A special book for 20 years of ASCE

An overview of the last 20 years of ASCE, summarized in a special edition printed book.

20 years of ASCE

In 2021, the Association of Significant Cemeteries of Europe (ASCE) celebrated its 20th anniversary. 

As a tribute to this important milestone, a special, more than 100 pages long printed book was prepared, covering a detailed overview of ASCE's operation and activities over the past 20 years - the list of all governing bodies, review of past AGMs and conferences, presentation of the Association and its projects (such as European Cemeteries Route, Cemeteries Entries, Week of Discovering European Cemeteries, EUCEMET, Symbols, Schools on Cemeteries,...), and more.

A special chapter of the book was devoted to articles prepared by all ASCE presidents and some members who shared their own view of the Association, its history, operation and meaning.

A gift for ASCE members

ASCE members who attended this year's AGM and Conference in Belgrade, received the printed book as a gift at the event.  To those members who could not attend the meeting, their copy will be delivered by standard mail in October.

Everyone else who wishes to have the book can download the printable file HERE.

The establishment of ASCE and its significance

ASCE was the first European organisation that dealt with cemeteries as a cultural asset rather than as burial grounds.

The idea of starting something new

At the end of 1999, my mixed fortunes as a civil service manager in the cultural sector who always tried to do his job with pride and competence, landed me with a job move to the Certosa di Bologna, the cemetery of my city. It was meant as a punishment but it later proved to be an extraordinary opportunity. 

When confronted with a new challenge, I would usually consider the best European examples in the field to copy them or, better, adapt them to the situation in Italy. But this time I drew a blank. I found that, sadly and inexplicably, there was no European organisation that dealt with cemeteries as a cultural asset rather than as burial grounds. I therefore resolved to set one up. 

Bringing together like-minded people

I would say that our "club", the Association of Significant Cemeteries in Europe (ASCE) is one of the first children of the internet. Indeed, I began browsing existing sites, collecting e-mail addresses, looking for a few names. Then I called a first meeting, sending invitations by e-mail. We met over dinner, on a balmy Italian evening in a beautiful street in the city centre that was closed to traffic, with a final downpour by way of blessing. It was an immediate success, so great was the need to meet among European researchers, scholars, and culturally aware officials who had realised the importance of cemeteries in the history of art and architecture, and in themselves as summaries, microcosms of the history of cities and countries. 

The following meeting, again in Bologna, saw the birth of ASCE, which succeeded in drawing together all those brilliant minds, and over these past twenty years has radically changed the public perception of burial grounds, bringing them fully into the cultural circuits, and rescuing them from the mixture of ignorance and superstition to which they had been relegated. From the outset, the contribution of Eastern European countries, at the time recently freed from Soviet rule, was extremely important.

Team effort that led to great successes

In addition to launching this association, I was its president for seven years. It was an intellectual, political and personal adventure, which to me is summed up by the friendly faces of Tamara, Ilme, Indre, Audrone, Martin, Gunnar, Anders, Maria Luisa, Giulio, Lidija and many others that I would like to meet again, under the expert guidance of Franco Sborgi, Ornella Selvafolta, Paride Caputi and Paolo Giordano.

I share with Anders the great satisfaction of receiving the Europa Nostra Award and with Maria Luisa Yzaguirre the recognition of cemeteries as a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe.

Long live ASCE!

Mauro Felicori
founder of ASCE and its first president

*You can find the original article HERE.

Achievements of ASCE in the last 20 years

20 years of ASCE through the eyes of the former president of the association Maria Luisa Yzaguirre.

The significance of cemeteries

Years ago, when we tried to transform cemeteries into cultural venues that deserve to be preserved, respected, and visited, we claimed that:

• Cemeteries are history: We will find our past reflected there.
• Cemeteries are art: In the time of splendor of these places, the main artists of the time left a sample of their art there.
• Cemeteries are memory: It is there where we can find many of our references.

And we can add that Cemeteries are respect, silence, reflection, peace, poetry, nature, and much more.

Achievements of ASCE

Together and thanks to everyone's work during these 20 years we have achieved the objective for which our association was founded - European Cemeteries are visited and their heritage recognized, while remaining places of remembrance and respect for the people who rest there.

Today, our funerary precincts are included in the cultural tours of many cities. I would dare to say that they are recognized as open-air museums, and they have lost their classification as only funerary places where we experience sadness.

We can say with great satisfaction that we have managed to get European citizens to visit their cemeteries, discover the beauty of these places, and walk around them enjoying the innumerable stories that they reveal to us.

This rapprochement between the city and the Cemetery has helped on many occasions in the restoration and conservation of cemeteries, as well as in enhancing the value of the works it contains.

ASCE 20th anniversary

On ASCE turning 20 years old, I want to congratulate all the members of our Association - those who form it now and all those who have been in it in the past and who contributed to enlarging and consolidating it.

I can't close this writing without thanking ASCE for the opportunities it gave me, to meet great people, travel to new cities, develop projects, in which I still believe, that served to unite us and helped to put our Cemeteries in their rightful place.

Congratulations to all!

Maria Luisa Yzaguirre
former ASCE president

20 years of heritage, culture, knowledge and enthusiasm

An interesting article about the work of ASCE and its impact on cemeteries in Barcelona.

Establishment of ASCE

In 2001, it became clear that there was a need to highlight the rich heritage of European cemeteries. Thanks to Mauro Felicori and his team, which at that time was represented by the heads of 9 European cemeteries, including Barcelona, the Association of Significant Cemeteries in Europe (ASCE) was set up with the basic aim of promoting the recognition of European cemeteries as cultural assets of exceptional importance and fostering awareness of them among citizens and the main national and European institutions.

The growing interest on the part of different cemetery managers has consolidated the project, with a total of 23 countries and 124 cities that have joined, and which today make ASCE a European association of reference. Barcelona has always been a very active member from its position in the Steering Committee and for some years holding the presidency.

The impact of ASCE on cemeteries in Barcelona

The evolution of cultural activities in these 20 years has been astonishing and exponential. The streets and squares of the different cemeteries in Barcelona have witnessed and been the setting for routes, concerts, open days, conferences, plays, musicals and, last but not least, spaces in which to show new generations the wealth that cemeteries contain.

It should be noted that the cultural change in our society has been an important factor in the opening of the cemeteries to the city as cultural spaces. Guided tours of the cemeteries are another of the city's attractions, and many people have chosen to take them and learn about the history of Barcelona from the people buried in the cemeteries or the sculptors and architects who left their works there. We would like to make special mention of the different spaces that house cemeteries, in general, considering them to be the depositories of a large part of the tangible and intangible heritage that we are obliged to preserve and pass on to future generations.

On the other hand, the possibility of establishing collaborations with different entities such as the University of Barcelona, the Miró Foundation, the Olympic Museum, among others, offers us the opportunity to carry out interesting projects together, which have subsequently served for students and scholars from different disciplines.

Our 'obsession' over the last ten years has been to open 'our open-air museums' to children, offering schools different educational activities to bring the cemeteries closer to the children so that they understand that cemeteries are spaces full of history and stories and that they should not always be perceived in a sad or negative way.

Barcelona has always wanted to be actively involved in the Association and to collaborate in the projects that have arisen, to offer the public the opportunity to get to know both Barcelona's and Europe's cemeteries more closely. Thus, in the year 2012 it was possible to collaborate in the Eucemet project by organising a photo exhibition in the Funeral Carriage Collection in the Montjuïc Cemetery. In this sense, and always pursuing the same objective of promoting the value of cemeteries and making them known to society, we believe that the ASCE's promotion of the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries (WDEC) is fundamental.

The uniqueness of European Cemeteries Route

We would also like to make special mention of the European Cemeteries Route, a project developed by the Association, which is conceived as a network of cemeteries which, by opening their precincts through cultural routes, makes this important funerary heritage in Europe known in a joint way.

The itinerary generates an image with the capacity to attract tourists who are looking for alternatives to the existing offer.

We must highlight the uniqueness of this itinerary with respect to other existing ones:

• It is an itinerary aimed at all segments of the public: citizens of the city itself, tourists, schools, groups, etc.
• The itinerary combines culture and nature (most of the cemeteries can be considered as parks).
• The itinerary completes the existing cultural offer in the cities and in Europe.

For them, communication tools common to all the cemeteries that take part of the route were established, as well as communication actions aimed at raising awareness of the route.

The importance of ASCE scientific committee

We do not want to end our article without making special mention of the ASCE scientific committee created expressly to supervise the Association's work plan. Members contribute their experience from different fields of work, which help to have a broader vision when proposing new projects and new cemetery inclusions.

For 20 more years of heritage, culture, knowledge, and new experiences.


Miquel Trepat Celis
General Director of Cementiris de Barcelona
Cemetery Services Management
Cemeteries of Barcelona


You can access the original article HERE.

Rediscovering the cultural importance of Greek Cemeteries

An insight into how membership in ASCE has contributed to the development and preservation of Greek cemeteries.

For the past two decades, the Association of Significant Cemeteries in Europe has gone to inspiring lengths to promote and highlight the importance of cemeteries all over Europe as part of our tangible and intangible common cultural heritage.

Skiathos, the second Municipality in Greece to become a member of the ASCE, albeit a tiny island, is home to a cemetery of great historical and artistic value. Through the inspiring leadership of the President Lidija Pliberšek, and the collaboration with the Board of ASCE, we managed to lead the way for more and more Municipalities of Greece to join or be in process of joining ASCE in the context of the European Cemeteries Route as well as to mobilise the Ministry of Culture and set a lot of different actions in motion through synergies with various bodies throughout Europe.

Skiathos’ Cemetery became a historic site, an exceptional landmark not to be missed by anyone visiting the island, even making it on the list of the “10 must-see” spots of Skiathos, according to TripAdvisor. Moreover, the local society of the island had the chance to rediscover the cultural importance of the Cemetery and its ties to not only the island’s past but the future, by strengthening the community’s bonds with the identity of Skiathos. Furthermore, promoting the significant European Cemeteries through the ASCE channels, simultaneously promotes tourism development.

Understanding the significance of European cemeteries is inextricably interwoven with understanding European culture. ASCE, a vehicle to preserve collective historical memory through protecting cemeteries, turned 20 and I personally cannot wait to see what the future hold.

Thodoris Tzoumas
Mayor of Skiathos, Greece
ASCE’s Steering Committee Member
ASCE’s Representative in Greece


You can access the original article HERE.

Photos of the AGM 2021

Three days of the ASCE Annual General Meeting 2021 in Budapest, summarized in a short photo review.

How our AGM’s have evolved

A personal retrospective on the past Annual General Meetings and their evolution over the years.

To celebrate ASCE 20th anniversary, I thought it would be nice to look back at all our past AGM’s. Also, I hope to make you aware of the key personalities in our history.

ASCE has done a great deal more than host AGM’s. This perspective will allow us a look back at how we have grown into the organisation we are today. An association which has adapted to meet the needs of our members and the increased threats to cemetery heritage.

AGM 2001: Bologna, Italy

In 2001 our founder and first president, Mauro Felicori was a manager at Bologna Certosa when he had the idea of a European wide “club” of cemeteries, as he called it.

From the beginning he felt it was important that the club should meet once a year at the end of the summer. On the 10th November 2001 the first AGM took place in Bologna, attended by around 30 delegates from 8 countries. It took place over a single day and there were no presentations. Understandably the time was taken up formulating a governing document and electing a steering group and president. That governing document stated the following aims;

1. To encourage experience and best practice.
2. To work together on common projects.
3. To awaken the national and European Institutions on the importance of cemeteries in the European heritage.
4. To encourage the attention of the Universities.
5. To promote the necessary legal innovations.
6. To draw attention to the media and tourist publishing.
7. To use new technologies more and better.

Our aims have remained much the same to this day, although there is now a greater emphasis on the care and protection of cemeteries.

The first AGM closed with a tour of the Certosa Monumental Cemetery and the element of a cemetery tour has continued to this day. Key figures at that first AGM were Anders Norsell from Stockholm, who was to take an increasing role in the management of ASCE in the coming years. Maria Luisa Yzaguirre made her first appearance and she would go onto to become our president in 2007. The most important figure and very much the initial guiding light for ASCE was Mauro Felicori, who was elected as our first president.

AGM 2002: Vilnius, Lithuania

In 2002 Vilnius in Lithuania hosted the second AGM and around 30 delegates attended. Presentations were given to the delegates on the theme of, “European Cemeteries, History, Research and Restoration”. The focus was very much on the academic and this reflected the importance that Mauro Felicori attached to establishing our association as a valid academic body, with peer review of papers presented.

AGM 2003: Barcelona, Spain

In 2003 ASCE went to Barcelona, courtesy of Jordi Valmaña, general manager of CBSA, the managing company for Barcelona cemeteries. Jordi’s keen support and the backing of CBSA has been invaluable to ASCE. However, records of this AGM are thin and sadly even the theme was not recorded. We do know that the number of delegates attending had increased to around 45.

AGM 2004: Genoa, Italy

In 2004 ASCE returned to Italy and Genoa Commune hosted the AGM with incredible generosity. One of the venues was also used by the G8 summit! Attendance had increased to over 50 delegates with 16 countries represented. It was my first AGM and I remember sitting in awe of the baroque decor. To match the surroundings the programme was ambitious and for the first time extended to three days.

Thursday was a half day formal AGM and on the Friday the programme started at 8.30 in the morning and finished at 18.30 with 19 speakers, no less! Fifteen of the presentations were academic, although four were pragmatic including one entitled, “The scanning of sculpture using laser techniques”. Amongst the speakers was Prof. Javier Rodríguez Barberán from Seville, who would later serve on our scientific committee for some years. Also present for the first time was Martin Ernerth from Berlin, who serves on the steering group today.

On the third day was a half day tour of the magnificent Staglieno cemetery. Another enhancement was the introduction of a gala dinner on Friday. At Genoa it was suitably ambitious and was held on a roof top overlooked by a flood lit medieval tower. A lot of the presentations were not in English and the hosts introduced translation services for the first time. Not put off in the least by the staggering standards set by Genoa, Martin Ernerth offered to host the next AGM.

AGM 2005: Berlin, Germany

In 2005 the Berlin AGM was significant as it was hosted by volunteers who represented the significant churchyards and cemeteries of Berlin. Also supporting the event were the Friends of Stahnsdorf, managed by Olaf Ihlefeldt, who is still part of the management of ASCE today. The event included a visit to the very rural Stahnsdhorf cemetery where Friedrich Alfred Krupp’s grave was the biggest I have ever seen, half an acre no less!

An election of officers took place and Mauro Felicori was re-elected president. For the first time a steering group was also elected. The programme was for the first time largely pragmatic with presentations looking at the differing cemetery cases of each country.

For the first time there was a workshop to take conclusions forward. Also it was the first attendance of Gunnar Wik from Bergen, Norway, who provided firm guidance on the steering group for a number of years. Finally, for the first time a printed record of the largely pragmatic presentations was made. Possibly this was prompted by the first attendance of Julie Rugg, the English academic who would take a position on the scientific committee. Also attending for the first time was our current president Lidija Pliberšek.

 

AGM 2006: Verona, Italy

In 2006 ASCE returned to Italy to Verona and despite the attractive venue only 59 delegates attended. However, the AGM had 34 speakers! To this day that is the most packed programme we have had and in order for it to happen the programme extended to the whole of Thursday as it does to this day. Verona also marked the high tide of academic presentations as all but one was academic with titles such as, “Metamorphism and the maiden in Liberty funeral sculpture”.

At the programme finish time the speakers were still going strong but not so the translators who walked out at 18.30, complaining: “Too many speaks”. Gunnar Wik then started the "English only" argument which was to eventually win out. Despite my nationality I think that is a little sad, as each language has its own beauty and added to the atmosphere of the AGM’s.

AGM 2007: Stavanger and Sandnes, Norway

In 2007 we headed north to Stavanger in Norway and it became clear which way the wind blew for the Scandinavian countries with almost a complete turnaround in the programme content. As we looked at the problems of cemetery management and emerging trends, the speakers were not academics but landscape architects and cemetery managers. The AGM saw a further expansion as it ran to the end of Saturday for the first time and most AGM’s that followed have run all of Thursday, Friday and Saturday. 

An election was held, Mauro Felicori’s six years as president came to an end and he was replaced by Maria Luisa Yzaguirre from Barcelona. There were only 14 presentations as the organisers took us to several cemeteries and as we travelled, we seemed to be either on a bridge or in a tunnel in this mountainous coastal country.

 

AGM 2008: Birkenhead, England

No traveling for me in 2008 when the Friends of Flaybrick hosted the AGM at Birkenhead with the cooperation of Wirral Borough Council. A factor in the success of an AGM is whether it is easy to access. In our case, we were very much off centre in Europe. Never the less we succeeded in getting 98 delegates from 16 countries. 

I decided to go after the speakers. I wanted to produce an AGM which was devoted to the role of volunteers in the care and restoration of cemeteries. I also had responsibility for catering were knowing your numbers is key to reducing costs. The day before the conference started, I met Maria Luisa Yzaguirre and drove her around the key locations. On the way we passed the railway station in Liverpool and I was horrified to see three delegates from one of the Balkan countries who had made no attempt whatsoever to register!

Andreea Pop has said that a consideration of a successful conference is whether it gives lasting benefits to the host. Well in our case it certainly did as the standards of grounds maintenance were raised dramatically prior to the AGM and have remained so ever since.

AGM 2009: Granada, Spain

In 2009, 99 delegates from 15 countries enjoyed the splendour of the AGM in Granada. The delegates where given presentations on cemetery tourism and culture. Amongst the speakers were Ian Hussein, Director of the Commonwealth grave Commission, Northern Europe. We also had Pascal-Hervé Daniel, Director of Paris Cemeteries, who made clear that he did not want any more tourists at Père Lachaise Cemetery, adding that he had 16 requests to film in 2008 in the previous 12 months. Interestingly, he had just introduced laser beam alarm systems for key memorials. Daniel served on our steering group for a number of years and I remember sitting next to him when an expected important dignitary walked in, Daniel said, “Ah, la grand fromage.” Since Daniel left our association, Lidija Pliberšek has worked constantly to bring Père Lachaise back into ASCE.

I clearly remember the gala dinner, our tables ringed an open courtyard with two guitarists in the middle playing the Rodriguez guitar concerto. Above us the walls of the Alhambra were lit up by a full moon - really magical. If that was not enough, the following evening we enjoyed a nocturnal tour of the Alhambra and its splendid gardens.

 

AGM 2010: Cagliari, Italy

In 2010 we returned to Italy on the island of Sardinia and its capital Cagliari. Attendance set a new record with 137 delegates from 17 countries. However not all the delegates were inside listening to presentations. The Scandinavians had suffered terrible weather that year and spent a lot of time on the terrace soaking up the sun which they had hardly seen that year. They had an added bonus as the touristic element of the programme included a tour of the beaches!

Presentations were 100% pragmatic including a presentation from Žale on new cemetery software. Delegates were also introduced to Augmented Reality, which would play a part in the future of mobile cemetery guides, such as Artour. Another key aspect was that three hours were devoted to the launch of the European Cemetery Route project.

AGM 2011: Vienna, Austria

The 2011 saw us in Vienna at an AGM focused on the Central Cemetery, the staggeringly large main cemetery of Vienna. This year saw another election and we said goodbye to Maria Luisa Yzaguirre. She withdrew completely from ASCE but had for some time given guidance and advice to Lidija Pliberšek who was elected as our new president. A total of 115 delegates from 16 countries heard 14 presentations equally balanced between academic and pragmatic with the delegates able to hear them in German and Spanish as well as English.

AGM 2012: Maribor, Slovenia

In 2012, AGM was held in Maribor, Slovenia and despite the fine location only 60 delegates attended. One of the missing delegates was myself, so I am afraid my record of the event is not good. However, I can tell you that the programme was largely pragmatic and for the first time Dušan Vrban spoke to the AGM about the technical possibilities for the future.

 

AGM 2013: Amsterdam, The Netherlands

2013 saw us in Amsterdam, thanks to the generous support of the Facultatieve Company, long -time supporters of ASCE. The programme examined current changes in the cemetery environment with Dr. Julie Rugg speaking on the changing landscape of death and Wim van Midwoud looking at the need for harmony between cremation and burials.

 

AGM 2014: Barcelona, Spain

In 2014 ASCE returned to Barcelona and our most successful AGM ever with 150 delegates attending. A mix of cemetery managers and academics examined the themes of, "Remembrance, memory and heritage". The delegates enjoyed the unique atmosphere of a night time tour of Poblenou Cemetery accompanied by live classical music.

 

AGM 2015: Bucharest, Romania

In 2015 we went further east than ever before in the city of Bucharest. The AGM was close to not taking place due to considerable political changes and it was only thanks to the efforts of Andreea Pop that we were able to enjoy the entirely pragmatic AGM without disruption. The theme was, “Foreigners in Significant Cemeteries” so it was particularly appropriate to hear a presentation from Julia Bolton Holloway (born in London), resplendent in her nuns habit, speaking on the Non Catholic Cemetery of Florence which she manages.

 

AGM 2016: Dublin, Ireland

I was closely involved in the organisation of the speakers programme for the AGM 2016, hosted by the Glasnevin Cemetery Trust. That year marked the centenary of the Easter Uprising and I proposed a theme of “Conflict, Interpretation, Memorialisation = Reconciliation”. George McCullough and Mervyn Colville, the trust managers, bravely took on this theme.

The AGM was largely academic and succeeded in achieving balance in the face of political sensitivities, as the Trust always has done at Glasnevin. Attendance was good and significantly one of the delegates was Richard Moylan, president of the Green-Wood Cemetery in New York. For the first time there was significant commercial input towards the costs of the event with a partnership with the Eco Legacy company.

AGM 2017: Athens, Greece

In 2017, ASCE went to Greece for the first time for an AGM in Athens. Sadly, this was another miss for me but the delegates enjoyed a strongly academic programme with the appropriate theme of “Ancient Greek Art and European Funerary Art”. The lead organiser for the event was Professor Evangelia Georgitsoyanni who worked hard to ensure that for the first time the presentations were published in a printed document.

 

AGM 2018: Innsbruck, Austria

In 2018 ASCE returned to Austria in the city of Innsbruck. The programme was largely academic but there was a presentation, “Adding Value to Cemeteries with Mapping”, achieved with 360 degree videoing. There were 23 speakers but Alexander Legniti made sure that the programme ran to time by installing traffic lights in front of the speakers!

 

AGM 2019: Ghent, Belgium

For the first time Belgium hosted the AGM in the city of Ghent in 2019. A very strong partnership of no less than 8 organisation including ASCE and three years of planning resulted in our most successful AGM ever with 163 delegates from 19 countries attending. It was also the longest, with the event having commencing at 4pm on the Wednesday and finishing on Saturday afternoon. Also, a new development was the inclusion of post conference drinks on the Friday night.

Delegates heard presentations on the theme of, “Heritage cemeteries in the 21st century, Use, Reuse and Shared Use”. For the first time our AGM was enhanced with poster sessions with a total of 20 on display.

We visited Laeken Cemetery, with its stunning backdrop and for the first time visited a cemetery sculptor’s workshop. At St. Amandsberg Cemetery we were able to see restorers at work using epoxy resins to fix shattered stones. We also learned how the coast of restoration was met by sponsorship.

 

AGM 2020: Vienna, Austria

Sadly, after this triumph in 2019, in 2020 our AGM was all but wiped out by Covid and reduced to just a short formal AGM held online, hosted by Vienna.

AGM and Conference 2021

We are now about to come to a full 20 year circle with a dynamic return from Covid and a triple pronged resurgence! For those of you who are able to travel, an AGM will take place for the first time in Hungary on the 16th to the 18th September thanks to our new partners, The National Heritage Institute in Budapest. Delegates will be able to experience the full splendours of this historic city thanks to a cemetery, museum and touristic programme. They will also be able to participate in the process of the formal AGM and enjoy a gala dinner whilst cruising the Danube. For those not able to make it to Budapest there will be the possibility of participating online.

Finally, an online Conference will be hosted by Highgate on the 11th and 12th of November. The theme will be, “Cemetourism – cemeteries with a story to tell”. As I sit on the editorial board, I can assure you that the speakers will be wide ranging and pragmatic, aiming to help you to enhance your cemetery visitor experience.

John Moffat
UK Steering Group member

You can access the original article HERE.

The meaning of cemeteries changes

Tradition meets alternative, analog meets digital, cemeteries support environmental protection and are an important part of our daily living.

The importance of cemeteries is changing, isn’t it?

And what role does ASCE play with this? There are many cemeteries in Vienna. This is very special. A wonderful city with about 2.000.000 inhabitants and 55 cemeteries. So, even after being there, you can find what you are looking for in Vienna.

My heart found the cemeteries 4 years ago. Before I didn't care about death, graves, cemeteries, and finiteness. And then I started in the position of the general manager of Friedhöfe Wien. I made myself ready for this position, studied a lot of articles, numbers, data and facts and thought about the challenges in connection with the 500 hectares of cemetery area. And there was a lot of good advice like “It’s a safe business, people always die” and “At the end, everyone is coming to you”. So, what do you think about it? Is it true?

No, it is not! Cemeteries have changed. The expectations of cemeteries have changed because society has changed. Megatrends like urbanization, digitalization, globalization also influence life in cemeteries. We do not have enough time to visit and care for the grave sites, maybe we live in another city or country. The idea of a grave site has changed. So, there are many grave site owners, who left the cemeteries. The cultural heritage, the memory of those who have passed away is in jeopardy. ASCE understood this risk years ago. For 20 years, ASCE and its members have been working to emphasize the importance of cemeteries. Together we want to create a “new” value and contemporary importance for it.

But is it possible to actively change the importance of cemeteries for now and for the future?

We must rethink cemeteries. The “use” has always changed over the centuries. Often due to the location of the cemeteries. They were far away from the cities, they were the center part of the cities, they were trading markets, they were part of our life. It is a wonderful thought, that our beloved deceased are still part of our lives, of our living space and everyone can leave a little footprint, isn’t it?

So, what is our challenge, our responsibility as cemetery administrator, as cemetery designer?

We must adapt our offer for society. We must offer something for all requirements. Cemeteries must be interesting and valuable. Be creative! Do you have any idea about it?

We have: tradition meets alternative, analog meets digital, cemeteries support environmental protection and are an important part of our daily living.

Would you like some examples from Vienna?

Let's have a look at tradition:

Let's have a look at alternatives:

Let´s go digital:

That´s nature in the cemeteries:

Cemeteries (should) have many faces. This is what ASCE has stood for for the last 20 years: Together we update the importance of cemeteries to save cultural heritage. We create new networks, share experiences, and improve our services – together! The more people participate, the stronger the network and the ability to maintain and develop the value of the cemeteries. Be part of it!

Mag. Renate Niklas,
general manager of Friedhöfe Wien GmbH

You can access the original article HERE.

Find more about cemeteries in Vienna:

Friedhöfe Wien GmbH
Simmeringer Hauptstraße 339 – 1110 Wien

post@friedhoefewien.at | www.friedhoefewien.at | www.digitalesgrab.at
Facebook & Instagram: @FriedhoefeWien

An ASCE conference is only a start

From the discovery of the Flemish and Brussels funerary heritage to the publication of a book and the development of a card game for children.

The AGM and Conference 2019

The City of Ghent (Belgium) hosted in 2019 the ASCE Annual General Meeting & Conference. Although the presentations, the conversations between the participants and the discovery of the Flemish and Brussels funerary heritage were the main objectives of the organising committee, some two years later the return is much bigger than four wonderful and intense days.

International friendships were made and are maintained. A like on Facebook or Instagram, the sharing of fascinating posts, photos of each other's work and shared interests inspire us in our daily work, bind us internationally together and make us long for a return visit.

But there is more.

The Ghent ASCE AGM & Conference has also meant a lot for Flanders itself. People, organisations and cities who worked together on the conference got to know each other better and learned about each other’s work. We know better now who to contact with questions, ideas and concerns. An e-mail is quicker send and a phone call is easier made. Experiences are shared and more inventive solutions are implemented.

Publication of a book

Those contacts resulted this spring in a book that is pioneering for Flanders and fills a void: Memento Mori, In dialoog met de begraafplaats (Memento Mori: in dialogue with the cemetery). The book is based on the same ideas as the conference: use, shared use and re-use. But it goes further than that and looks at the design of the cemetery as a place for mourning, evolutions through time and the handling of our heritage as an obvious task for the cemetery manager. It has become a book about the place of the (historical) cemetery in our modern society. The cemetery as a space for the bereaved, the local resident and the visitor. The place to deal consciously with death, burial, last wishes, farewells and memories.

Without the ASCE conference, this book might never have become a reality. Initiators of the book are Lieve Destoop of the City of Ghent and Tamara Ingels of Intro Cultuur en Media / Grafzerkje. Several of the authors were speakers at the ASCE conference such as Nandy Dolman, Marc De Bie, Maarten Herbots and Hendrik de Bouvre or hosted a chair such as Joeri Mertens. The book was presented on the occasion of the opening of the 2021 Week of Discovering European Cemeteries (WDEC) in Flanders and Brussels.

It does not stop there. 

Activities during WDEC 

The Corona pandemic has taught us all to organise a variety of activities during the WDEC instead of the classical guided visits. Self-guided walks in small groups, family activities, a special attention towards children and online lectures became increasingly popular.

The city of Ghent, together with Intro Cultuur en Media, has therefor developed a card game for children called Speurneuzen (detectives). It's a game that allows parent and children to talk about death, burial and heritage in an active yet playful and fun way. The project is not site-specific and can be used at any cemetery. The Dutch cards can be downloaded and there even is a nice little box to fit the cards in. You can make the box yourself and it’s great fun to colour and decorate it together with the kids.

On the last Sunday morning of WDEC, Marc De Bie presented the aperitif lecture The origins of burial and family: a prehistoric perspective. From behind their screens, he took visitors on a journey to Belgian prehistory and the story of life, family and death in our distant past.

The impact of AGM & Conference

To say that the ASCE AGM & Conference 2019 has put funerary heritage on the Flemish map is perhaps an exaggeration, but it has certainly given it a boost and brought people and ideas together.

Altogether we now reflect, think and write even more passionately about the values of our common funerary heritage resting in our cemeteries.

Joeri Mertens
Heritage Flanders

You can access the original article HERE.

Skogskyrkogården: 20+ years of being unique

Skogskyrkogården (The Woodland Cemetery) is unique in its own way. It is characterized by the interaction between landscapes and buildings, richness of detail, essential vegetation and varied lines of sight.

For 20 years, the Association of Significant Cemeteries in Europe (ASCE) has been a select group for cemeteries considered to be of historical or artistic importance. Through activities and dissemination of knowledge, ASCE has drawn the attention of citizens and tourists to the values that the significant cemeteries possess. ASCE has also created an important network and meeting place for cemetery enthusiasts around Europe who work for the preservation of these essential and valuable environments.

The member cemeteries represent a diversity of; culture, religion, tradition, history and architect- ural expressions. What all the cemeteries have in common, is that they are unique, in their own way, and that is what makes them significant.

For 20 years, Skogskyrkogården (The Woodland Cemetery) in Stockholm, Sweden, has been one of the significant cemeteries. What makes Skogskyrkogården unique is that it has also been a UNESCO World Heritage Site for 20+ years.

It all started in 1914 when the cemetery committee announced an international competition to design Stockholm’s new southern cemetery. Cemetries of that time were designed as magnificent parks with lavish grave monuments as a tribute to the dead. The cemetery committee now wanted to create a unique cemetery where nature and architecture formed a harmonious whole. The winners of the competition were the young, Swedish, architects Gunnar Asplund and Sigurd Lewerentz.

The Landscape

With the competition entry Tallum, the architects fulfilled the requirements to create a cemetery integrated with the existing nature by making use of the site’s existing topography and forest.

The cemetery is surrounded by a 4km long stone wall. Inside the semi-circular main entrance, the rolling landscape opens up. The iconic Almhöjden (Elm Hill) and the stone cross, designed by Gunnar Asplund, catches the visitor’s eye. In the distance, the pine woodland of the burial ground appears as a dark green silhouette. The 900m long processional path Sju brunnars stig (Seven wells path) leads you through the woodland to the southern part of the cemetery.

Landscape architect Sigurd Lewerentz was the one who designed the majority of the landscape, such as Almhöjden and the garden of remembrance, which was inaugurated in 1961.

Skogskyrkogården is unique in its kind and is characterized by the interaction between landscapes and buildings, richness of detail, essential vegetation and varied lines of sight. Throughout the design is the idea of the journey between light and darkness, between joy and sorrow, through the cycle of life-death-life.

The Woodland

Skogskyrkogården is not only a World Heritage Site but also an active cemetery. The 107 hectare large cemetery houses over 100,000 graves, which makes it one of northern Europe’s largest cemeteries.

The graves interact with the woodland on the pine-covered grassy areas. The cemetery’s 10,000 pine tree trunks tower up between the gravestones like roman pillars and their crowns form a green canopy against the sky.

The pines at Skogskyrkogården are one of the building blocks that make the World Heritage Site unique and the importance of its preservation is specially designated to maintain the World Heritage Status. One of the cemetery’s biggest threats is damage to the trees due to disease, grave digging or age. To ensure regrowth, new pines are planted in the cemetery every year. Seeds plucked from the original pine trees ensure that the right plant material is used.

The Five Chapels

Inside the forest lies Skogskapellet (The Woodland Chapel). The chapel, which is the cemetery’s smallest, was designed by Gunnar Asplund and is modestly subordinate to the pines and fir trees. Skogskapellet was inaugurated in 1920 in conjunction to the inauguration of Skogskyrkogården.

Soon after, it was established that the chapel was too small for a large funeral party. In 1925, Uppståndelsekapellet (The Chapel of Resurrection) was completed, which was designed by Lewerentz and was twice as big as Skogskapellet. The chapel with its neoclassical design acts as the destination at the end of Sju brunnars stig and is visible all the way from the top of Almhöjden.

At the entrance of Skogskyrkogården, Asplund designed the cemetery’s main buildings. Due to financial and practical reasons, construction was delayed. In 1940, however, Skogskrematoriet (The Woodland Crematorium) was completed with its three chapels, Tron (Faith), Hoppet (Hope) and Heliga korset (the Holy Cross). Functionalism now had its impact, which permeates through the entire design.

The unique layout of each building shows the architects’ eye for richness of detail, focus on the visitors experience and the cycle of life-death-life.

The Crematoria

In 2009, history repeated itself when the cemetery committee announced a new architectural competition at Skogskyrkogården. After more than 60 years in operation, Gunnar Asplund’s crematorium closed down, as a more modern facility was now required. Five international architectural firms were invited to compete and the winning entry was En sten i skogen (A Stone in the Forest) by Johan Celsing in collaboration with Müller Illien Landschafts- architekten.

Nya krematoriet (The New Crematorium) was inaugurated in 2014 and opened for business in 2015 after Skogskrematoriet conducted its last cremation No. 285,944. Once again, a unique building had been constructed at Skogskyrkogården, which was discreetly integrated into the surrounding woodland. In 2013, Nya krematoriet received the national Swedish Kasper Salin-Prize for high architectural quality.

The World Heritage Site

Since 1994, Skogskyrkogården has been recognized on the UNESCO World Heritage List of invaluable cultural and natural heritage sites. The motivations for this recognition are as follows:

• ”The creation of Swedish architects Gunnar Asplund and Sigurd Lewerentz at Skogskyrkogården established a new form of cemetery that has exerted a profound influence on cemetery design throughout the world”.
• “The merits of Skogskyrkogården lie in its qualities as an early 20th century landscape and architectural design adapted to a cemetery”.

Skogskyrkogården is unique in its kind as the world’s only active cemetery established as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 2001 ASCE was founded with the City of Stockholm being one of the founder members. Soon afterwards, Skogskyrkogården was recognized as being significant.

In September 2020, Skogskyrkogården celebrated its 100 years anniversary. For more than 20 years, it has been a World Heritage Site and of course, it also celebrates 20 years as a significant cemetery.

The Woodland Cemetery is proud to be part of ASCE and in the celebration of its 20th anniversary. We hope to be a member for another 20+ years alongside all the other unique significant cemetery.

About the article

Text by: Sara Carlquist, City of Stockholm, Cemeteries Department
Photos by: Per Stjernberg & Sara Carlquist

You can access the original article HERE.