Last Updated on December 1, 2023
Historical buildings made of human skulls. Every human being has bones and a skull. But not all humans have the courage to linger to look at the skull. Because the skull will make many people remember instantly death and other scary things. A magnificent historical building is generally made of concrete and a mixture of various stones and beautiful ceramics. But in various parts of the world, it turns out that there are several luxurious buildings that are actually made of human bones.
But that hasn’t stopped people in some parts of the world from building, containing hundreds or even thousands of human skulls. The following are some examples of such buildings.
Watch video: Inside a CREEPY BONE CHURCH Sedlec Ossuary, Czech Republic
1. Sedlec Ossuary – Czech Republic
The Sedlec Chapel is a chapel also known as the “Church of Bones”. It’s not that hard to figure out where the nickname came from. From the outside, this chapel, located in the city of Kutna Hora, looks no different from an ordinary church or chapel.
However, as soon as visitors enter this chapel, they will immediately be treated to a view of skulls and bones made from 70 thousand skeletons. A number of bones are even arranged in such a way as to look like hanging curtains, pillars, to symbols of shields and crowns.
The site that later became the Sedlec Chapel was originally a small church surrounded by tombs. In the 13th century, a monk who had just returned from Jerusalem sprinkled the tomb with soil he had picked up from Jerusalem.
Since then, it has become one of the most crowded tombs in the Czech Republic. Residents in the Czech and surrounding areas flocked to want to be buried at the site of the Sedlec Chapel. They hope that the land brought from Jerusalem will bring good to their souls in the future.
As the number of those buried grew, the Sedlec Chapel had to be enlarged again and again. Until then, in 1870, a local wood craftsman named Frantisek Rint was appointed to rearrange the thousands of bones of the bodies buried there.
It was also thanks to Rint that the Sedlec Chapel had an interior filled with bone decorations as it is today. The Sedlec Chapel is now a bustling tourist attraction and is visited by 200,000 people annually.
2. Chapel of Bones (Évora) – Portugal
Evora is the name of a city located in central Portugal. This city has very long history. Because this city is known to have existed since the BC era. Throughout its history, this city was ruled by the Celts, the Romans, the Goths, the Moors, before becoming a city belonging to the Portuguese as it is today.
In this city too, there are buildings that have a beautiful and haunted impression. Capela dos Ossos is the name of the building. Translated from Portuguese, Capela dos Ossos means “Chapel of Bones”. A name whose origins can be guessed from just a glance at this building.
Capela dos Ossos is indeed filled with skulls and bones. The walls and pillars in the interior of this chapel are all lined with human skulls. The number of skulls that fill the chapel is estimated at more than 5,000.
Even though it seems scary, there is a philosophy of why Capela dos Ossos is filled with human skulls. This chapel was originally built in the 16th century as a common place of worship. Time passed, the city of Evora was faced with the problem of more and more people dying, while the land for burials in the city was increasingly limited.
Seeing this situation, the chapel administrators then offered to transfer the bones of the bodies that had been buried to Capela dos Ossos and display them on the walls. The goal is that those who visit this chapel always remember death so that they will become more obedient in carrying out their religious teachings.
3. Huey Tzompantli – Mexico City
Archaeologists have excavated more parts of the Aztec tower formed from human skulls beneath the center of Mexico City. Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) said another 119 skulls had been found. The tower structure was discovered in 2015 during the restoration of a building in the Mexican capital. The pile of skulls is believed to be part of a skull rack from the temple of the god of the sun, war and human sacrifice during the Aztec civilization.
Known as Huey Tzompantli, this skull shelf stands in the corner of the temple building of Huitzilopochtli, the patron deity of the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan. The Aztecs were a group of Nahuatl-speaking people who ruled much of central Mexico from the 14th to the 16th centuries. Also, read: Unique, These Designers Create Tiny Offices with Natural Atmosphere. Their empire was overthrown by the presence of the Spanish colonizers whose first arrival was led by Hernán Cortés. They captured Tenochtitlan in 1521. When Cortés occupied the Aztec capital some 500 years ago, the presence of the skull tower frightened his soldiers.
The cylindrical site was discovered near the Metropolitan Cathedral built on top of the Templo Mayor (Great Temple), one of the main temples of the capital city of Tenochtitlan, now known as Mexico City. “The presence of Tempo Mayor continues to surprise us, and the Huey Tzompantli is without a doubt one of the most impressive archaeological finds of recent years in our country,” said Mexico’s Culture Minister, Alejandra Frausto.
Archaeologists have identified three phases of the tower’s construction, which began between 1486 and 1502. The discovery of the skull tower structure surprised anthropologists, who initially hoped to find the skulls of young male soldiers but also found the skulls of women and children. This raises questions about the practice of human sacrifice during the Aztec Empire. “While we cannot say how many of these people were warriors, it is likely that some of them were prisoners destined for the sacrifice,” said archaeologist Raul Barrera. “We know that they are all sanctified,” he added. “Turned into a kind of a gift to the gods or even the personification of the god himself.”
4. Chapel of St. Michael, Hallstatt village – Salzkammergut, Austria
Hallstatt is the name of a city located in the center of Austria. In this city too, there is the Chapel of St. Michael whose insides are filled with human skulls. What makes the skulls in this chapel different from other chapels that also house skulls is the skull in St. Chapel. It was in full condition with small writings and paintings. It is estimated that there are 1,200 skulls stored in this place, of which as many as 610 are in a painted condition.
St. Chapel Michael has been around since the 12th century. This chapel could have been a storage place for skulls as it is now because the city of Hallstatt did not have enough land to bury the bodies.
As a solution, the skulls that had been buried were then removed and transferred to the St. Chapel. Michael. If a body were buried in Hallstatt, their grave would be exhumed 15 years later so the skull could be transferred to the chapel.
After his skull was cleaned, the skull that had been removed from his grave was then painted with religious-themed symbols by his living relatives. After that, then the skull is displayed en masse in the Chapel of St. Michael.
Not all skulls are in a painted condition. Since later generations showed no interest in painting the skulls of their deceased parents or relatives, some of the skulls in St. Michael were then left in a plain condition, aka not painted.
The Skull Tower of Nis – Niš, Serbia
In 1809, Serbian troops were attacked by Ottoman, Turkish troops at Cegar Hill, Nis, Serbia. The Serbian troops then committed suicide.
Their skulls and bodies were eventually used by Ottoman troops to build a 4.5-meter-high tower in Nis, Serbia. As of 2013, there are still 54 skulls that form the foundation of the tower.
5. Choeung Ek – Cambodia
Cambodia is a Southeast Asian country with such a dark past. The reason is that in the past, this country was ruled by the Khmer Rouge group which was famous for its cruelty. It is estimated that more than 1 million people died during the Khmer Rouge’s rule which lasted from 1975 to 1979.
So many victims of the Khmer Rouge massacre, many bodies were forced to be buried in mass graves. When the Khmer Rouge had fallen, the mass grave was dug up so the skeletons could be removed. The Choeung Ek building was then erected as a memorial as well as a silent witness to how brutal the conditions in Cambodia were when the Khmer Rouge was still in power. Choeung Ek itself was built on the site where 10,000 bodies of victims of the massacre were found.
In this place, visitors can see the skulls on display in piles in a wooden cabinet. Some of the skulls appear to be in a hollow or semi-crushed condition. A sign that the owner of the skull before his death was killed in such a cruel way.
6. Fossil Cabin – Wyoming, United States
It’s not just human bones that are used as building materials. Dinosaur bones were apparently used by humans to build a house in Wyoming, United States.
This house was built in 1932 and became one with a local gas station. In this house founded by Thomas Boylan, you will find 5,796 dinosaur bones!
7. The Great Wall of China
Yep, right. You didn’t read it wrong. One of the icons of this world’s wonders is said to have been built on the bones of its workers. Many workers became victims and ended up buried under this Great Wall of China. However, recent research suggests that this possibility is just a myth. No bones were found in this wall. Even so, there are still many people who believe in this myth.
There were even poems written to describe the situation of the forced laborers. ‘Every brick, every stone, and every inch of mud are filled with Chinese people’s bones and sweat and blood.’
8. The Skull Chapel or St. Bartholomew’s Church – Poland
This unique chapel is located in a small village in Poland. Inside, we will find more than 3,000 skulls adorning all parts of the chapel.
According to history, a priest named Vaclav Tomaszek collected human bones from plaguing victims and mass graves in 1776. Vaclav then assembled the bones in this chapel.
9. Catacombs of Paris
This underground cemetery was built right under the city of Paris, France in the 10th century ago. This cemetery was created to accommodate the bodies of French citizens because the burial ground was getting narrower. This catacomb building is quite unique because it resembles a dark cave and a passageway. As many as 6 million bodies are thought to be stored here.
Further Reading.
I hope you found this article useful. If you want to read more, here is a selection of articles you might like:
- To see all the articles about travel destinations and tourism topic categories, visit my Travel Destinations page.
- Looking for travel news, tips, and guides you can find more on Travel News.
- If you are interested in my review, check out: Apple AirPods Pro.
- Mysterious travel destinations around the world people say these spots around the world are actually gates of hell, here are where are gateways to hell located.
- Shedd Aquarium in Chicago has let its penguins wander around freely after closing its doors to visitors due to the coronavirus outbreak.
- Take a look at this packing list, Travel Essentials, that you can finally rely on. Recommend to pack for any vacation, the best way to pack a backpack is to save space.
- If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and Dailymotion Channel for Inspiring travel videos from around the world.
