The oldest cemeteries in Poland

The tradition of creating cemeteries, as a burial place, dates back to the Roman times, or perhaps even earlier. Today, for most of the Polish people, necropolises are are special places, where they can visit their deceased loved ones. Let us introduce you to some of the oldest cemeteries in Poland, where you can find historical tombs and monuments.

Cemeteries at Lipowa street in Lublin
When it comes to listing the oldest cemeteries in Poland, we just have to mention the cemeteries at Lipowa street in Lublin. It is the oldest and most well-known cemetery complex in eastern Poland, which consists of: a roman-catholic cemetery, an evangelic-augsburgian cemetery and an
army-municipal cemetery. The origins of the necropolis date back to 1794, and the interesting thing about it is that until the late 18th century there was no separate place dedicated to burials.

In the oldest part of the cemetery we can today admire about 1000 graves from the 19th century. The necropolis is the location of gravestones created by many renowned artists, including:
Antoni Kurzawa, Bolesław Jeziorański and Konstanty Laszczek.

The Rakowicki Cemetery in Kraków
At Rakowicka street in Kraków you can find a municipal necropolis, which was formerly known as Cmentarz Miejski (the City Cemetery). Because its history dates back to early 1803, it is obligatory to visit when it comes to visiting oldest Polish cemeteries. Some of the most famous people resting at the Rakowicki Cemetery include, among others, Jan Matejko and Wisława Szymborska. This is also the burial place of countless members of armoured uprisings and international wars from many sides of the conflicts.

The Old Cemetery in Ostrów Wielkopolski
Ostrów Wielkopolski has a reason to be proud. The oldest functioning catholic cemetery in Poland happens to be not in Warsaw, not in Kraków, but – you guessed it – in Ostrów Wielkopolski. This necropolis was established in 1782, and was one of the first ones to be located not by a church, but outside the city. While walking through the charming alleys we can admire ancient gravestones and see the diversity of styles: classic gravestones, neo-romantic gravestones and Art Nouveau gravestones.