbols, which

are rather hard to nd in the predominantly secularized

society. Despite a signicant departure from traditions,

the need for symbols in the landscape is endless. Symbols

become destinations or connecting points on journeys,

and certain anchors in the atheistic society. In the case of

a cemetery, the desire for symbols increases, often in an

attempt to explain death [24].

The cross/crucix has been the symbol for centuries.

In the locality, one is situated near the church and the ex-

isting cemetery in Velichovky, i.e. at the start of the pro-

cession pathway. Next, there is another, already existing,

cross on the axis towards the major entrance into the new

proposed, which is incorporated into the new layout. At

the end of the procession pathway, in the town of Hustířa-

ny, there is an existing stone crucix.

Fig. 5. Interconnection of two

towns by procession pathways

which form the sign of infinity

in the premises of the newly

designed cemetery (source: [22])

Il. 5. Połączenie dwóch miast

ścieżkami procesyjnymi, które

tworzą znak nieskończoności

na terenie nowo projektowanego

cmentarza (źródło: [22])

Integration of cemeteries and funeral architecture into urban organisms 73

Another symbol is nature itself. Nature has been a fre-

quent symbol in the funeral architecture since the 2

half

of the 20

century to date [19]. In the proposal, nature is

represented by the landscape surrounding the towns/vil-

lages, through which run the procession pathways. The

pathway connects to a cycle route, in this way enriching

the landscape with another element. The original grove

with full-grown trees is suitable to form a natural chap-

el, where ashes may be disposed near the roots of the

full-grown as well as newly planted trees in line with the

trends of the so-called natural burials [5]. In the proposal,

an elevated meadow near the forest is chosen to locate

the cemetery, which emphasizes the signicance of the

site and where the access pathways arrive from the neigh-

bouring municipalities. The nature is omnipresent, in the

premises of the cemetery, in views, in the graves as well

as the sites for ash disposal.

The third symbol is the sign of innity incorporated

into the shape of the major roads in the cemetery. The sign

of innity, “the horizontal eight” as the Czech people say,

has a number of historical connotations in the Czech his-

tory. Many years of the past century that played an im-

portant role in the Czech/Czechoslovak history include

the numeral “eight”, e.g., 1918, 1938, 1948, 1968, 1989

(only as far as the 20

century is concerned, but the begin-

nings date back to 658 and continue throughout the whole

Czech history) [25].

The premises of the cemetery were complemented with

a ceremony and mourning hall and a columbarium in the

front of the hall, and an outdoor chapel/pavilion for cer-

emonies during ash disposal or for meditation, as well as

space for relaxation for the visitors (Fig. 6).

In the layout of a ceremony and mourning hall there

is sucient entrance room – an entrance platform for

funeral ceremony visitors/mourners. The roong of the

entrance platform makes space for the columbarium. The

hall is preceded by a foyer, which may be used as an ex-

tension of the ceremony and mourning hall if needed. The

view from the hall goes in two directions, but both view

the man-made zen garden. The catafalque culminates as

a strictly symmetric feature in the hall, the con may be

carried away along the central aisle for burial, or it en-

ters behind a screen after the ceremony, where the move-

ment simulates the placement of the con into the grave.

From there, the con is transported for cremation. At the

same time, the space behind the catafalque is screened

o by a glass wall and serves for private viewing of the

deceased to pay farewells by the family before closing

the con.

The layout of the utility rooms is very simply designed

in one line to minimize the con handling, from the ar-

rival and placement of the body in a refrigerator room, via

the room for body preparation, all the way to the private/

public viewing and the ceremony in the ceremony hall.

Considering the expected low number of funerals in the

locality, it was not necessary to deal with the issue of two

successive funerals.

In case of natural funeral rituals held in the church in

Velichovky, the con is carried along the procession path-

way culminating near the wooden crucix in the premises

of the cemetery. In the case of ash disposal, which occurs

as late as two months after cremation, the natural chapel

may be used for an accompanying ceremony so that the

moment could become an opportunity to celebrate the life

of the deceased and a dignied escort to the site of nal

disposal.

Utmost care is dedicated to the maximum intercon-

nectedness of the path of the deceased and the path of the

mourners. In addition, the natural chapel may be used as

a shelter to protect the mourners or travellers against se-

vere weather, or as a space for meditation.

The cemetery also comprises auxiliary facilities, main-

ly situated near the main entrance. There is the entrance

gate and reception, toilets, sta rooms, and a ower shop.

There is also an optional space for a funeral home oce.

However, there is no space for funeral receptions. Relax-

ation/meditation for the visitors of the cemetery is possi-

ble in an outdoor chapel.

Conclusions

The article points at the need to re-initiate the discus-

sion on the topic of cemeteries and funeral architecture in

the Czech Republic, where the construction of such facil-

ities and related architecture is stagnating. A convenient

year for this is a one-hundred-year anniversary of crema-

Fig. 6. A columbarium in front of the ceremony and mourning hall (a); and an outdoor chapel/pavilion (b) (source: [22])

Il. 6. Kolumbarium przed salą ceremonii i pożegnań (a) oraz kaplica/pawilon na świeżym powietrzu (b) (źródło: [22])

a b

74 Klára Palánová, Ondřej Juračka

tion in the Czech lands, when the conditions are reviewed

and new future directions are searched for.

The article features two students’ proposals. The study

of Velichovky and Hustířany cemetery well manifests how

the premises of a cemetery may become parts of the land-

scape and life in several towns and their citizens. Thus, it is

possible to interlink several functions which the premises

are able to oer and are ready not to deny. Due to the lo-

cation and interpretation as well as interconnection of two

towns, the author managed to demonstrate how a cemetery

may enrich the landscape and return to the roots of life

and death. The study works with the landscape as it be-

comes

a part of both the towns and it expects that the cem-

etery shall become a destination for many visitors not only

to care for the graves, but also provide opportunities for

walks,

meditations, rendezvous, and be treated as a tourist

destination. In this way, it may become an ordinary part

of the citizens’ everyday life in the given and surrounding

towns and villages. It may become a landmark that may

help to rediscover the topically of the questions related

to funeral ceremonies. As mentioned above, higher atten-

dance at cemeteries leads to lower possible vandalism.

The solution meets the needs of the contemporary society

and is sustainable for the future.

Due to the traditions that are still perceived despite

a considerable degree of secularization, the introduction

of new functions in cemetery areas or previously unused

recreational opportunities in strictly dened consecrated

areas cannot be expected and anticipated. On the contrary,

it seems appropriate to support the centuries-old tradition

of cremation, which is a very developed way of burial in

the Czech Republic, and to adapt the existing cemeteries,

which now allow burials in graves, for the possibility of

storing ashes. By integrating the premises into the city or

connecting the cemeteries outside the village to the coun-

tryside, it would still be possible to involve these plac-

es in the lives of residents and increase their attendance

(to re-perceive death as part of life, larger, more secular-

ized cities).

The transformation of mourning halls and crematoria,

increasing the ceremoniality of architectural spaces, es-

tablishing the possibility of a dignied exhibition of the

deceased before the funeral for the last farewell, connect-

ing the cultural and technical part of crematoria for ac-

companying the bereaved to cremation, for the needs of

today’s society.

The research will continue with the specication of

other services that are or may be oered at dierent funer-

al facilities in the Czech Republic in contrast with abroad.

We are particularly interested in the attendance rates of

urn gardens and cemeteries located at the town peripher-

ies. Next, we are going to map the needs and expectations

of cemetery visitors and citizens in towns, with a partic-

ular interest in those who may not have a reason to go to

cemeteries under the current conditions. The aim is to nd

solutions, possibly via identifying the missing services to

increase the attendance rates and possibly increase the in-

terest in the care for their deceased, reduce the incidents of

vandalism in remote localities, and arouse interest in the

sepulclar art and cultural-social legacy.

The study may be interesting also in countries with

similar stagnation of cemetery and crematoria construc-

tion, such as Slovakia or Romania, where neither new

secularized funeral architecture nor urn groves are built.

Acknowledgements

The article has been supported by the project of “Conceptual develop-

ment of science and research activities 2021” at the Faculty of Civil

Engineering, VŠB-TU Ostrava.

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Abstract

Czech cemeteries and funeral architecture – the problem of integration with urban landscape – research and design studies

One hundred years after the rst cremation, the Czech Republic is facing stagnation in the development of cemeteries, crematoria, and funeral

architecture. The stagnation is caused by a low interest of both the society and the government. We carried out interviews and eld research to specify

the strengths and weaknesses of 20 funeral facilities (cemeteries, crematoria and ceremony and mourning halls) and to discuss new directions of

development. Based on the interviews and analysis of the sites, we evaluated the needs and requirements of the current society and funeral facility

operators. We also present one student work to propose how to deal with the identied weaknesses. It shows that it is very advantageous to design new

facilities mixing the knowledge of the nation’s traditions, new trends, and the society’s customs. Through an innovative approach, even cemeteries

that are placed outside towns may become functional parts of the landscape, for example through interconnecting several neighbouring villages and

via creating new landmarks.

Key words: cemeteries, crematoria, funeral architecture, burial, land use planning, mourning

Streszczenie

Cmentarze i architektura funeralna w Czechach – problem integracji z krajobrazem miejskim – badania i studia projektowe

W Republice Czeskiej sto lat po pierwszej kremacji nastąpiła stagnacja w rozwoju cmentarzy, krematoriów i architektury funeralnej. Stagnacja

ta spowodowana jest niskim zainteresowaniem zarówno społeczeństwa, jak i rządu. Autorzy artykułu przeprowadzili wywiady i badania terenowe

w celu określenia mocnych i słabych stron 20 obiektów pogrzebowych (cmentarzy, krematoriów oraz sal ceremonialnych i żałobnych) oraz omó-

wienia nowych kierunków rozwoju. Na podstawie przeprowadzonych wywiadów i analizy obiektów dokonano oceny potrzeb i wymagań obecne-

go społeczeństwa oraz operatorów zakładów pogrzebowych. Przedstawiono również jedną z prac studenckich, w której zaproponowano sposoby

radzenia sobie ze zidentykowanymi słabościami. Pokazuje ona, że bardzo korzystne jest projektowanie nowych obiektów łączących wiedzę

o tradycjach narodu, nowych trendach i zwyczajach społeczeństwa. Dzięki innowacyjnemu podejściu nawet cmentarze położone poza miastami

mogą stać się funkcjonalnymi elementami krajobrazu, na przykład poprzez połączenie kilku sąsiadujących ze sobą wsi i stworzenie nowych punktów

orientacyjnych.

Słowa kluczowe: cmentarze, krematoria, architektura funeralna, planowanie przestrzenne, żałoba

Czech cemeteries and funeral architecture – the problem of integration with urban landscape – research and design studies

Klára Palánová, Ondřej Juračka

doi:10.37190/arc220106

Abstract