Horror films and haunted houses are fine if you like your fright imaginary. Feeling ready to meet some real spirits? Take a look at the list of the world's spookiest cemeteries -- and I dare you to visit after dark.
1. South Park Street Cemetery
India’s South Park Street Cemetery was one of the earliest non-church cemeteries in the world. It features a rich blend of Gothic and Hindu-inspired design, as well as some famous mystery inscriptions. The strikingly ambiguous “Grave 363” reads only, “a virtuous mother, died 1825”.
2. Highgate Cemetery
London’s famous cemetery is the final resting place of many public figures, and is designated as both a nature reserve and a point of historic interest. Also referenced in the original Dracula story, it is rumoured to have been the inspiration for the spooky setting in many versions that followed.
3. Catacombs of San Callisto
A visit to Rome's catacombs is a must for anyone interested in the history of the city and early Catholic Church. Touring the narrow passageways, you can see where early Christians were buried, celebrated Mass, and, in some cases, were violently attacked.
4. St Louis Cemetery #1
Located in New Orleans, this graveyard is known for the entombment of some famous voodoo celebrants, and its above-ground graves. These were established to combat water table problems, as flooding in the cemetery led to the disturbing re-appearance of some of the departed, suddenly rising above the surface.
5. Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery
Famous for its hauntings and horrors, a visit to Bachelor’s Grove takes a brave soul. This abandoned cemetery is located in a very small township near Chicago, and is well known for sightings of monks in robes and the appearance of a farmhouse that floats, shrinks, and disappears altogether.
6. Père-Lachaise Cemetery
Paris's The Père-Lachaise Cemetery has a strange history. It was originally shunned because it had not been blessed by the Roman Catholic Church. In an effort that is both eerie and intriguing, the administrators began collecting the remains of famous public figures as a marketing strategy in 1804
1. South Park Street Cemetery
India’s South Park Street Cemetery was one of the earliest non-church cemeteries in the world. It features a rich blend of Gothic and Hindu-inspired design, as well as some famous mystery inscriptions. The strikingly ambiguous “Grave 363” reads only, “a virtuous mother, died 1825”.
2. Highgate Cemetery
London’s famous cemetery is the final resting place of many public figures, and is designated as both a nature reserve and a point of historic interest. Also referenced in the original Dracula story, it is rumoured to have been the inspiration for the spooky setting in many versions that followed.
3. Catacombs of San Callisto
A visit to Rome's catacombs is a must for anyone interested in the history of the city and early Catholic Church. Touring the narrow passageways, you can see where early Christians were buried, celebrated Mass, and, in some cases, were violently attacked.
4. St Louis Cemetery #1
Located in New Orleans, this graveyard is known for the entombment of some famous voodoo celebrants, and its above-ground graves. These were established to combat water table problems, as flooding in the cemetery led to the disturbing re-appearance of some of the departed, suddenly rising above the surface.
5. Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery
Famous for its hauntings and horrors, a visit to Bachelor’s Grove takes a brave soul. This abandoned cemetery is located in a very small township near Chicago, and is well known for sightings of monks in robes and the appearance of a farmhouse that floats, shrinks, and disappears altogether.
6. Père-Lachaise Cemetery
Paris's The Père-Lachaise Cemetery has a strange history. It was originally shunned because it had not been blessed by the Roman Catholic Church. In an effort that is both eerie and intriguing, the administrators began collecting the remains of famous public figures as a marketing strategy in 1804