Kostnice Ossuary

The Kostnice Ossuary (Church of Bones) in the Czech Republic is where 40,000 dead form morbidly fascinating sculptures and artwork. Legend has it that in the late 13th century a handful of earth from Christ's grave was brought to Sedlec and scattered over the graveyard, thus turning it into a pilgrimage site for people from all over Central Europe. The medieval plague epidemic saw thousands of people being buried there, far too many for the graveyard to cope with. The first attempt at doing something creative with the bones (some 40,000 people "contributed" to the decoration of the ossuary) was in 1511, when a half-blind monk arranged them in pyramids. Much later, in 1870, the Schwarzenberg family, who bought Sedlec Monastery and the ossuary, hired a woodcarver by the name of Frantisek Rint to create the remaining decorations - which include monstrances, pinnacles, urns, the Schwarzenberg coat of arms, Rint's own signature, and an extraordinary chandelier that apparently features every single bone in the human body. You can find out more from the official site at http://www.kostnice.cz/ and see photos at http://www.artgraphica.net/art-shop/prague-kutna-hora-bone-church.htm

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