The Bone Church of Sedlec
HUMAN BY DESIGN
If you are looking for the ultimate in recycled construction design, you may have to leave IKEA® behind and travel to the Sedlec Ossuary in the former Czech Republic. Located beneath the small Roman Catholic All Saints Church in Sedlac near Prague, the ossuary dates back to the 13th century and is decorated inside and out with the remains of over 40,000 people. Every bone in the human body—from femur to fibula—decorates the architecture and furnishings of the chapel.
Chandelier made of human bones at Sedlec’s All Saints Ossuary.
The large number of bones is a result of a resourceful monk and a handful of dirt from Jerusalem. Sent on a diplomatic mission to the Holy Land in 1278, the Abbot of Sedlec brought back earth from Golgotha (the supposed site of the Crucifixion) and sprinkled it over the cemetery of the monastery. Consequently, the place became a popular burial spot for rich and poor alike throughout Central Europe. The plague that swept through the region in the 14th century only contributed to the necropolis’ burgeoning population by 30,000.
The current design of the Bone Church dates from 1870 when Franti
ek Rint, a Czech wood carver, was commissioned to compile all the bones and use them in an artistically pleasing way; he even signed his name, in bones, over the last bench in the chapel. The standout structure is, if not most macabre, the massive chandelier hanging in the center of the chapel, surrounded by garlands of skulls draping the vaulted ceilings. Death truly becomes this place of final repose. —SBR